The Revised Form Came In October And Set A Deadline In September
A taxpayer settled under the Vivad se Vishwas scheme, paid what the revised form asked, and was then billed again for missing a date that was impossible to meet.
The Court held the authority could not direct the petitioner to do an act of impossibility — a revised Form-3 issued on 29 October 2021 requiring payment on or before 30 September 2021. He cannot set the clock back. The demand notice and the interest order were set aside, and the authorities directed to pass an order under Section 5(2) and issue Form-5 within six weeks.
- The department admitted its own mistake by issuing a revised Form-3 in the first place.
- Section 5 sets the rhythm — 15 days to determine, 15 days for the declarant to pay after receiving the certificate.
- An impossible condition is no condition. The Court would not let a backdated deadline defeat the scheme.
- Form-5 closes the matter, and it was directed to issue in six weeks.
- Court
- High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravati
- Citation
- W.P. No. 32115 of 2023
- Case
- W.P. No. 32115 of 2023
- Decided
- 24 August 2026
- Outcome
- Writ petition allowed; demand and interest set aside, Form-5 directed
What happened
A revised Form-3 of 29 October 2021 was issued after the department accepted that there were mistakes in the initial Form-3 of 29 January 2021. It required Rs 23,36,812 on or before 30 September 2021, failing which Rs 25,70,493 after that date.
The petitioner paid the balance of the entire tax, Rs 23,36,812, on 30 October 2021 and filed Form-4 the same day intimating it.
A demand notice of 12 April 2023 then asked for Rs 6,23,708 on the footing that the payment was not in consonance with the revised Form-3 because the time limit had not been met, and a further order charged interest for the delay.
Why the demand fell
It was not in dispute that the revised Form-3 was issued on 29 October 2021 after the department accepted its own computational mistakes.
Having accepted them, the authority could by no stretch of imagination direct the petitioner to do an act of impossibility. The revised form was issued on 29 October and asked for payment on or before 30 September. It is humanly impossible to comply, because the petitioner cannot set the clock back.
The scheme's own timetable
Under Section 5(1) the designated authority shall, within 15 days of receiving the declaration, determine the amount payable and grant a certificate containing the particulars of tax arrears and the amount payable.
Under Section 5(2) the declarant shall pay that amount within 15 days of receiving the certificate and intimate it in the prescribed form, whereupon the authority passes an order recording payment.
The demand notice and the interest order were set aside, and the authorities directed to pass an order under Section 5(2) and issue Form-5 within six weeks.
Who argued it
Appearances as recorded in the judgment of the Court.
Frequently asked
The department gave me a deadline that had already passed. What now?
The Court held an authority cannot direct an act of impossibility, and set the resulting demand aside.
What is Form-5 under the scheme?
The order recording that the declarant has paid, which closes the matter. It was directed to issue within six weeks.
When a settlement scheme's own paperwork is wrong
- Date every form and set the sequence out plainly; the impossibility is usually visible on the face of it.
- Pay what the revised form demands and file the intimation at once, even while disputing the deadline.
- Anchor the claim in the statute's timetable rather than in fairness alone.
- Ask specifically for the closing certificate, with a time limit; that is what ends the dispute.
Source. High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravati, W.P. No. 32115 of 2023, decided 24 August 2026 by . This explainer is written from the judgment text as reported.
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