Refund claims sit in section 237 and refund interest in section 244A today. In the Income-tax Act, 2025 they become section 431 and section 437.
Quick answer: the mapping
| Income-tax Act, 1961 | Subject | Income-tax Act, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 237 | Refunds | 431 |
| 238 | Person entitled to claim refund | 432 |
| 239 | Form of claim and limitation | 433 |
| 239A | Refund where liability to deduct is denied | 434 |
| 240 | Refund on appeal | 435 |
| 242 | Correctness of assessment not questioned | 436 |
| 244A | Interest on refunds | 437 |
| 245 | Set off and withholding of refunds | 438 |
The Income-tax Act, 2025 received Presidential assent on 21 August 2025 and takes effect from 1 April 2026. The Income-tax Act, 1961 continues to govern every tax year up to 31 March 2026, and all assessments, appeals, penalties and prosecutions relating to those years are completed under the old Act by virtue of the repeal and savings provision in section 536. The mapping on this page is drawn from the section-wise concordance published with the Act, including the corrigenda notified in the Gazette on 3 September 2025.
What the 1961 provision did
Chapter XIX of the Income-tax Act, 1961 dealt with refunds — the entitlement in section 237, the claim in section 239, refund on appeal in section 240, interest in section 244A and the adjustment power in section 245.
Where it sits in the Income-tax Act, 2025
Chapter XX of the Income-tax Act, 2025 carries the same eight provisions as sections 431 to 438, in the same order.
What actually changed
- The mapping is one to one, which makes this one of the simplest chapters to renumber.
- Section 438 is the one to watch. It carries section 245 — the power to set off and withhold refunds against outstanding demand, which is the usual reason a refund is delayed.
- Interest on excess refund is elsewhere. That provision, old section 234D, is section 426 in Chapter XIX, not in the refund chapter.
What to do about it
- Refund follow-up letters and grievance filings should cite section 431 and section 437 for tax year 2026-27 onwards.
- Where a refund is adjusted, the intimation should refer to section 438; check whether the prior intimation requirement has been complied with.
- Interest computations should distinguish section 437 (interest to the taxpayer) from section 426 (interest on excess refund recovered from the taxpayer).
The sections around it in the new Act
Renumbering is easier to absorb in context. The table below lists the neighbouring provisions of the Income-tax Act, 2025 with the 1961 sections each of them carries forward, so you can see where this provision sits and what moved with it.
| New section (2025) | Provision | Corresponding 1961 section(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 431 | Refunds | 237 |
| 432 | Person entitled to claim refund in certain special cases | 238 |
| 433 | Form of claim for refund and limitation | 239 |
| 434 | Refund for denying liability to deduct tax in certain cases | 239A |
| 435 | Refund on appeal, etc | 240 |
| 436 | Correctness of assessment not to be questioned | 242 |
| 437 | Interest on refunds | 244A |
| 438 | Set off and withholding of refunds in certain cases | 245 |
How to read a section mapping
- A corresponding section is not always an identical section. Where several 1961 sections map to one new section, conditions that used to sit apart are now read together.
- Where one 1961 section maps to several new sections, the old provision was split, and each new section carries only part of what you used to cite.
- Some new sections have no 1961 equivalent at all — the registered non-profit code in sections 332 to 355 is the largest example.
- Always cite by year. The Act that applies is decided by the tax year in question, not by the date you are writing on.
This page is a structural mapping guide, not tax advice. A corresponding section is not always an identical section — several provisions were merged, split or re-worded when they were carried over. Always read the actual text of the new section before relying on it, and check for later amendments, rules and CBDT notifications.