The CBDT issued clarification in respect of Direct Tax under Vivad se Vishwas Act, 2020, wherein the Board has extended the timeline for making payment without additional amount till March 31, 2021. The Vivad se Vishwas Act, 2020 was enacted by the government with the objective to reduce pending income tax litigation, generate timely revenue for the Government and benefit taxpayers by providing them relief with peace of mind, certainty, and savings on account of time and resources that would otherwise be spent on the long-drawn and vexatious litigation process. The provisions of the Vivad se Vishwas scheme had been amended by the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Act, 2020 to provide certain relief in view of the COVID-19 pandemic and also to empower the Central Government to notify certain dates. Under the existing provisions u/s 5(2) of the Vivad se Vishwas, the declarant are require to pay the amount within a period of 15 days from the date of receipt of the certificate from the designated authority.
However, as per the aforesaid notification, a declarant who files a declaration on or before 31 December 2020 can make payment without an additional amount on or before 31 March 2021. Hence, the requirement of the payment by the declarant within a period of 15 days from the date of receipt of a certificate from the designated authority may result in undue hardship for the declarant in whose case the period of 15 days expires before 31st March, 2021
In order to mitigate undue hardship and remove difficulties that may be caused by the requirement of payment within 15 days from the date of receipt of a certificate from the designated authority clarified that where a declarant furnish a declaration under Vivad se Vishwas on or before 31 December, 2020, the designated authority while issuing the certificate under section 5 (1) of the Vivad se Vishwas, shall allow the declarant to make payment without additional amount on or before 31 March 2021.
