CA Inter tax amendments for Jan 2027: income tax and GST
The CA Inter tax amendments for Jan 2027 are ICAI's three income tax changes up to 30 June 2026 (Rule 3C and Rule 3D limits, the Unified Pension Scheme, and relief on higher TDS/TCS for inoperative PANs) plus every GST change in ICAI's Statutory Update for September 2026, all on top of the July 2025 study material. ICAI adds GST notifications and circulars from 1 March to 30 June 2026 in a separate Statutory Update for January 2027, which its Amendments page doesn't list as of 29 October 2026. The law stays the Income-tax Act, 1961, for Assessment Year 2026-27.
Taxation is Paper 3 of Group I, which ICAI's January 2027 schedule (PDF) (opens in a new tab) puts on 2, 4 and 6 January 2027. Below is each change with its notification, the study material chapter it updates, and how a question on it reads.
CA Inter tax amendments for Jan 2027: what applies
| Question | ICAI's answer for January 2027 | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Which Act? | Income-tax Act, 1961. The Income-tax Act, 2025 applies to Inter Paper 3A from May 2027 | ICAI announcement (PDF) (opens in a new tab) |
| Which year? | AY 2026-27, Finance Act, 2025 | Income tax study material, Module 1 (PDF) (opens in a new tab) |
| Books | July 2025 edition of both sections + RTP for January 2027 + Statutory Update for January 2027 | Study material notice (PDF) (opens in a new tab) |
| Income tax cut-off | Notifications, circulars and amendments up to 30 June 2026 | Statutory Update, Section A (PDF) (opens in a new tab) |
| GST cut-off | Notifications and circulars up to 30 June 2026; 1 March to 30 June 2026 goes in the January 2027 GST update | GST study material, Module 1 (PDF) (opens in a new tab) |
One thing confuses students: the income tax update's file name ends in "sep2026", but its heading reads "Statutory Update for January 2027 Examination" and it covers changes up to 30 June 2026. ICAI updated the same file. Go by the heading.
All of ICAI's amendment files sit on its Intermediate Amendments/Developments page (opens in a new tab). The editions and cut-offs for the other five papers are in CA Inter amendments for Jan 2027, paper-wise.
CA Inter income tax amendments for Jan 2027
ICAI lists exactly three items. The July 2025 study material is current to 15 July 2025; these are the changes after that date and up to 30 June 2026 that it doesn't cover.
| Chapter | Change | Authority | What to write |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3. Salaries (Unit 1) | Salary limit for a "specified employee" and GTI limit for exempt medical travel abroad | Notification 133/2025, 18.8.2025 | Rule 3C: ₹4,00,000. Rule 3D: ₹8,00,000 |
| 6. Deductions from GTI | Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) taxed like NPS | Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 2025 | Section 80CCD(3A) and (6); section 10(12AA) and 10(12AB) |
| 8. Return of income | No higher TDS/TCS when an inoperative PAN is made operative in time | Circular 9/2025, 21.7.2025 | The two time windows below |
Rule 3C and Rule 3D: two new limits in Salaries
Specified employee (section 17(2)(iii)). A director, an employee with substantial interest, or any other employee whose salary income, leaving out non-monetary benefits, exceeds the prescribed limit. Rule 3C now prescribes ₹4,00,000. ICAI's update names the perquisites taxable in a specified employee's hands: a motor car, a personal servant, gas, electricity and water, or an educational facility.
Medical treatment abroad (clause (iv) of the proviso to section 17(2)). The employer's spend on treatment and stay abroad is exempt to the extent the RBI permits. The travel cost is exempt only if the employee's gross total income, before adding that cost, is within the prescribed amount. Rule 3D now prescribes ₹8,00,000.
