On October 7, 2019, the Revenue Secretary Shri Ajay Bhushan Pandey who is also the Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) inaugurated National e-Assessment Scheme (NeAS) in New Delhi. This e-Assessment scheme along with the National e-Assessment Centre (NeAC), would benefit the Income Tax(IT) department in imparting efficiency, transparency, accountability in the assessment process and would have no physical interface between taxpayers and tax officers. Section 143(3A) & (3B) of the IT Act empowered notification of E-assessment scheme.
Faceless e-Assessment:
- Faceless assessment of IT returns is a completely electronic communication between tax officials and taxpayers. It is an initiative of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).
- Through the faceless e-Assessment, all taxpayers will receive notices via registered emails and on registered accounts on the web portal www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in with real-time alert by SMS(Short Message Service) on their registered mobile number, specifying the issues for which their cases have been selected for scrutiny. Notice replies can be prepared at taxpayers’ own residence or office.
- First phase: The IT department has selected 58,322 cases for scrutiny under the notified faceless e-Assessment Scheme 2019 and the e-notices that have been served before 30 September 2019 for the cases of the assessment year 2018-19.
- The taxpayers were asked to check their registered e-filing accounts/ email ids and were requested to furnish a reply within 15 days.
National e-Assessment Centre (NeAC):
- Headquartered in New Delhi, this centre will look after the e-Assessment scheme for the income taxpayers.
- Principal Chief Commissioner: NeAC is to be headed by Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (Pr.CCIT). In this regard, the 1984 batch Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer Krishna Mohan Prasad has been appointed for the same.
- ReAC: Cases for assessment will be assigned for 8 Regional e-Assessment Centres (ReAC), that are New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and will comprise of assessment unit, review unit, technical unit and verification unit. Each of the ReAC will be headed by Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (CCIT).
Members present during the inauguration:
Central Board of Direct Taxes(CBDT) Chairman Shri P.C. Mody and its members Shri P.K. Das, Shri Akhilesh Ranjan and Shri Prabhash Shankar and other officials were present in the event.
About IT department:
♦ Founded- 1860.
♦ Headquarters- New Delhi.
♦ Minister responsible- Nirmala Sitharaman (Finance & corporate affairs minister).