Section 147 → Section 279

Income escaping assessment: power to assess or reassess

New reference Section 279

Income-tax Act, 1961Section 147

Assessing Officer may assess/reassess income that has escaped assessment
Subject to the procedure in sections 148 to 153
Reassessment block: 147, 148, 148A, 149, 151

Applies to FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) and earlier years.

Income-tax Act, 2025Section 279

Same power, now section 279
Reassessment block moves to sections 279 to 285
Notice: 280 · pre-notice procedure: 281 · time limit: 282 · sanction: 284

Applies from tax year 2026-27 (from 1 April 2026).

What changed

Substance continues. Section 279 states expressly that non-compliance with certain procedural sections does not bar the power, a more direct way of saying what the 1961 Act did through explanations and provisos.

Practice notes

Before replying to a reassessment notice, identify the tax year involved and which Act governs it. For years before the new Act, check the savings provision in section 536.
Case law under section 147 remains relevant where the language is carried over.

These are summaries, not the statutory text. Read the bare Act for both sections on the Income Tax Department's official site, which also has a side-by-side comparison utility.

Related sections

148→280Notice for reassessment where income has escaped assessment, and the pre-notice procedure 139→263Return of income: original, belated, revised, updated and defective returns