CBDT allows authentication of records via e-verification code

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The Income Tax department has amended Income Tax Rules 1962 by inserting a new rule 14C which allows authentication of electronic records submitted through a registered account of taxpayers on the income tax portal. The documents submitted on the portal will be deemed to have been authenticated for all tax assessment purposes. The taxpayers are no more required to validate the documents through a separate electronic verification code (EVC).

What CBDT notification says

The rules amended by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) will go a long way in helping companies and other assessees who were so far mandatorily required to authenticate electronic records separately by digital signature. However, the authentication facility through e-verification code facility was not available till now, according to a report in The Economic Times.

After this amendment in rules if a person were to submit their electronic record by logging into the registered account in the designated portal of the I-T Department, it shall be deemed that the electronic record has been authenticated by EVC for the purposes of faceless assessment as per the section 144B (7)(i)(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

“The persons who are mandatorily required to authenticate electronic records by digital signature shall be deemed to have authenticated the electronic records when they submit the record through their registered account in the Income-tax Department’s portal,” an official release of the CBDT said.

Who all will benefit

According to the CBDT notification, this simplified process of authentication via EVC will also be available to certain persons such as companies, tax audit cases etc., who were mandatorily required to authenticate the submitted electronic records by digital signature.

“In order to provide the benefit of the simplified process of authentication by EVC to these persons (such as companies, tax audit cases, etc.), it has been decided to extend the simplified process of authentication by EVC to these persons also,” the official release said.