Section 158AA of Income Tax Act 1961: Identical Question of Law Pending Before Supreme Court
Section 158AA formed part of Chapter XIV-A, which contained special provisions intended to avoid repetitive appeals. It dealt with a Revenue appeal where a question of law in an assessee's case was identical to a question already pending before the Supreme Court in another assessment year of the same assessee.
Meaning and Purpose of Section 158AA
Section 158AA was a non-obstante provision designed to avoid filing a repetitive departmental appeal where the same assessee already had an identical question of law pending before the Supreme Court for another assessment year. Instead of immediately directing an appeal to the Appellate Tribunal, the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner could use the special procedure prescribed by the section, subject to its conditions.
Conditions Under Section 158AA(1)
The special procedure applied where the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner formed the opinion that a question of law arising in the assessee's relevant case was identical to a question of law arising in another assessment year of the same assessee and that other question was pending before the Supreme Court against a High Court order in favour of the assessee.
The Supreme Court proceeding contemplated by the provision could be an appeal under Section 261 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 or a special leave petition under Article 136 of the Constitution of India.
Instead of directing the Assessing Officer to appeal to the Appellate Tribunal under Section 253(2) or 253(2A), the authority could direct the Assessing Officer to make an application to the Tribunal in the prescribed form. The application stated, in substance, that an appeal on the question of law arising in the relevant case could be filed when the decision on that question became final in the other case.
Assessee's Acceptance Was Mandatory
Under Section 158AA(2), the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner could direct the Assessing Officer to make the special application only if the assessee accepted that the question of law in the other case was identical to the question arising in the relevant case.
If the assessee did not give that acceptance, the special deferral procedure was unavailable and the authority was required to proceed in accordance with the ordinary departmental appeal provisions referred to in Section 253(2) or 253(2A), as applicable.
Procedure After the Supreme Court Decision Became Final
If the Commissioner (Appeals) order in the relevant case was not in conformity with the final decision on the identical question of law in the other case, Section 158AA(3) permitted the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner to direct the Assessing Officer to appeal to the Appellate Tribunal. Except to the extent specially provided by Section 158AA, the other provisions governing such appeals applied.
The 60-Day Time Limits
| Stage | Time limit under Section 158AA |
|---|---|
| Application to the Appellate Tribunal under Section 158AA(1) | Within 60 days from receipt of the Commissioner (Appeals) order. |
| Revenue appeal under Section 158AA(3) after final Supreme Court decision | Within 60 days from the date on which the Supreme Court order in the other case was communicated to the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner. |
Section 158AA and the 1 April 2022 Cut-off
The statutory proviso to Section 158AA(1) provided that no direction under that sub-section could be given on or after 1 April 2022. Section 158AA must therefore be read as a legacy provision for directions made before that date and for any consequences preserved by the applicable law.
From 1 April 2022, Section 158AB introduced a wider Revenue-side mechanism where a collegium considers an identical question of law to be pending before the jurisdictional High Court or Supreme Court, subject to the conditions stated in that section.
Income-tax Act, 2025: Current Position
The Income-tax Act, 2025 applies from 1 April 2026, subject to Section 536 dealing with repeal and savings. In the official section-mapping material, Section 158A maps to Section 375, Section 158AA is identified as redundant, and Section 158AB maps to Section 376.
| Income-tax Act, 1961 | Income-tax Act, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Section 158A - assessee claims identical question of law is pending | Section 375 - special procedure for an identical question of law raised by the assessee. |
| Section 158AA - Revenue procedure where identical question was pending before Supreme Court | Marked redundant in the official section mapping. |
| Section 158AB - Revenue procedure where identical question is pending before High Courts or Supreme Court | Section 376 - current corresponding Revenue-side repetitive-appeal provision. |
Practical Points
- For a historical Section 158AA matter, first verify that the direction under sub-section (1) was made before 1 April 2022.
- Confirm that the question of law was genuinely identical and arose in another assessment year of the same assessee.
- Check whether the assessee gave the acceptance required by Section 158AA(2).
- Verify the date of receipt of the Commissioner (Appeals) order and, where relevant, the date on which the Supreme Court order was communicated for the statutory 60-day periods.
- For proceedings after the legislative transition, determine whether Section 158AB, Sections 375 or 376 of the 2025 Act, or a saved proceeding under Section 536 governs the matter.
Official Income-tax Resources
For authoritative text, refer to the official Section 158AA page, the Income-tax Act, 1961 as amended by Finance Act, 2025, the official Income-tax Act, 2025, and the Income Tax e-Filing portal.
Updated: 29 September 2026. The applicable procedure depends on the relevant assessment or tax year, the date of the direction or appeal, and the repeal and savings provisions governing the proceeding.