Worked check (our figures, for practice):
| Employee | Fact | Result |
|---|---|---|
| A, not a director, no substantial interest | Salary excluding non-monetary perks ₹4,60,000 | Above ₹4,00,000: a specified employee, so perks such as a motor car or a personal servant are taxable under section 17(2)(iii) |
| B, same position | Salary excluding non-monetary perks ₹3,80,000 | Not a specified employee: those perks aren't taxed under section 17(2)(iii) |
| C | GTI ₹7,40,000 before adding ₹1,20,000 of employer-paid travel abroad for treatment | Within ₹8,00,000: travel not a perquisite |
| D | GTI ₹8,30,000 before adding the same travel | Above ₹8,00,000: travel is a taxable perquisite |
Write the limit and the rule number in the answer. "Exceeds ₹4,00,000 prescribed under Rule 3C" shows the examiner the provision; "he is a high earner" does not.
Unified Pension Scheme: the NPS treatment, extended
The UPS is an option under NPS for Central Government employees, giving an assured payout after retirement. To match NPS, the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 2025 inserted:
- Section 80CCD(3A): the amount in the UPS account (on which deduction was claimed), with accretions, received by the assessee or nominee on superannuation, voluntary retirement or retirement under Rule 56(j), is taxed in the year of receipt.
- Section 80CCD(6): an amount moved from the individual corpus to the pool corpus on retirement is deemed not received.
- Section 10(12AA): a payment from the NPS Trust to a UPS subscriber on retirement is exempt up to 60% of the individual corpus.
- Section 10(12AB): the lump sum on superannuation (10% of monthly emoluments, basic pay plus DA, for every completed six months of qualifying service) is exempt.
A question here is usually short: identify which receipt is exempt and how much of the rest is taxable.
Inoperative PAN: relief from higher TDS and TCS
A PAN that wasn't linked with Aadhaar became inoperative, and TDS or TCS then applies at the higher rates of section 206AA or 206CC. Once the person links Aadhaar and pays the ₹1,000 fee under section 234H, the PAN becomes operative within 30 days. Circular 9/2025 says the deductor or collector need not apply the higher rate where:
| Amount paid or credited | PAN made operative |
|---|---|
| 1 April 2024 to 31 July 2025 | On or before 30 September 2025 |
| On or after 1 August 2025 | Within two months from the end of the month of payment or credit |
Worked check: rent paid on 12 September 2025, PAN made operative on 20 November 2025. The month of payment ends 30 September; two months from then is 30 November. The PAN was operative in time, so the higher rate under section 206AA doesn't apply.
CA Inter GST amendments for Jan 2027
Read ICAI's GST Statutory Update for September 2026 (PDF) (opens in a new tab) in full: it covers every significant notification and circular from 1 May 2025 to 28 February 2026, and it says all Finance Act, 2025 amendments to the CGST and IGST Acts have become effective. Those amendments are printed at the end of the relevant chapters of your July 2025 book; read them in place of the old text. The GST study material says the January 2027 update will add 1 March to 30 June 2026.
| Chapter | Change | Notification / circular | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3. Charge of GST (repeated in 14) | Omnibus passenger transport through an e-commerce operator: if the supplier is a company, the company pays GST, not the ECO | N. 17/2025 CT(R), 17.09.2025 | 22.09.2025 |
| 3. Charge of GST | GTA taking ITC: 12% to 18%. Without ITC: 5%, unchanged | N. 15/2025 CT(R), 17.09.2025 | 22.09.2025 |
| 3. Charge of GST | Renting a passenger motor vehicle with fuel, full ITC option: 12% to 18%. Limited-ITC option: 5%, unchanged | N. 15/2025 CT(R) | 22.09.2025 |
| 5. Exemptions | Entry 18 (road transport) no longer covers local delivery by or through an ECO; GTA definition excludes such ECOs | N. 16/2025 CT(R), 17.09.2025 | 22.09.2025 |
| 5. Exemptions | New entries 36C (life insurance) and 36D (health insurance) to individuals and families, not groups; 36E (reinsurance of those) | N. 16/2025 CT(R) | 22.09.2025 |
| 7. Value of supply | Post-sale discounts: recipient keeps full ITC on financial/commercial credit notes; the discount isn't consideration for the dealer's onward sale (unless the manufacturer agreed the price with the end customer) or for a promotion service (unless the agreement names that service and its consideration) | Circular 251/08/2025-GST, 12.09.2025 | — |
| 8. Input tax credit | Rule 86B: new exception (f) for a registered person other than a manufacturer, for rule 31D goods taxed on retail sale price | N. 20/2025 CT, 31.12.2025 | 01.02.2026 |
| 9. Registration | Rule 9A: low-risk applicants get registration electronically within 3 working days | N. 18/2025 CT, 31.10.2025 | 01.11.2025 |
| 9. Registration | Rule 14A: optional quick registration if output tax on supplies to registered persons is up to ₹2.5 lakh a month; one registration per State/UT per PAN | N. 18/2025 CT | 01.11.2025 |
| 15. Returns | Annual return not required where aggregate turnover is up to ₹2 crore, FY 2024-25 onwards | N. 15/2025 CT, 17.09.2025 | — |
ICAI notes that detailed ITC reversal provisions are outside the Inter syllabus, so learn the post-sale discount circular for its conclusions.
