Rule 130, Income-tax Rules 2026 — Time limits

Where this rule sits

Rule 130 gives effect to Section 274 of the Income-tax Act, 2025. A rule cannot go beyond the section it serves: where the two seem to differ, the section governs.

← Rule 129 · Rule 131 →

What this rule does

The rule fixes three time limits binding on the Commissioner for the purposes of section 274.

Under clause (a) he shall not issue directions under section 274(3) after the expiry of one month from the end of the month in which the date of compliance of the notice issued under section 274(2) falls.

Under clause (b) he shall not make any reference to the Approving Panel under section 274(4) after the expiry of two months from the end of the month in which the final submission of the assessee in response to the notice issued under section 274(2) is received.

Under clause (c) he shall issue directions to the Assessing Officer in Form No. 63 — within one month from the end of the month in which the reference is received by him, in the case referred to in rule 129(4)(a); and within two months from the end of the month in which the assessee's final submission in response to the section 274(2) notice is received by him, in the case referred to in rule 129(4)(b).

Why it is there

Section 274 puts an assessee through a sequence of steps — a notice, a submission, then either directions or a reference to the Approving Panel — without saying how long the Commissioner may take at each turn. The rule closes those gaps. Each limit is measured from the end of the month in which a fixed, identifiable event occurred: the date of compliance of the notice, the receipt of the assessee's final submission, or the receipt of the reference.

Who it applies to

The Commissioner acting under section 274
An assessee who has received a notice under section 274(2)
The Assessing Officer to whom directions are issued in Form No. 63

The figures, and what each one turns on

Read the condition in the same row. A figure quoted without it is a wrong answer with a citation attached.

What	Figure	The condition on it	Where
Outer limit for issuing directions under section 274(3)	One month	From the end of the month in which the date of compliance of the notice issued under section 274(2) falls	Clause (a)
Outer limit for a reference to the Approving Panel under section 274(4)	Two months	From the end of the month in which the final submission of the assessee in response to the section 274(2) notice is received	Clause (b)
Time to issue directions to the Assessing Officer in Form No. 63 in a rule 129(4)(a) case	One month	From the end of the month in which the reference is received by the Commissioner	Clause (c)(i)
Time to issue directions to the Assessing Officer in Form No. 63 in a rule 129(4)(b) case	Two months	From the end of the month in which the assessee's final submission in response to the section 274(2) notice is received by him	Clause (c)(ii)

The forms it prescribes

Form No. 63 — directions issued by the Commissioner to the Assessing Officer under section 274

What this means in practice

Every period here runs from the end of a month, not from the triggering date, so a submission received on the 2nd and one received on the 28th of the same month share a deadline. The three limits attach to different events and must not be run from the same one: clause (a) starts from the date of compliance of the notice, clause (b) from receipt of the assessee's final submission, and clause (c)(i) from receipt of the reference. Clause (c) is drafted as an obligation to issue rather than a bar on issuing late, while clauses (a) and (b) are prohibitions — the Commissioner shall not issue directions or make a reference after those periods. Which limb of clause (c) applies depends on which case under rule 129(4) the matter falls into, so that classification has to be settled before the deadline can be worked out.

An example

Illustrative only, and invented for this page. The figures are chosen to show the requirement biting, not taken from any real matter.

An assessee's final submission in response to a notice under section 274(2) reaches the Commissioner on 9 August. Under clause (b) any reference to the Approving Panel must be made by 31 October, two months from the end of August. If instead the matter is one referred to in rule 129(4)(b), the directions to the Assessing Officer in Form No. 63 are due by the same date under clause (c)(ii). Where a reference is received by the Commissioner on 20 September in a rule 129(4)(a) case, the Form No. 63 directions are due by 31 October, one month from the end of September.

Where you meet this rule

An assessee meets it indirectly, in the timing of the directions issued to the Assessing Officer in Form No. 63 or of the reference to the Approving Panel that follows its submission under section 274(2).

The words themselves

not issue directions under section 274(3) after the expiry of one month from the end of the month in which the date of compliance of the notice issued under section 274(2) falls

Rule 130(1)(a), Income-tax Rules, 2026.

not make any reference to the Approving Panel under section 274(4) after the expiry of two months from the end of the month in which the final submission of the assessee in response to the notice issued under section 274(2) is received

Rule 130(1)(b), Income-tax Rules, 2026.

What people get wrong

Counting from the date of the event. Each limit runs from the end of the month in which the event falls or is received.
Running the reference limit from the date of compliance of the notice. Clause (b) runs it from receipt of the assessee's final submission.
Applying a single deadline to Form No. 63 directions. Clause (c) gives one month in a rule 129(4)(a) case and two months in a rule 129(4)(b) case.
Treating the assessee's first reply as the trigger. Clauses (b) and (c)(ii) turn on the final submission in response to the section 274(2) notice.

What this page does not tell you. It does not reproduce the rule. Everything above was written from the rule’s own text as the Income Tax Department publishes it — the text is here. A rule is subordinate legislation: it prescribes the method, the form or the period, and it cannot enlarge the charge the section imposes. Where a figure matters, read the sub-rule it comes from.

Rule 130 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026