Fewer hassles but Big Sister’s watching

The Budget has done its bit to improve “ease of living” for taxpayers by bringing in pre-filled tax returns and faceless assessments.

At the same time, to keep track of high-value spends, assessees who enter into high-value transactions have been brought under the return filing net, even if their income is otherwise not taxable.

Breathe easy measures

Return filing got a bit quicker, with the Budget introducing pre-population of tax return forms. While the personal information is usually auto filled in most cases currently, pre-filled tax returns with details of salary income, capital gains from securities, bank interest, dividends and tax deductions will be available from now on.

Also, if your return is taken up for further scrutiny by the tax department, you need not fret or fear any harassment. In the last few years, the government has been carrying out pilot e-assessments, eliminating the need for a human interface.

From now on, e-assessments will be carried out in cases requiring verification of specific transactions entered into or certain discrepancies found in your return, to start with.

To reduce the scope for harassment by officers, cases selected for scrutiny will be allocated to assessment units in a random manner and notices to the assessee will be issued electronically by a central cell, without disclosing the name, designation or location of the assessing officer.

But it is not goodies alone. Apart from the additional surcharge for high networth individuals to improve tax collections, the taxman is also looking to widen the tax base.

Under the scanner

Towards this end, the Budget has made filing for certain persons mandatory, even if their income is below the taxable limit.

Thus, from assessment year 2020-21 onwards (ie, for transactions /income during 2019-20), you will have to file your returns if you have deposited more than ₹1 crore in a current account, have spent more than ₹2 lakh on foreign travel for yourself or others or have paid an amount of ₹1 lakh or more towards electricity bills.

Besides, as per current laws, a person claiming rollover benefit of exemption from capital gains tax on investment in specified assets sch as a house or bonds, is not required to furnish a return of income if, after the claim, his or her total income is below that taxable limit.

Now, a return has to be filed if, before the claim, your total income is above the taxable limit. Further, to keep tabs on high-value transactions entered into by those who don’t possess a PAN or Permanent Account Number, quoting of Aadhaar number will be a must from September 1, 2019.

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