Section 356: appeals to the Joint Commissioner (Appeals)

Which orders can be appealed to the Joint Commissioner (Appeals)

An assessee, deductor or collector aggrieved by any of the following orders of an Assessing Officer below the rank of Joint Commissioner may appeal to the Joint Commissioner (Appeals):

• An intimation under section 270(1) or 399(1), where the assessee, deductor or collector objects to the adjustments made in it
• An order under section 270(10) or 271, where the assessee objects to the income assessed, tax determined, loss computed, or the status under which they are assessed
• An order of assessment, reassessment or recomputation under section 279
• An order under section 398
• An order imposing a penalty under Chapter XXI
• An order under section 287 or 288 amending any of the orders/intimations listed above

When this route is not available

No appeal can be filed before the Joint Commissioner (Appeals) if the order in question was passed by, or with the prior approval of, an income-tax authority above the rank of Deputy Commissioner.

Transfer of appeals between Joint Commissioner (Appeals) and Commissioner (Appeals)

The Board, or an income-tax authority authorised by the Board, may transfer a pending appeal against an order covered by this section from the Commissioner (Appeals) to the Joint Commissioner (Appeals), or from the Joint Commissioner (Appeals) to the Commissioner (Appeals), along with any connected matter.

The authority to which the appeal is transferred may proceed from the stage the appeal had reached before transfer.

Where an appeal is transferred, the appellant must be given an opportunity of being reheard.

Faceless disposal scheme and other points

The Central Government may notify a scheme for disposing of appeals before the Joint Commissioner (Appeals) in an expedient, transparent and accountable manner, eliminating the interface between the Joint Commissioner (Appeals) and the appellant to the extent technologically feasible, and may direct that provisions of this Act relating to jurisdiction and procedure shall apply with exceptions, modifications or adaptations for this purpose.

The Board may specify that any provision of this section does not apply to a particular case or class of cases.

For this section and section 357, "status" means the category of person defined in section 2(77) under which the assessee is assessed.

Frequently asked questions