Rule 286 — Requirements for approval of a fund for welfare of employees and their dependents under Schedule VII [Table: Sl. No. 2] to Act.
Sub-rule (1) requires a fund established for such purposes as may be notified by the Board for the welfare of employees and their dependents, where those employees are members of the fund, to be formed under a trust evidenced by a trust deed. Sub-rule (2) requires the contributions to the fund to be made by the employees by way of periodical subscription.
Sub-rule (3) requires the application for approval to be made in Form No. 180 to the Principal Commissioner of Income-tax or Commissioner of Income-tax having jurisdiction over the area or territory in which the accounts are kept, accompanied by the documents mentioned in the form.
Sub-rule (4) provides that where the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner is satisfied that all the conditions laid down in Schedule VII [Table: Sl. No. 2] to the Act and in this rule are fulfilled, he shall record that satisfaction in writing and grant approval specifying the tax year or years, not exceeding three tax years, for which the approval is valid; and where any of those conditions is not fulfilled, he shall reject the application after recording the reasons for rejection in writing. Sub-rule (5) forbids an order of rejection without a reasonable opportunity of being heard.
Schedule VII [Table: Sl. No. 2] gives relief in respect of an approved fund for the welfare of employees and their dependents, and approval has to be applied for and granted on stated conditions. The rule supplies the structural conditions — a trust evidenced by a deed, and contributions by employees by periodical subscription — the form and the officer, and the way the decision is made. Limiting approval to a stated span of years keeps the fund under periodic review rather than approving it once and for all.
| What | Figure | The condition on it | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Period for which approval may be granted | The tax year or years specified, not exceeding three tax years | On satisfaction that all the conditions in Schedule VII [Table: Sl. No. 2] and in this rule are fulfilled; this is an outer limit, and the order specifies the actual years | Sub-rule (4)(a) |
| Purposes for which the fund may be established | Such purposes as may be notified by the Board | For the welfare of employees and their dependents, where such employees are members of the fund; the rule names no purposes of its own | Sub-rule (1) |
Three years is a ceiling, not the term: sub-rule (4)(a) requires the order to specify the tax year or years for which the approval is valid and caps that span at three tax years, so an approval may well be for less. The rule does not itself say what purposes qualify — sub-rule (1) leaves them to be notified by the Board — so a fund whose object is not within a notified purpose cannot be approved however well it is constituted. Two structural conditions are absolute: the fund must be formed under a trust evidenced by a trust deed, and the contributions must come from the employees by way of periodical subscription, which leaves no room for a fund financed by employer contributions or by lump sums. Jurisdiction follows where the accounts are kept, not the employer's head office. Rejection is possible only after the reasons are recorded in writing and a reasonable opportunity of being heard is given.
An employees' welfare fund is set up under a trust deed, with member employees paying a monthly subscription, and applies in Form No. 180 to the Commissioner in whose area its accounts are kept. If the purposes of the fund are within those notified by the Board and the other conditions in Schedule VII [Table: Sl. No. 2] and this rule are fulfilled, the Commissioner records his satisfaction in writing and grants approval, specifying the tax years for which it is valid — at most three.
In the Form No. 180 application and in the approval or rejection order that follows, and again when the approval period specified in that order runs out and a fresh application becomes necessary.
shall be formed under a trust and it shall be evidenced by a trust deed
The contributions to the fund are to be made by the employees by way of periodical subscription.
he shall record such satisfaction in writing and grant approval to the fund specifying the tax year or years not exceeding three tax years for which the approval shall be valid