The finance ministry intends to allow "jurisdiction free" filing of tax returns from April 1, 2007. Under this system, a Delhi taxpayer will no longer be restricted to filing returns in a particular ward of a circle and can instead submit returns anywhere in the country.

"We will introduce this facility from 2007. It has to be preceded with computerisation of the department. That job, we hope, will be completed by September-October this year," Revenue Secretary K M Chandrasekar told Business Standard.

He pointed out that once a national database was created, assessing officers would no longer be required to process information submitted by a taxpayer.

"The processing of the basic information will be done by a back office and the assessing officer will only undertake detailed scrutiny (to detect anomalies). This will also allow us to use our manpower more gainfully," he said.

The revenue department had last year set up an internal committee, headed by member (investigation & computerisation) J G Pendse, to examine the feasibility of allowing jurisdiction-free filing of returns. At present, individuals file returns in the ward of the circle where they reside (or the ward where their office is located).

Corporates file their returns at the place of their registration or "principal" place of business. Within a city, a "ward" or "circle" for filing returns is allocated to a company and its salaried employees on the basis of the first letter of the company's name.

Chandrasekar said the move to allow jurisdiction-free filing was also in tandem with the department's move to allow e-filing of returns. The department had, in September 2004, launched the Electronic Furnishing of Return of Income Scheme. Under it, tax payers could file their returns electronically, through persons authorised to act as e-return intermediaries.

The intermediaries digitise the data of such returns and transmit it electronically to the e-filing server of the department under their digital signatures.

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