Got a Tax Notice But Your CA Is Too Busy This Season?
Bad timing has a way of finding you. You open the portal one morning, and there's a notice waiting. Naturally, the first thing you do is call your CA. And the reply you get is some version of "I'll look at it next week, it's peak season."
Fair enough, honestly. Your CA isn't ignoring you. They're juggling forty other clients' ITRs, a stack of GST returns due any day now, and probably haven't slept properly in a fortnight. This happens every single year around filing deadlines, and it's nobody's fault.
The problem is, your notice doesn't care that it's a busy month. It has its own deadline, and that clock started ticking the moment it landed in your inbox.
Here's the Thing Most People Don't Realize
Not every notice needs a CA sitting across the table from you. A lot of them are things you can genuinely handle yourself, if you know what you're looking at.
Take a Section 143(1) intimation. That's just the CPC confirming your return has been processed, sometimes with a small adjustment. No filing required, no drama, just a read-and-acknowledge. A Section 139(9) defective return notice is similar in spirit: you missed a schedule, or filed the wrong ITR form, and you get 15 days to fix it yourself using the same portal you filed with originally.
Where it gets genuinely tricky, and where you do want an expert, is scrutiny under 143(2), reassessment under 148, or a demand under 156 that you think is wrong. Those need judgment calls that come from experience, not just paperwork.
So before you spend three days anxiously waiting for your CA's inbox to clear up, it's worth figuring out which category you're actually in.
What To Do While You're Waiting on Your CA
Say it is a real scrutiny notice, something that genuinely needs professional eyes, and your CA still can't get to it for another week or two. You're not stuck. A few things you can do right now, on your own:
First, read the notice properly. Not skim it, actually read it, and note the exact section number and the response deadline. That single number changes everything about how urgent this is.
Second, pull your own documents together while you wait. Your Form 26AS, your AIS, your filed return, and whatever bank statements or investment proofs the notice seems to be asking about. Your CA will need these anyway, and having them ready cuts your eventual back-and-forth in half.
Third, if the deadline is close and your CA genuinely can't make it in time, you can request one adjournment through the e-Proceedings section yourself. It's usually granted without much fuss, especially during filing season when the department knows everyone's stretched.
What you shouldn't do is let the notice sit untouched because you're waiting on a phone call that keeps getting pushed. Silence past the deadline is the one outcome that actually hurts you, since it can tip into a best-judgement assessment under Section 144, where the department decides your liability without hearing you out at all.
This Is Exactly the Gap We Built NoticeSahayak For
Every CA-facing notice tool in the market assumes you have a professional on standby, ready to log in and handle things the same day. Great, until the one month a year when every professional in the country is drowning in ITR and GST deadlines at the same time.
NoticeSahayak was built for the person stuck exactly where you are right now. Upload your notice, and you get a plain-language read on what it actually means, how serious it is, and a ready draft response you can either file yourself or hand to your CA once they surface, saving them the hour they'd otherwise spend just understanding the notice from scratch.
You don't need to choose between waiting helplessly and doing something reckless on your own. There's a middle path, and it doesn't involve competing for your CA's attention during the one season they have none to spare.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I respond to an income tax notice without a CA? For routine notices like a 143(1) intimation or a straightforward 139(9) defective return, yes. For scrutiny or reassessment notices, professional input is strongly recommended, even if it comes a little later than you'd like.
What if my CA can't respond before the deadline? You can request one adjournment through the e-Proceedings section of the income tax portal. It's usually granted, particularly during peak filing season.
Will I be penalised if I miss the deadline because my CA was busy? The department doesn't factor in your CA's availability. A missed deadline can lead to a best-judgement assessment under Section 144, so it's worth acting yourself if your CA genuinely can't make it in time.
Is it safe to draft my own response to a serious notice? For serious notices like 143(2) scrutiny or 148 reassessment, a self-drafted response should ideally be reviewed by a professional before submission, even if that review happens after you've filed for an adjournment.