Best judgment assessment
Section 115WF of the Income-tax Act, 1961 deals with best judgment assessment. If any person, being an employer— (a) fails to make the return required under sub-section (1) of section 115WD and has not made a return under sub-section (3) or a revised return under sub-section (4) of that section, or (b) fails to comply with all the terms of a notice issued under sub-section (2) The Act came into force on 01 Apr 1962. Repealed by the Income-tax Act, 2025 with effect from 1 April 2026, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under it.
If any person, being an employer—
(a) fails to make the return required under sub-section (1) of section 115WD and has not made a return under sub-section (3) or a revised return under sub-section (4) of that section, or (b) fails to comply with all the terms of a notice issued under sub-section (2) of section 115WD or fails to comply with a direction issued under sub- section (2A) of section 142, or (c) having made a return, fails to comply with all the terms of a notice issued under sub-section (2) of section 115WE, the Assessing Officer, after taking into account all relevant material which the Assessing Officer has gathered, shall, after giving the assessee an opportunity of being heard, make the assessment of the fringe benefits to the best of his judgment and determine the sum payable by the assessee on the basis of such assessment:
Provided that such opportunity shall be given by the Assessing Officer by serving a notice calling upon the assessee to show cause, on a date and time to be specified in the notice as to why the assessment should not be completed to the best of his judgment:
Provided further that it shall not be necessary to give such opportunity in a case where a notice under sub-section (2) of section 115WD has been issued prior to the making of an assessment under this section.
Fringe benefits escaping assessment.
Section 115WF, The Income-tax Act, 1961 (Act 43 of 1961).
Now in the Income-tax Act
No provision of the Income-tax Act is textually close to this one. No counterpart in the new Act
Measured by comparing the text of the two provisions, not taken from an official correspondence table — there is no machine-readable one. See both texts side by side before relying on it.
Both regimes are live. The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force. We never redirect one to the other.
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
This section refers to
Referred to by 8
- s. 115WE Assessment
- s. 115WJ Advance tax in respect of fringe benefits
- s. 115WK Interest for default in furnishing return of fringe benefits
- s. 119 Instructions to subordinate authorities
- s. 124 Jurisdiction of Assessing Officers
- s. 140A Self-assessment
- s. 244A Interest on refunds
- s. 246A Appealable orders before Commissioner (Appeals)
Questions about Section 115WF
What does Section 115WF of the Income-tax Act deal with?
Section 115WF of the Income-tax Act is headed "Best judgment assessment". If any person, being an employer— (a) fails to make the return required under sub-section (1) of section 115WD and has not made a return under sub-section (3) or a revised return under sub-section (4) of that section, or (b) fails to comply with all the terms of a notice issued under sub-section (2)
How do I find court cases under Section 115WF of the Income-tax Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Income Tax Act 115WF, section 115WF Income Tax Act, section 115WF of the Income-tax Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome.
What should I read with Section 115WF of the Income-tax Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 115WD (Return of fringe benefits), section 115WE (Assessment), section 142 (Inquiry before assessment), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 8 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it.
When did Section 115WF of the Income-tax Act come into force?
Section 115WF of the Income-tax Act, cited as Income Tax Act 115WF, came into force on 01 Apr 1962, having been enacted on 13 Sep 1961. It is no longer in force.
Other sections of this Act
- 10. Incomes not included in total income30885 words
- 2. Definitions11419 words
- 80HHF. Deduction in respect of profits and gains from export or transfer of film software, etc7148 words
- 80-IB. Deduction in respect of profits and gains from certain industrial undertakings other than infrastructure development undertakings5474 words
- 155. Other amendments5451 words
- 139. Return of income5400 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Recovered from the consolidated text published by the Income Tax Department, as amended by the Finance Act, 2026. India Code holds no record of this Act in any form. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.