Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched faceless assessment, faceless appeal and taxpayers’ charter, as key features of Transparent Taxation on Thursday, as the government took to honouring honest taxpayers of the country. Faceless assessment and taxpayers’ charter will begin from August 13, while faceless appeal will begin from September 25 for all Indian citizens. “Our effort is that our tax system should be seamless, painless, faceless. Seamless means that the tax administration should work to solve the problem instead of confusing every taxpayer,” the Prime Minister said while launching the portal via video conferencing. Faceless assessment will eliminate physical interface between assessing officers and assessees, moving away from the conventional system of scrutiny assessment that involved a high level of personal interaction between taxpayers and income tax department officials. The new system means that taxpayers will no longer have to visit territorial jurisdiction tax officers – attached to the case – or the income tax department on receiving notices. The tax system becoming faceless will give sense of fairness and fearlessness to all taxpayers, he said, adding that the government has been moving in the direction of minimum government and maximum governance for the past six years.

(Economic Times)