Manner of Filing Appeal to ITAT
- Form and Time Limit of Filing
o Appeals to ITAT must be filed in Form 36 within 2 months from the end of the month in which the impugned order is communicated to the assessee or the PCIT/CIT, as applicable.
o A memorandum of cross-objection is to be filed in Form 36A within 30 days from the date of receipt of notice of appeal filed before the ITAT.
o The ITAT may condone delay in filing if it is satisfied that there was sufficient cause.
o A memorandum of cross-objection can be filed even if no appeal has been filed by the party submitting the memorandum. It is treated as an appeal filed before the ITAT and disposed of accordingly.
- Documents to be Submitted and Verification
o As per Rule 9 of Income-tax (Appellate Tribunal) Rules, 1963, every memorandum of appeal must be filed in triplicate and accompanied by:
➢ 2 copies (one certified) of the order appealed against,
➢ 2 copies of the AO’s order,
➢ 2 copies of the grounds of appeal before the first appellate authority,
➢ 2 copies of the statement of facts, if filed earlier,
o ITAT may accept appeals not accompanied by all or any of the documents at its discretion.
o Any party intending to rely on documents or statements referred to in the assessment or appellate orders must submit a paper book in duplicate, indexed and paginated. Filed at least 1 day before the hearing, and a copy of it must be served to the opposite party at least seven days before.
o Additional Documents (Case-Specific)
➢ Appeal against Penalty Order: Memorandum of appeal must be accompanied by 2 copies of the assessment order.
➢ Appeal against assessment under Section 143(3) read with 144A: Memorandum of appeal must be accompanied by 2 copies of the directions of the Deputy Commissioner.
➢ Appeal against assessment under Section 143 read with 147: Memorandum of appeal must include two copies of the original assessment order, if available.
o All appeal-related documents must be signed by a person authorised to verify the return of income. Verification required for:
➢ In case of Appeal: Form 36, grounds of appeal, verification form;
➢ In case of Memorandum of Cross Objection: Form 36A, grounds of cross objection, verification form.
- Filing Fee– The appeal must be accompanied by proof of fee payment as follows:
|
Assessed Total Income |
Fees |
|
Rs. 1,00,000 or less |
Rs. 500 |
|
More than Rs. 1,00,000 but up to Rs. 2,00,000 |
Rs. 1,500 |
|
More than Rs. 2,00,000 |
1% of assessed income (max. Rs. 10,000) |
|
Other matters |
Rs. 500 |
- Faceless Appeal before ITAT –The Central Government is empowered to formulate a scheme for the filing of departmental appeals before ITAT to enhance efficiency, transparency, and accountability by:
o Optimising resource utilisation through scale and specialisation; and
o Team-based appeal mechanism to ITAT with dynamic jurisdiction.
The Central Government may notify exceptions, modifications, or adaptations to provisions of the Act for implementing the scheme. Such notifications must be laid before both Houses of Parliament.