The finance ministry has dropped the controversial new tax return form - Saral 2F - like a hot potato.
Taxpayers need not use Saral 2F this year; nothing decided for next year.
NEW DELHI: The finance ministry has dropped the controversial new tax return form - Saral 2F - like a hot potato. The decision comes close on heels of the Congress leadership's (read: Sonia Gandhi ) disapproval of the idea as it felt that the new form did not go well with the party's "aam aadmi" political platform.
Form 2F, dubbed "tough" by tax consultants, would have required salaried taxpayers to submit cash flow statements, indicating cash in hand, bank balances and expenditures during any financial year.
"The June 1 notification (on 2F) makes it clear that the new form is optional and that, too, it is valid only for this year", revenue secretary KM Chandrashekhar clarified at a news briefing on Thursday. "Depending on taxpayers' response and feedback, we shall see what is to be done with this form next year", he added.
Chandrashekhar said he wouldn't call it an "experiment", but would stress that it is not mandatory for a taxpayer to use form 2F to file tax returns this year.
Even if someone chooses to use the form, he is not required to fill in the much-criticised cash flow statement given in Schedule 5 of the form.
The new form is applicable to salaried taxpayers having income from a few other sources - interest, dividend and one house-property. This class of taxpayers has the option of filing tax returns in Saral form 2D, and in the "Naya Saral" form 2E, up to July 31, the last date for filing returns this year.
"The Naya Saral form will not be available for filing returns after July 31, but salaried taxpayers having only income from house property and interest and dividend income can continue to use the Saral form 2D", Chandrashekhar said.
"The net effect of the June 1 notification is that form 2E would be discontinued after July 31. Form 2F comes in its place, but it is valid only for this year", he clarified.
Chandrashekhar maintained that regardless of the criticism from tax experts, form 2F is "easier for taxpayers to fill in without help" and "would avoid intrusive scrutiny of tax returns" because the information contained in the returns can be matched with information collected from third parties on major expenditure or investments made by the assessee.
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