ITAT Ahmedabad Remands Section 80JJAA Deduction Issue Involving Delayed Form 10DA

Background of the Dispute

The matter arose from an appeal filed by Cosmos Engitech Pvt Ltd Vs DCIT (ITAT Ahmedabad) against an order dated 30.8.2024 issued by the Commissioner of Income-Tax (Appeals), National Faceless Appeal Centre (NFAC), Delhi under section 250 of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

The appeal related to an assessment framed by the Assessing Officer (AO) under section 143(3) for **Assessment Year 2023-24. The controversy was confined to a single, narrow issue – the denial of deduction under section 80JJAAon the ground that **Form No. 10DA** had not been filed within the time limit linked tosection 44AB`.

Core Issue Before the Tribunal

Nature of the Claim

  • The assessee, Cosmos Engitech Pvt Ltd, had claimed deduction under section 80JJAA in respect of additional employees employed by the company during the relevant previous year.
  • As per the statutory framework, the deduction under section 80JJAA is contingent upon furnishing a report from a Chartered Accountant in Form No. 10DA.
  • The lower authorities rejected the claim on the premise that Form No. 10DA had not been e-filed on or before the prescribed due date under section 44AB, mentioned as 30.9.2023.

Assessee’s Explanation on Timing of Form 10DA

During appellate proceedings, the assessee placed the following sequence of events on record:

  1. The Chartered Accountant completed and issued the report in Form No. 10DA on 22/09/2023.
  2. On the same date, i.e., 22/09/2023, the UDIN (Unique Document Identification Number) was generated in respect of this report.
  3. Owing to certain technical or procedural issues, the assessee was initially unable to upload the report on the income tax e-filing portal.
  4. However, according to the assessee, the report in Form No. 10DA was ultimately uploaded and made available prior to:
    • Application of mind by the concerned AO, and
    • Issuance of intimation by the Centralized Processing Centre (CPC) under section 143(1).

The assessee therefore contended that, although the technical requirement of uploading Form No. 10DA by the section 44AB due date was not strictly met, the substantive condition of having a valid and timely CA report before completion of processing/assessment had been satisfied.

Findings of the Lower Authorities

Approach of the Assessing Officer

The AO denied the deduction under section 80JJAA by taking a strict view of the procedural requirement. The core reasoning was:

  • Form No. 10DA was not filed on or before 30.9.2023, the due date mentioned with reference to section 44AB.
  • In the absence of timely filing of Form No. 10DA, the AO treated the claim as non-compliant and consequently disallowed the entire deduction claimed under section 80JJAA.

No further examination was carried out as to whether the report had been actually obtained from the Chartered Accountant in time or whether it was available on record prior to processing of the return.

View Taken by the CIT(A) – NFAC

The assessee approached the CIT(A), NFAC under section 250. Before the first appellate authority, the assessee reiterated that:

  • The CA report in Form No. 10DA was ready and signed on 22/09/2023.
  • UDIN was also generated on the same date.
  • The delay was confined to the technical act of uploading the report on the portal, which later took place before the AO applied his mind to the return.