deadlines.
Where the reason for the delay and such non-compliance is bonafide, routes have been made available to grant relief to those who intend to seek Refund or claim deduction or exemption by way of Income Tax Return filing. The facility of condonation of delay has been provided for such instances. Provisions in respect of such condonation are given under Section 119(2)(b) which reads as “ the Board may, if it considers it desirable or expedient so to do for avoiding genuine hardship in any case or class of cases, by general or special order, authorize any income-tax authority, not being a Commissioner (Appeals) to admit an application or claim for any exemption, deduction, refund or any other relief under this Act after the expiry of the period specified by or under this Act for making such application or claim and deal with the same on merits in accordance with law“.
On a plain reading, it is apparent that the cause of the delay should be justified and in good faith. In order to apply for condonation following authorities are to be approached based on the amount of claim involved:
| Authority | Amount of Claim Involved |
| CBDT | Exceeds 50 Lakhs |
| PCCIT/CCIT | Exceeds 10 Lakhs but upto 50 Lakhs |
| PCIT/CIT | Upto 10 Lakhs |
The application of condonation in each case can be filed up to 6 years from the end of the Assessment Year for which such claim is made. Hence, the claim of refund is not lost even if the due date prescribed under Section 139(1)/(4)/(5) expires, provided the reason for the delay is bonafide.
