Section 287A of Income Tax Act "Appearance by registered valuer in certain matters"
287A. Any assessee who is entitled or required to attend
before any income-tax authority or the Appellate Tribunal in
connection with any matter relating to the valuation of any
asset, otherwise than when required under section 131 to
attend personally for examination on oath or affirmation,
may attend by a registered valuer.
Explanation.-In this section, "registered valuer" has the
same meaning as in clause (oaa) of section 2 of the
Wealth-tax Act, 1957 (27 of 1957).
288. (1) Any assessee who is entitled or required to
attend before any income-tax authority or the Appellate
Tribunal in connection with any proceeding under this Act
otherwise than when required under section 131 to attend
personally for examination on oath or affirmation, may,
subject to the other provisions of this section, attend by
an authorised representative.
(2) For the purposes of this section, "authorised
representative" means a person authorised by the assessee in
writing to appear on his behalf, being-
(i) a person related to the assessee in any manner, or a
person regularly employed by the assessee; or
(ii) any officer of a Scheduled Bank with which the assessee
maintains a current account or has other regular dealings;
or
(iii) any legal practitioner who is entitled to practise in
any civil court in India; or
(iv) an accountant; or
(v) any person who has passed any accountancy examination
recognised in this behalf by the Board; or
(vi) any person who has acquired such educational
qualifications as the Board may prescribe for this purpose;
or
(via) any person who, before the coming into force of this
Act in the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Goa,
Daman and Diu, or Pondicherry, attended before an income-tax
authority in the said territory on behalf of any assessee
otherwise than in the capacity of an employee or relative of
that assessee; or
(vii) any other person who, immediately before the
commencement of this Act, was an income-tax practitioner
within the meaning of clause (iv) of sub-section (2) of
section 61 of the Indian Income-tax Act, 1922 (11 of 1922),
and was actually practising as such;
34[(viii) any other person as may be prescribed.]
Explanation.-In this section, "accountant" means a chartered
accountant as defined in clause (b) of sub-section (1) of
section 2 of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 (38 of
1949) who holds a valid certificate of practice under
sub-section (1) of section 6 of that Act, but does not
include [except for the purposes of representing the
assessee under sub-section (1)]-
(a) in case of an assessee, being a company, the person who
is not eligible for appointment as an auditor of the said
company in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (3)
of section 141 of the Companies Act, 2013 (18 of 2013); or
(b) in any other case,-
(i) the assessee himself or in case of the assessee, being a
firm or association of persons or Hindu undivided family,
any partner of the firm, or member of the association or the
family;
(ii) in case of the assessee, being a trust or institution,
any person referred to in clauses (a), (b), (c) and (cc) of
sub-section (3) of section 13;
(iii) in case of any person other than persons referred to
in sub-clauses (i) and (ii), the person who is competent to
verify the return under section 139 in accordance with the
provisions of section 140;
(iv) any relative of any of the persons referred to in
sub-clauses (i), (ii) and (iii);
(v) an officer or employee of the assessee;
(vi) an individual who is a partner, or who is in the
employment, of an officer or employee of the assessee;
(vii) an individual who, or his relative or partner-
(I) is holding any security of, or interest in, the assessee:
Provided that the relative may hold security or interest in
the assessee of the face value not exceeding one hundred
thousand rupees;
(II) is indebted to the assessee:
Provided that the relative may be indebted to the assessee
for an amount not exceeding one hundred thousand rupees;
(III) has given a guarantee or provided any security in
connection with the indebtedness of any third person to the
assessee:
Provided that the relative may give guarantee or provide any
security in connection with the indebtedness of any third
person to the assessee for an amount not exceeding one
hundred thousand rupees;
(viii) a person who, whether directly or indirectly, has
business relationship with the assessee of such nature as
may be prescribed;
(ix) a person who has been convicted by a court of an
offence involving fraud and a period of ten years has not
elapsed from the date of such conviction.
(3) [***]
(4) No person-
(a) who has been dismissed or removed from Government
service after the 1st day of April, 1938; or
(b) who has been convicted of an offence connected with any
income-tax proceeding or on whom a penalty has been imposed
under this Act, other than a penalty imposed on him under
clause (ii) of sub- section (1) of section 271 or clause (d)
of sub-section (1) of section 272A; or
(c) who has become an insolvent; or
(d) who has been convicted by a court for an offence
involving fraud,
shall be qualified to represent an assessee under
sub-section (1), for all times in the case of a person
referred to in clause (a), for such time as the Principal
Chief Commissioner or Chief Commissioner or Principal
Commissioner or Commissioner may by order determine in the
case of a person referred to in clause (b), for the period
during which the insolvency continues in the case of a
person referred to in clause (c), and for a period of ten
years from the date of conviction in the case of a person
referred to in clause (d).
(5) If any person-
(a) who is a legal practitioner or an accountant is found
guilty of misconduct in his professional capacity by any
authority entitled to institute disciplinary proceedings
against him, an order passed by that authority shall have
effect in relation to his right to attend before an
income-tax authority as it has in relation to his right to
practise as a legal practitioner or accountant, as the case
may be;
(b) who is not a legal practitioner or an accountant, is
found guilty of misconduct in connection with any income-tax
proceedings by the prescribed authority, the prescribed
authority may direct that he shall thenceforth be
disqualified to represent an assessee under sub-section (1).
(6) Any order or direction under clause (b) of sub-section
(4) or clause (b) of sub-section (5) shall be subject to the
following conditions, namely :-
(a) no such order or direction shall be made in respect of
any person unless he has been given a reasonable opportunity
of being heard;
(b) any person against whom any such order or direction is
made may, within one month of the making of the order or
direction, appeal to the Board to have the order or
direction cancelled; and
(c) no such order or direction shall take effect until the
expiration of one month from the making thereof, or, where
an appeal has been preferred, until the disposal of the
appeal.
(7) A person disqualified to represent an assessee by virtue
of the provisions of sub-section (3) of section 61 of the
Indian Income-tax Act, 1922 (11 of 1922), shall be
disqualified to represent an assessee under sub-section (1).
Explanation.-For the purposes of this section, "relative" in
relation to an individual, means-
(a) spouse of the individual;
(b) brother or sister of the individual;
(c) brother or sister of the spouse of the individual;
(d) any lineal ascendant or descendant of the individual;
(e) any lineal ascendant or descendant of the spouse of the
individual;
(f) spouse of a person referred to in clause (b), clause
(c), clause (d) or clause (e);
(g) any lineal descendant of a brother or sister of either
the individual or the spouse of the individual.