Section 155(18)

Section 155(18) — the law in short

What the courts have decided on section 155(18), in one screen. Read this first; open an entry when you need the facts, the reasoning and the source.

• G R Infraprojects Limited v ACIT High CourtHelps taxpayer
  I withdrew my education cess claim after the Finance Act 2022 inserted section 155(18). Can the officer still treat it as under-reported income and levy penalty?
  The Rajasthan High Court set the penalty aside and directed that immunity under s.270AA be granted. Where the company withdrew its cess claim by letter dated 19 March 2022, before s.155(18) came into force on 1 April 2022, and accepted the proposed variation, it was entitled to immunity from penalty under s.270A, and the initiation was in any event non est because the officer never specified which limb of s.270A(9) was attracted.
• Capgemini Technology Services India Ltd v ACIT ITATHelps taxpayerNo later treatment found
  I claimed cess before the 2022 amendment and filed Form 69. Can they still levy s.270A penalty?
  No. A cess claim made in good faith on High Court authority that was binding when the return was filed is not under-reported income, and the proviso to s.155(18) gives statutory immunity where Form 69 was filed and the recomputed tax paid.

Listed strongest first: Supreme Court, then High Court, then Tribunal, then CBDT. Nothing here has yet been read in full by a chartered accountant — open an entry to see where it came from.