Budget 2023 proposes mechanism for TDS credit when Income has been already offered to Taxation in Past

Representations have been received that in many instances, tax is deducted by the deductor in the year in which the income is actually paid to the assessee. However, following accrual method, the assessee may have already disclosed this income in earlier years in their return of income. This results in TDS mismatch, since the corresponding income has already been offered to tax by the assessee in earlier years, however, TDS is only being deducted much later when actual payment is being made. The assessee cannot claim the credit of TDS in the year in which tax is deducted since income is not offered to tax in that year. It may also not be possible to revise the return of past year in which the corresponding income was included since time to revise the return of income for that year may have lapsed. This results in difficulty to the assessee in claiming credit of TDS.

In order to remove this difficulty, it is proposed to insert a new sub-section (20) in section 155 of the Act. This new sub-section applies where any income has been included in the return of income furnished by an assessee under section 139 of the Act for any assessment year (hereinafter referred to as the “relevant assessment year”) and tax has been deducted at source on such income and paid to the credit of the Central Government in accordance with the provisions of Chapter XVII-B in a subsequent financial year. In such a case the assessee can make application in the prescribed form to the Assessing Officer within two years from the end of the financial year in which such tax was deducted at source. Then Assessing Officer shall amend the order of assessment or any intimation allowing credit of such tax deducted at source in the relevant assessment year. It has been further provided that the provisions of section 154 of the Act shall, so far as may be, apply thereto, and the period of four years specified in sub-section (7) of that section shall be reckoned from the end of the financial year in which such tax has been deducted. Further, credit of such tax deducted at source shall not be allowed in any other assessment year.

Amendment has also been proposed in section 244A of the Act to provide that the interest on refund arising out of above rectification shall be for the period from the date of the application to the date on which the refund is granted.

These amendments will take effect from 1st October, 2023.