Income Tax Department had launched the faceless e-assessment scheme for taxpayers

The income tax (I-T) department as a major initiative for taxation reform recently had launched faceless e-assessment scheme in order to eradicate interface amid an assessing officer and a taxpayer.

The Income Tax Department had made an announcement that it has picked up near about 58,000 income tax cases under the National e-Assessment Center (NeAC).

The National e-Assessment Center (NeAC) was launched by The Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey on 7th October 2019.

The revenue department stated that the scheme shall bring in a "paradigm shift" in taxation by means of eradicating human interface in the income tax assessment system.

It also stated that this would improve the taxpayer's ease as well as convenience.

The NeAC is going to assist in the faceless e-assessment scheme all over the country and also benefit taxpayers. The easiness of compliance for taxpayers, precision as well as competence, functional specialization, enhancement in the quality of assessment, risk-based as well as focussed approach, improved monitoring and speedy disposal of cases are some of the main features of the scheme.

How the process for NeAC works?

This scheme consists of no human interface amid the taxpayer and the department.

It intends to serve as faceless assessment of income tax returns by means of completely electronic communication under which taxpayers would get notices on their registered e-mails and also on the accounts which is required to be registered, on the web portal www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in by means of real-time alert through SMS on their registered phone number, stating the concerns for which their cases were selected for scrutiny.

The replies relating to the notices could be made at ease by the taxpayers at their own residence or place of work and be sent through email towards the National e-Assessment Centre by uploading the same on the chosen web portal.

This latest scheme of faceless assessment is expected to augment easiness of compliance for taxpayers as the expenditure and anxiety of taxpayers are expected to be reduced.

This scheme was announced in the 2019 budget and notified last month.
 
The IT department had informed that it has chosen 58,322 income tax cases for scrutiny under the new scheme as well as the e-notices were served before September 30, 2019, for matters of the Assessment Year 2018-19.

The taxpayers were advised to check their registered e-filing accounts or email ids and it was requested to provide a reply within 15 days. The Department expects that with the easiness of compliance for taxpayers, the cases shall be disposed off fast.

What is National e-Assessment Centre (NeAC)

An institution recognized as the National e-Assessment Centre (NeAC) was set up to take care of the work of the new scheme.

There shall be a NeAC in Delhi which shall be headed by Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax.

However, there are 8 Regional e-Assessment Centres (ReAC) which has been set up at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata Ahmedabad, Pune, Bengaluru as well as Hyderabad which shall contain Assessment unit, Review unit, Technical unit along with Verification units.

Every Regional e-Assessment Centres (ReAC) shall be administered by Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (CCIT). The cases for the particular work would be allocated by the NeAC towards different units by means of automated allocation systems.

Considering the dynamic and all India jurisdictions of each and every officer of NeAC and ReAC, this type of connective and combined effort of officers is expected to lead towards an enhanced quality of assessments.

The IT department had stated that the new system optimises the use of resources by means of economies of scale.

It had introduced team-based assessment with dynamic jurisdiction which would ease of compliance for taxpayers. It is also likely to bring precision and efficiency, accordingly helping in improving the quality of assessment and monitoring.

Also, the department claimed that it is going to dispose of the cases speedily.

Conclusion

In the 2019 July Budget speech, Nirmala Sitharaman had made an announcement relating to the faceless assessment scheme.

Nirmala Sitharaman had stated that the prevailing system of scrutiny assessments in the income tax department contains a higher level of personal interaction amid the taxpayer as well as the department, which leads towards certain unwanted practices on the part of tax officials.

In order to eliminate such cases, FM had stated that the scheme of faceless assessment in electronic mode connecting no human interface would be launched in a phased manner.

the finance ministry also stated that the launch of the NeAC is an important step leading towards the greater objectives of better taxpayer service, lessening of taxpayer complaints relating to the Prime Minister's vision of 'Digital India' as well as promotion of easiness of carrying out business.

NeAC would be an independent office that shall look after the work of e-assessment scheme which is lately notified for faceless e-assessment for income taxpayers. The e-assessment Scheme 2019 has been notified on 12th September.

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Author:

eStartIndia Team