Amendment to Section 198: Inclusion of Foreign Taxes in Total Income Calculation



Quick Summary
A new amendment to Section 198 of the Act means that taxes withheld outside of India must now be included when calculating your total income. Previously, some individuals were only declaring their net income while still claiming credit for foreign taxes, leading to an under-reporting of income. This change aims to prevent double deductions and ensure accurate tax reporting.

Inclusion of taxes withheld outside India for purposes of calculating total income

Section 198 of the Act provides that all sums deducted (tax deducted), under the provisions of Chapter XVII-B shall, for the purpose of computing the income of an assessee, be deemed to be income received.

Foreign Taxes Now Included in Total Income Calculation

2. It was seen that some assessees are not including taxes withheld outside India for the purposes of calculating their total income which was leading to under reporting of total income as only their net income was being offered for taxation. However they were claiming credit for the taxes withheld abroad resulting in double deduction on account of income not being included in total income but credit for foreign taxes withheld was being taken. 

3. In order to address this issue, it is proposed to amend section 198, to provide that all sums deducted in accordance with the provisions of Chapter XVII-B and income tax paid outside India by way of deduction, in respect of which an assessee is allowed a credit against the tax payable under the Act, are for the purpose of computing the income of the assessee, deemed to be income received.

4. The amendment will take effect from the 1st day of April, 2025.

[Clause 66 ]

FAQ :

The amendment requires that taxes withheld outside of India must now be included in the calculation of an assessee's total income.

It was necessary because some assessees were not including foreign taxes in their total income calculation, leading to under-reporting of income while still claiming credit for those foreign taxes, resulting in a double deduction.

Section 198 previously stated that all sums deducted under Chapter XVII-B are deemed to be income received for the purpose of computing an assessee's income.

The amendment includes income tax paid outside India by way of deduction, in respect of which an assessee is allowed a credit against the tax payable under the Act.

The amendment will take effect from the 1st day of April, 2025.




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