E-assessment of taxpayers: Video conferencing in, personal interviews out

Faceless assessment scheme, however, provides video conferencing facility to those seeking changes in draft assessment order

A person paying income tax will have the option of having a video-conference with tax officials under the government’s newly launched e-assessment scheme even though in the normal course there will be no face-to-face interaction between them. The new scheme came into effect on Thursday. However, even after a scrutiny assessment, appeals will continue to be done through personal representation.
 
The scheme is, however, silent on some key aspects such as assessment years to which this scheme will be applicable, provision of settlement under the dispute resolution panel (DRT) in the case of transfer-pricing cases, risk-management strategy, and terms