Most taxpayer not filled form for rectification of mistake in respect of wrong recovery notice by IT Department

Driven by a rare sense of complacency, most tax payer who received wrong recovery notices from the income tax (I-T ) department, have not yet chosen to set the record straight.  Despite the fact that the I-T authorities have requested people to fill in rectification forms, many have neglected to do so, which means that the amount could resurface as outstanding dues in future.

“We have identified and rectified the system error in our central office in New Delhi where the notices emanated,’’ said a senior official at the Bandra-Kurla office. “Yet, the three lakh assessees who have got letters will have to be sifted from several others who have been issued genuine recovery notices .

Those who feel they have been wrongly charged under Section 234C or TDS, should approach us individually so we can make the change manually . They must bring their tax return acknowledgment and Form 16 for us to verify the facts,’’ the officer added.

One lakh people have filled in a special rectification form that has been prepared by the department. Yet, this is but a third of the total number of taxpayers who have received such notices.

Those who are lagging behind have chosen not to file for correction either in the belief that the system will make the necessary change automatically , or because the CAs who file their returns have not advised them to do so.“An office colleague helps me and my co-workers with our returns. None of us has bothered to visit the I-T office and get them to amend the records,’’ said an employee of a south Mumbai firm.

“Most people are quick to panic once they receive any notice from the I-T department,’’ an I-T officer said. “Yet, this time, they have not completed their due diligence as they know several others are affected, and they feel the system will handle it of its own accord. It is advisable that they approach us to set the records straight.’’

As of now, a slow trickle is visible at the two rectification counters that have been installed at the BKC centre . Six officers, most of them women, are processing each application manually, entering the recovery amount as ‘nil’ after verifying the details on the I-T acknowledgement form as well as Form 16. This eliminates the error from the I-T records and the amount will not show up in the assessee’s records later.