Tax appeal before Commissioners must be e-filed: CBDT

Aiming to reduce the compliance burden, revenue department today said appeals before Income Tax Commissioner should be filed in electronic format by those assessees who e-file their returns.
Electronic filing of appeals along with documents, before the CIT (Appeals), will remove human interface, cut paperwork and decrease transaction costs for taxpayers, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said.
"It would ensure consistent and error free service as validations will be inbuilt resulting in fewer deficient appeals. Online filing will also facilitate fixation of hearing of appeals electronically," CBDT said in a statement.
It said the existing Form 35 for filing of first appeal is being substituted by a new Form. The new format for filing of appeals is more structured, objective, systematic, and aligned with the current provisions of the I-Tax Act.

"With these changes, the burden of compliance on the taxpayers in appellate proceedings will be significantly reduced," it added.