Processing of Income Tax Return [Section 143(1)]

1. Adjustement of Income or Loss submitted by Assessee by Assessing Officer Under Section 143(1)

2. Opportunity to the Assessee by the Assessing Officer under Section 143(1)

3. Intimation to the Assessee by the Assessing Officer under Section 143(1)

4. Scheme for Centralized Processing of Return [Section 143(1B)]:

5. Processing of Return within the prescribed Time and enable withholding of Refund in certain cases [Section 143(1D)] [W.r.e.f. 2017-18]

Under section 143(1), the Assessing Officer can complete an assessment without passing a regular assessment order. The assessment is completed on the basis of return submitted by the assessee under (i) section 139 or (ii) in response to a notice under section 142(1),.

The Assessing Officer can, however, make the following adjustments to the total income declared in the return of income –

1. Adjustement of Income or Loss submitted by Assessee by Assessing Officer Under Section 143(1)

1. the total income or loss shall be computed after making the following adjustments, namely:—

   1. any arithmetical error in the return; or

   2. an incorrect claim, if such incorrect claim is apparent from any information in the return;

   3. disallowance of loss claimed, if return of the previous year for which set off of loss is claimed was furnished beyond the due date specified under section 139(1);

   4. disallowance of expenditure indicated in the audit report but not taken into account in computing the total income in the return;

   5. disallowance of deduction claimed under sections 10AA, 80-IA, 80-IAB, 80-IB, 80-IC, 80-ID or section 80-IE, if the return is furnished beyond the due date specified under section 139(1); or

   6. addition of income appearing in Form 26AS or Form 16A or Form 16 which has not been included in computing the total income in the return:

2. the tax, interest and fee, if any, shall be computed on the basis of the total income computed under clause (A);

3. the sum payable by, or the amount of refund due to, the assessee shall be determined after adjustment of the tax, interest and fee, if any, computed under clause (B) by any tax deducted at source, any tax collected at source, any advance tax paid, any relief allowable under an agreement under section 90 or section 90A, or any relief allowable under section 91, any rebate allowable under Part A of Chapter VIII, any tax paid on self-assessment and any amount paid otherwise by way of tax or interest or fee;

4. an intimation shall be prepared or generated and sent to the assessee specifying the sum determined to be payable by, or the amount of refund due to, the assessee under clause (C); and

5. the amount of refund due to the assessee in pursuance of the determination under clause (C) shall be granted to the assessee.

2. Opportunity to the Assessee by the Assessing Officer under Section 143(1)

Before making any adjustment, an opportunity shall be provided to the assessee to explain and rectify the same within 30 days of issuance of such intimation and the response so received shall be considered before making such adjustments. In case no response is received within such time, the adjustment of the amount indicated in the intimation to be made.

3. Intimation to the Assessee by the Assessing Officer under Section 143(1)

Intimation shall be prepared or generated and sent to the assessee specifying the sum determined to be payable by, or the amount of refund due to, the assessee after the aforesaid corrections. The amount of refund due to the assessee shall be granted to him. The acknowledgement of the return shall be deemed to be the intimation in a case where no sum is payable by, or refundable to, the assessee, and where no adjustment has been made.

An intimation under section 143(1) should not be sent after the expiry of one year from the end of the financial year in which return of income is made.

For instance, for the assessment year 2018-19, return is submitted by a taxpayer on July 6, 2018. An intimation may be sent up to March 31, 2020 (even if it is received by the assessee after March 31, 2020).

4. Scheme for Centralized Processing of Return [Section 143(1B)]:

For the purposes of processing of returns under section 143(1), the Board may make a scheme for centralised processing of returns with a view to expeditiously determining the tax payable by, or the refund due to, the assessee as required under the said sub-section.

For the purpose of giving effect to the scheme, the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that any of the provisions of this Act relating to processing of returns shall not apply or shall apply with such exceptions, modifications and adaptations as may be specified in that notification; so, however, that no direction shall be issued after 31.3.2012.

5. Processing of Return within the prescribed Time and enable withholding of Refund in certain cases [Section 143(1D)] [W.r.e.f. 2017-18]

In order to address the grievance of delay in issuance of refund in genuine cases which are routinely selected for scrutiny assessment, the Act has provided that provisions of section 143(1D) shall cease to apply in respect of returns furnished for assessment year 2017-18 and onwards.

However, to address the concern of recovery of revenue in doubtful cases, the Act has inserted the following new section 241A which provides as under:

"Withholding of refund in certain cases [Section 241A]:

For every assessment year commencing on or after the 1st day of April, 2017, where refund of any amount becomes due to the assessee under the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 143 and the Assessing Officer is of the opinion, having regard to the fact that a notice has been issued under sub-section (2) of section 143 in respect of such return, that the grant of the refund is likely to adversely affect the revenue, he may, for reasons to be recorded in writing and with the previous approval of the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner, as the case may be, withhold the refund up to the date on which the assessment is made."

In other words, for the returns furnished for assessment year commencing on or after 1.4.2017, where refund of any amount becomes due to the assessee under section 143(1) and the Assessing Officer is of the opinion that grant of refund may adversely affect the recovery of revenue, he may, for the reasons recorded in writing and with the previous approval of the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner, withhold the refund upto the date on which the assessment is made.