Now an identification no. for all tax papers

The Income Tax department would assign document identification number on all notices, letters sent to the assessees from October 1 to enable easy tracking of documents and minimise taxpayers' grievances.

The Explanatory Memorandum to the Budget said the identification number would be mentioned in each correspondence sent or received by the department to enable tracking of documents and minimise taxpayers grievances.

The Explanatory Memorandum said, 'every income tax authority shall allot a computer generated document identification number in respect of every notice, order, letter or any correspondence issued by him to any other income tax authority or assessee or any other person.'

The government is so much serious about the proposal that it said that any correspondence that does not bear the identification number would be treated as invalid and deemed never to have been issued.

Besides, it is being effected not merely by way of guidelines but the budget presented on Monday has inserted a new section to give effect to the new measure.

The new measure also provides that every document received by the income tax authority would be accepted after allotting and quoting a computer generated document identification number.