No fault in serving notice to last known address when PAN data was not updated – ITAT

No fault in serving notice u/s 148 to last known address when assessee had not updated change of address in PAN data.

In a recent judgment, ITAT has held that when assessee had not updated change of address in PAN data, there was no fault on the part of the Revenue in serving the notice under section 148 and other notices to the last known address given by the assessee.

ABCAUS Case Law Citation:
5202 (2026) (08) abacus.in ITAT

Important Case Laws relied upon by Parties:
Ishwarbhai Thakorbhai Patel vs. ITO

The appellant assessee was an individual and Non Resident Indian (NRI) with no taxable income in India for the relevant financial year, therefore, he did not file the return of income.

However, the assessee received large amount of cash as gift from her late father who was an agriculturist shortly before his death. The assessee also received another gift from her late maiden aunty before her death. Both the gifts were part of their accumulated savings and agriculture income.

The assessee deposited the entire gifts in her NRO savings account. Since, the assessee had not filed the return of income and huge cash deposits made in NRO account, the assessment was reopened in the old address of the assessee.

Since notices were not received by the assessee and not replied which has resulted in passing ex-parte order making addition of csh so deposited. The AO also initiated penalty proceedings which was also ex-parte.

Pursuant to the recovery action by the department, the assessee came to know about ex-parte order and collected ex-parte order and filed appeal before the CIT(A).

Since the assessment being an ex-parte order, the CIT(A) took into account the newly inserted proviso to section 251(1)(a) of the Act, set aside ex-parte assessment back to the file of the Assessing Officer for making fresh assessment after giving adequate opportunity of hearing to the assessee.

Before the Tribunal, the assessee contended that the AO had completed entire assessment without servicing single notice on the proper address and passed the assessment order u/s.147 r.w.s. 144.

It was contended that notice issued on the wrong address was not at all sustainable in the law because servicing of Notice on Wrong Address is as good as not issuing notice to the assessee and hence assessment had no legal validity and Assessment Order must be quashed.

The assessee relied upon the judgment of the jurisdictional High Court wherein the reassessment order was quashed on the ground that reopening of notice under section 148 of the Act was not served on the assessee.

The Tribunal observed that the case law relied by the assessee was a case wherein, the assessee being an agriculturist does not even having PAN and not served with the reopening notice under section 148 of the Act, therefore, the Hon’ble High Court quashed the reassessment proceedings on account of non service of 148 notice. 

The Tribunal noted that in the present case, the assessee was having PAN with parental family address. The assessee claimed that the said address was vacated long before, however the assessee had not updated with the change of address in the PAN data. Thus, there was no fault on the part of the Revenue in serving  the notice under section 148 of the Act and other notices to the last known address given by the assessee.

Accordingly, the ITAT dismissed the appeal of the assessee.

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