§ 304
Chapter XVII — Special Provisions Relating To Certain Persons
Liability of representative assessee
Income-tax Act, 2025
A representative assessee is treated as if the income were his own, meaning he must be assessed and pay tax on that income just like the person he represents. He cannot be taxed under any other provisions for the same income, though the Assessing Officer may still pursue the ultimate beneficiary directly. If only part of a trust's income is taxable, the taxable share for each beneficiary is calculated using a proportionate formula.
📜 Official text of the section +
304. (1) Every representative assessee, as regards the income in respect of which
he is a representative assessee, shall be subject to the same duties, responsi -
bilities and liabilities as if the income were income received by or accruing to or in
favour of him beneficially and for this purpose,—
( a) the representative assessee shall be liable to assessment in his own name
in respect of that income and any such assessment shall be deemed to
be made upon him in his representative capacity only; and
( b) the tax on such income shall, subject to the other provisions contained
in this Chapter, be levied upon and recovered from the representative
assessee in like manner and to the same extent as it would be leviable
upon and recoverable from the person represented by him.
(2) If any person, in respect of any income is assessable under this Chapter in the
capacity of a representative assessee, then he shall not, in respect of that income,
be assessed under any other provisions of this Act.
31(3) Irrespective of the provisions of this Chapter, the Assessing Officer may directly
assess the person on whose behalf or for whose benefit income therein referred to
is receivable, or may recover from such person the tax payable in respect of such
income.
(4) If only part of the income of a trust is chargeable under this Act, then the pro -
portion of income receivable by a beneficiary from such trust derived from the
chargeable part shall be determined as follows:—
A × C,
B
Where,—
A = the chargeable part of the income of the trust;
B = the whole income of the trust; and
C = the income receivable by the beneficiary from the trust.
(5) The Assessing Officer shall have the same remedies in the same manner against
all property of any kind vested in or under the control or management of any rep-
resentative assessee as he would have against the property of any person liable to
pay any tax, whether the demand is raised against the representative assessee or
against the beneficiary direct.
Right of representative assessee to recover tax paid.
Plain-language summary — not the official text. Refer to the bare Act and confirm with a professional for your specific case.