Section 515 — Appearance by authorised representative

(1) An assessee, entitled or required to attend before any income-tax
authority or the Appellate Tribunal for any proceeding under this Act, may
attend through an authorised representative.
(2) The provisions of sub-section (1) shall not apply where an assessee is required
to attend personally for examination on oath or affirmation under section 246.
(3) For the purposes of this section,––
( a) “authorised representative” means a person authorised by the assessee,
in writing, to appear on his behalf, being—
( i) a person related to or regularly employed by the assessee in any
manner; or
( ii) any officer of a scheduled bank with which the assessee maintains
a current account or has other regular dealings; or
( iii) any legal practitioner, who is entitled to practise in any civil court
in India; or
( iv) an accountant; or
( v) any person, who has passed any accountancy examination recog-
nised by the Board; or
( vi) any person, who has acquired such educational qualifications, as
may be prescribed; or
( vii) any person who, before the coming into force of the Income-tax
Act, 1961 (43 of 1961) in the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar
Haveli, Goa, Daman and Diu, or Pondicherry, attended before an
income-tax authority in the said territory on behalf of any assessee
otherwise than as an employee or relative of that assessee; or
( viii) any other person who was an authorised representative in accord-
ance with the provisions of section 288(2)( vii) of the Income-tax
Act, 1961 (43 of 1961); or
( ix) any other person as may be prescribed;
( b) “accountant” means a chartered accountant as defined in section
2(1)(b) of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 (38 of 1949), who holds
a valid certificate of practice under section 6(1) of that Act, but does not
include [except for representing the assessee under sub-section (1)],—
( i) in case of an assessee, being a company, a person who is not eligible
for appointment as an auditor of the said company under section
141(3) of the Companies Act, 2013 (18 of 2013); or
( ii) in any other case, —
( A) the assessee himself, or in the case of being a firm or asso -
ciation of persons or a Hindu undivided family, any partner
of such firm or a member of such association or such Hindu
undivided family;
( B) for an assessee, being a registered non-profit organisation, any
person referred to in section 355(h)(i) or (ii) or (iii) or (iv);
( C) for any person other than the persons referred to in sub-clauses
(A) and (B), the person who is competent to verify the return
under section 263 as per section 265;
( D) any relative of any of the persons referred to in sub-clauses
(A), (B) and (C);
( E) an officer or employee of the assessee;
( F) an individual, who, is a partner, or who is in the employment,
of an officer or employee of the assessee;
( G) an individual, who or his relative or partner—
( I) is holding any security of, or interest in, the assessee
and the face value of such security or interest held by
his relative does not exceed ` 1,00,000;
( II) is indebted to the assessee, and such debt in case of his
relative does not exceed ` 1,00,000;
( III) has given a guarantee or provided security in connection
with the indebtedness of a third person to the assessee
and such relative gives a guarantee or provides security
for an amount not exceeding ` 1,00,000;
( H) a person who, whether directly or indirectly, has business
relationship with the assessee of such nature, as may be pre-
scribed;
( I) a person convicted by a court of an offence involving fraud and
ten years has not elapsed from the date of such conviction.
(4) No person,—
( a) who has been dismissed or removed from Government service; or
( b) who has been convicted of an offence connected with any income-tax
proceeding or on whom a penalty has been imposed under this Act,
except a penalty imposed under section 271(1)( ii) or 272A(1)(d) of the
Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961) or section 465(1)(d) of this Act; or
( c) who has become an insolvent; or
( d) who has been convicted by a court for an offence involving fraud,
shall be qualified to represent an assessee under sub-section (1), for––
(i) all times, in case of a person referred to in clause (a);
(ii) such time as the Principal Chief Commissioner or Chief Commissioner
or Principal Commissioner or Commissioner may by order determine,
in case of a person referred to in clause (b);
(iii) the period during which the insolvency continues, in case of a person
referred to in clause (c); and
( iv) ten years from the date of conviction, in case of a person referred to in
clause (d).
(5) If a person,—
( a) who is a legal practitioner or an accountant, is found guilty of miscon -
duct in his professional capacity by any authority authorised to institute
disciplinary proceedings against him, the order passed by that authority
shall affect his right to attend before an income-tax authority in the
same manner as it affects his right to practise as a legal practitioner or
accountant, as the case may be;
( b) who is not a legal practitioner or an accountant, and is found guilty of
misconduct in any income-tax proceedings by the prescribed income-tax
authority, he may be directed by such authority that he shall henceforth
be disqualified from representing an assessee under sub-section (1).
(6) Every order or direction under sub-section (4)( b) or (5)( b) shall be subject to
the following conditions:—
( a) no such order or direction shall be made against any person unless he
has been given a reasonable opportunity of being heard;
( b) any person against whom such an order or direction is made may, within
one month of the said order or direction, appeal to the Board to have the
order or direction cancelled; and
( c) no such order or direction shall take effect until one month has passed
from the making thereof, or, if an appeal has been filed, until the disposal
of the appeal.
(7) A person disqualified to represent an assessee by virtue of section 61(3) of the
Indian Income-tax Act, 1922 (11 of 1922) or section 288(5) of the Income-tax Act,
1961 (43 of 1961) shall be disqualified to represent an assessee under sub-section (1).
(8) For the purposes of this section, the expression “relative”, in relation to an
individual, means—
( a) spouse of the individual;
( b) brother or sister of the individual;
( c) brother or sister of the spouse of the individual;
( d) any lineal ascendant (maternal or paternal) or descendant of the indi -
vidual;
( e) any lineal ascendant (maternal or paternal) or descendant of the spouse
of the individual;
( f) spouse of a person referred to in clause (b), (c), (d) or (e);
( g) any lineal descendant of a brother or sister of either the individual or
the spouse of the individual.