Returns Filing Exercise not Yet Over for Many with CPC Seeking Clarifications

The last date for filing IT returns for AY 2017-18 is over. But the system generated mails that have been flooding many a taxpayer’s in-box, seeking a response to the “errors/ incorrect claims/ inconsistencies which attract adjustment(s) under Section 143(1)(a) of the IT Act”, seem to have irked the honest taxpayer.So, be warned. If you have filed your IT return, been a little too honest by disclosing all information, particularly with regard to your savings deposit interest or, say, medical insurance premium, your job might be far from over.

It is learnt that a number of taxpayers who had filed their returns for AY 2017-18 have received emails from the Central Processing Centre (CPC) seeking clarification under Section 143(1)(a) of the IT Act to the “mismatch between the income and deduction when compared to Form 16, Form 16A or Form 26AS”. It goes on to say that if the recipient of the mail fails to respond within a period of 30 days of the intimation, “the return would be processed after making necessary adjustment(s) U/S 143(1)(a), without providing any further opportunities in this matter.”

A cross-section of assessees that this correspondent spoke to were presumably upset about this issue. “I tried the helpline, but the response I got from the other end was “ignore the mail. You will receive a revised communication,” said Shashank, an armed forces officer, upset over the receipt of the communication.

It has been a fortnight since he got this mail. The young officer received his Form 16 when he was here on vacation. He e-filed his return before reporting for duty. He is posted in the terror-prone border area of Jammu and Kashmir. He says he has only two weeks left to respond, and has received no confirmation yet on “ignoring the mail”. Yet another youngster said it could be “a bug in the system, which is generating these mails.”

But neither the department nor the government has confirmed any such intrusion.Asked how he responded to the notice, Sriram, an employee in an IT company said, “I tried to submit the revised return. I had claimed 80-D and 80 TTA exemption. But the submission window wants the Med Insurer’s TAN and other details. Under the Act, the taxpayer can claim deduction (up to a maximum of Rs. 25,000) for medical insurance premium under Section 80D and up to Rs. 10,000 savings bank interest under Section 80 TTA.“The helpline is of no use. The number is either engaged or there is no response. This is financial terrorism,” alleged Sriram.

Responding to the notice slapped on his client, an auditor said, “it would be quite impossible to predict the total savings bank interest one would earn in March, say in January-February, as the balance will vary. And there have been instances where people have been sent notices for variance in Section 80 TTA.”The recipients of notices U/S 143(1)(a) seemed by and large clueless. IT return filing seems far from over.