Section 287 of the Income-tax Act, 2025 allows an income-tax authority to amend its order, an intimation or deemed intimation under section 270(1), or an intimation under section 399, to rectify a mistake apparent from the record.
What section 287 does
Section 287 is the rectification provision — the successor to section 154 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. It is the cheapest and fastest remedy in the Act, and the one taxpayers reach for when an intimation contains an obvious error.
The scope is defined by a single phrase: a mistake apparent from the record. What can be rectified is an order passed under the Act, an intimation or deemed intimation under section 270(1), or an intimation under section 399 — the TDS and TCS processing provision.
The key safeguard is in sub-section (4): no amendment that enhances an assessment, reduces a refund or otherwise increases the liability may be made without a notice of intention and a reasonable opportunity of being heard.
The Income-tax Act, 2025 takes effect from 1 April 2026 and applies from tax year 2026-27. The Income-tax Act, 1961 continues to govern every year up to 31 March 2026, including assessments, appeals and penalties for those years, because of the repeal and savings provision in section 536. Figures quoted here are the amounts written into the Act as enacted (with the Gazette corrigenda of 3 September 2025); the annual Finance Act can change rates and thresholds.
Old Act and new Act, side by side
The table below shows what the Income-tax Act, 1961 did and where the same ground is covered in the Income-tax Act, 2025.
| Income-tax Act, 1961 | What it did | Income-tax Act, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 154(1) | Rectification of an order or intimation | 287(1) |
| 154(1A) | Matters not considered and decided in appeal or revision | 287(2) |
| 154(2) | On own motion or on application | 287(3) |
| 154(3) | Hearing required before enhancement | 287(4) |
| 154(4) | Order in writing | 287(5) |
| 154(5) | Refund where liability is reduced | 287(6) |
| 154(6) | Notice of demand where liability increases | 287(7) |
Section 287 sub-section by sub-section
Read this alongside the bare text — each heading below is a sub-section of the section as enacted.
Sub-section (1) — what can be rectified
An income-tax authority referred to in section 236 may, for rectifying any mistake apparent from the record, amend: (a) any order passed by it under the Act; (b) an intimation or deemed intimation under section 270(1); or (c) an intimation under section 399. The deemed intimation limb matters — where the acknowledgement is treated as the intimation under section 270(5)(b), it can still be rectified.
Sub-section (2) — the doctrine of merger
Irrespective of anything in any law in force, the authority may amend an order or intimation in relation to any matter other than the matter considered and decided in any proceeding by way of appeal or revision. Once an issue has been decided in appeal, it is beyond rectification; unrelated matters in the same order remain open.
Sub-section (3) — who can set it in motion
The authority may amend of its own motion, and shall amend to rectify a mistake brought to its notice by (i) the assessee, deductor or collector, or (ii) the Assessing Officer, where the authority is the Joint Commissioner (Appeals) or the Commissioner (Appeals). Note the word shall — where a genuine apparent mistake is pointed out, rectification is not discretionary.
Sub-section (4) — the hearing requirement
No amendment that enhances an assessment, reduces a refund, or otherwise increases the liability of the assessee, deductor or collector may be made without giving (a) a notice of the intention to make the amendment, and (b) a reasonable opportunity of being heard. An enhancement made without this is open to challenge on that ground alone.
Sub-sections (5) to (7) — the consequences
The authority shall pass an order in writing where an amendment is made. The Assessing Officer shall make any refund due where the amendment reduces the assessment or the liability. And where the amendment enhances the assessment or reduces a refund, the Assessing Officer serves a notice of demand in the prescribed form specifying the sum payable.
What is not a mistake apparent from the record
The phrase confines the remedy to errors that are obvious and do not require elaborate reasoning — a wrong TDS credit, an arithmetical slip, a missed challan, an incorrect carry-forward figure. A debatable question of law or a matter needing fresh investigation is not rectifiable; the route there is an appeal under section 357 or a revision under section 378.
Worked example
An intimation under section 270(1) for tax year 2026-27 raises a demand of ₹1,85,000.
| Issue | Rectifiable under section 287? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| TDS of ₹1,40,000 appearing in Form 26AS was not given credit | Yes | An apparent mistake from the record |
| A challan for self-assessment tax was not matched | Yes | Apparent from the record once the challan is identified |
| Arithmetical error in totalling a schedule | Yes | Sub-section (1) |
| Whether a receipt is capital or revenue | No | A debatable issue — appeal under section 357 instead |
| An issue already decided by the Commissioner (Appeals) | No | Sub-section (2) excludes matters considered and decided in appeal |
Where the rectification reduces the demand, sub-section (6) requires the Assessing Officer to grant the resulting refund. If instead the authority proposed to increase the demand on rectification, sub-section (4) would first require a notice of intention and a hearing.
Compliance checklist and due dates
- Confirm the error is apparent from the record — obvious, and not requiring argument or fresh evidence.
- Check whether the issue was considered and decided in appeal or revision; sub-section (2) puts it beyond rectification.
- Where the authority proposes an enhancement, insist on the notice of intention and hearing under sub-section (4).
- For debatable issues, file an appeal under section 357 rather than a rectification application.
- Remember a deemed intimation under section 270(5)(b) is rectifiable under sub-section (1)(b).
- TDS and TCS processing intimations under section 399 are also within the section.
- Expect a written order under sub-section (5) and, where the liability falls, a refund under sub-section (6).
Common mistakes
- Using rectification for a debatable issue and losing time on the appeal limitation under section 358.
- Overlooking that matters decided in appeal cannot be rectified, however clear the error appears.
- Accepting an enhanced demand on rectification without the notice and hearing sub-section (4) requires.
- Assuming an acknowledgement cannot be rectified — a deemed intimation is expressly covered.
- Forgetting that the authority must act where a genuine apparent mistake is pointed out, under sub-section (3)(b).
This is an explanatory guide, not tax advice, and it does not reproduce the section in full. Read the bare text of the section before you rely on it, and check for later amendments, the Income-tax Rules made under the new Act, and CBDT circulars and notifications.