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Section 153C of India’s Income-tax Act, 1961 is a legacy procedure for assessing an “other person” when specified material found in a search or requisition concerning someone else is considered relevant to that person’s income. It is not triggered merely because another person’s papers mention you: the law requires an Assessing Officer’s satisfaction about the material’s connection to you and its bearing on determining your total income. The section expressly excludes searches initiated, and requisitions made, on or after 1 April 2021.
What Section 153C means
The section is titled “Assessment of income of any other person.” It addresses a case where a search under section 132, or a requisition under section 132A, concerns one person, but specified assets, books or documents are considered relevant to another person. The latter is the “other person”; the person searched and the person potentially assessed are not necessarily the same.
Under the 1961 Act text, the material can include money, bullion, jewellery or another valuable article or thing, as well as books of account or documents. The statutory wording distinguishes an asset or item that “belongs to” the other person from books or documents that “pertain to” that person, or information in them that “relates to” that person. The Assessing Officer must also be satisfied that the material has a bearing on determining the other person’s total income. Read the Income Tax Department’s section 153C text.
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In practical terms, the provision describes a sequence: relevant material is identified in a search or requisition, it is handed to the Assessing Officer having jurisdiction over the other person, and that officer may issue notice and assess or reassess if the statutory conditions are met. The existence of a third party’s document alone does not automatically establish that the other person can be assessed under section 153C.
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Does Section 153C apply to searches after 1 April 2021?
No. The 1961 Act’s section 153C text states: “Nothing contained in this section shall apply in relation to a search initiated under section 132 or books of account, other documents or any assets requisitioned under section 132A on or after the 1st day of April, 2021.” The date of the search or requisition is therefore central to whether this legacy section is relevant.
Do not treat section 153C as the route for a new search or requisition on or after that cutoff. If a notice refers to section 153C, determine the date of the underlying search or requisition before drawing conclusions from the section number alone.
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Why a section 153C notice may still arise under current law
The Income-tax Act, 2025 repealed the 1961 Act, but its transition rule says that where a search or requisition took place before the new Act commenced, provisions of the repealed Act continue to apply to proceedings connected with that search or requisition as if the new Act had not been enacted. That is why a legacy section 153C proceeding can remain relevant after repeal. See the Income Tax Department’s Income-tax Act, 2025 publication.
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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →For context, Chapter XIV-B of the 2025 Act addresses search cases. Section 158BD is titled “Undisclosed income of any other person” and provides for the Assessing Officer to proceed against another person under section 158BC when its statutory condition is met. This is the newer framework’s context, not a simple renumbering of section 153C or an automatic substitute for it in an older search case. Consult the published Act text for section 158BD.
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Which assessment years does the 1961 Act text refer to?
For a section 153C proceeding under the relevant version of the 1961 Act, the text refers to “six assessment years immediately preceding” the assessment year relevant to the previous year in which the search or requisition occurred, together with relevant assessment year or years referred to in section 153A. The six-year period is a statutory period, not a study result, and should be read in the context of the statutory version and the case’s dates. It should not be presented as applying to searches or requisitions on or after 1 April 2021.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What to check if a notice refers to Section 153C
The statute establishes a framework, but it cannot determine the outcome of an individual taxpayer’s case. The relevant facts include the search or requisition date, the material identified, the officers’ actions and the notices issued.
- Search or requisition date: Identify when the search under section 132 began or when material or assets were requisitioned under section 132A. Compare that date with the 1 April 2021 cutoff and the transition rule for the 2025 Act.
- Material identified: Check what asset, book, document or information is said to belong to, pertain to or relate to you.
- Recorded satisfaction: Determine what the Assessing Officer recorded about the material’s connection to you and its bearing on determining your total income.
- Handover and jurisdiction: Check whether the material was handed to the Assessing Officer with jurisdiction over you, as the provision contemplates.
- Assessment years and notices: Compare the years named in the notice with the applicable statutory text and review the procedural history. The correct analysis depends on the case record; the statutory framework alone does not establish a universal deadline or outcome.
For a live matter, the dates, notice, material and procedural record need to be reviewed together. The official legislation explains the framework but does not resolve how a particular notice should be answered.
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