Obligation to furnish annual information return.
295. (1) Every person responsible for registering or maintaining books of account or other documents containing a record of any specified financial transaction, under any law for the time being in force, shall furnish an annual information return, in respect of such specified financial transaction.
(2) The person referred to in sub-section (1) shall be—
(a) an assessee;
(b) a designated person in the case of an office of the Government;
(c) a local authority or other public body or association;
(d) the Registrar or Sub-Registrar appointed under section 6 of the Registration Act, 1908;
(e) the registering authority empowered to register motor vehicles under Chapter IV of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988;
(f) the Post Master General as referred to in clause (j) of section 2 of the Indian Post Office Act, 1898;
(g) the Collector referred to in clause (c) of section 3 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894;
(h) the recognised stock exchange referred to in clause (f) of section 2 of the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956;
(i) an officer of the Reserve Bank of India, constituted under section 3of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934; or
(j) a depository referred to in clause (e) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Depositories Act, 1996.
(3) The annual information return referred to in sub-section (1) shall be furnished to such income-tax authority or any other authority or agency, in such form and manner (including on a floppy, diskette, magnetic cartridge tape, CD-ROM or any computer readable media) and within such time as may be prescribed.
(4) In this section, "specified financial transaction" means—
(a) a transaction of purchase, sale or exchange of goods or property or right or interest in a property;
(b) a transaction by way of an investment made or an expenditure incurred;
(c) a transaction for taking or accepting any loan or deposit; or
(d) any other transaction as may be prescribed.
(5) The person referred to in sub-section (2) shall furnish the annual information return in respect of the financial transactions referred to in sub-section (4) if the aggregate value of each such transaction in any financial year exceeds the amount as may be prescribed.
(6) The income-tax authority referred to in sub-section (3) may, if he considers that the annual information return furnished under sub-section (1) is defective, intimate the defect to the person who has furnished such return and give him an opportunity of rectifying the defect within a period of one month from the service of such intimation.
(7) The income-tax authority referred to in sub-section (3) shall treat the annual information return as invalid if the defect referred to in sub-section (6) is not removed within the time allowed, and the provisions of this Code shall apply as if such person had failed to furnish the annual information return.
(8) If a person who is required to furnish an annual information return under subsection (1) has not furnished the same within the specified time, then, the income-tax authority referred to in sub-section (3) may serve upon such person a notice requiring him to furnish the return within a period not exceeding sixty days from the date of service of the notice and such person shall furnish the annual information return within the time specified in the notice.