How ICAI asks a GST amendment: its own RTP answer
ICAI's September 2026 RTP for Paper 3 (PDF) (opens in a new tab) put the omnibus change inside a full liability question (Q6, Stellar Orbit Appliances Pvt. Ltd.):
- Fact: the company provided passenger transport by an air-conditioned omnibus through an e-commerce operator, ₹12,58,000. The question gives CGST and SGST at 9% each.
- ICAI's answer: omnibus transport through an ECO is a notified service under section 9(5), but because the supplier is a company, the company itself pays: CGST ₹1,13,220 and SGST ₹1,13,220.
- The trap: a student working from the old list moves the tax to the ECO and drops ₹2,26,440 from the company's liability. One line of law changes two figures in the computation.
That is the pattern for most GST amendments: not a separate question, but a line inside the compulsory computation. A wrong line costs both the working and the total.
CA Inter statutory update: where ICAI publishes it
| Document | Where | Status on 14 October 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Income tax Statutory Update for January 2027 | Amendments/Developments page, Intermediate | Published (up to 30 June 2026) |
| GST Statutory Update for January 2027 | Same page | The page lists the September 2026 GST update as the latest |
| RTP for January 2027 | ICAI's Intermediate RTP page (opens in a new tab) | Out for all 6 papers: CA Inter RTP Jan 2027 with answers |
In the January 2027 RTP, Paper 3, read each section's opening note first: both put the cut-off at 30 June 2026, and the income tax note links the income tax update (RTP Paper 3, January 2027, PDF (opens in a new tab)). Every RTP stays free on our CA Inter RTP page.
How to revise these amendments in the weeks left
- Write each change into your book at its chapter, with the notification number and effective date. The tables above give both.
- Make one sheet of numbers: ₹4,00,000 (Rule 3C), ₹8,00,000 (Rule 3D), 60% (UPS), 30 September 2025 and two months (PAN), 18% (GTA, vehicle renting with ITC), 3 working days (rules 9A, 14A), ₹2.5 lakh (rule 14A), ₹2 crore (annual return), 1 February 2026 (rule 86B).
- Practise them inside computations. The 15-mark income tax Q1 and the GST liability computation are where these lines sit; see the CA Inter chapter wise weightage.
- Check every older paper's year. ICAI's September 2025 and January 2026 papers are on AY 2025-26; recheck their limits before you trust them. The paper-by-paper list is in the CA Inter Taxation mock test guide.
A method for revising amendments in any paper: how to revise amendments for CA exams.
Frequently asked questions
Are the CA Inter tax amendments for Jan 2027 the same as for Sep 2026?
Mostly. Both use the July 2025 books and AY 2026-27. September 2026 stopped at 28 February 2026; January 2027 runs to 30 June 2026 for both income tax and GST. So everything in the September 2026 GST update still applies, and the January 2027 updates add the later months.
Is there a PDF of the CA Inter tax amendments for Jan 2027?
Yes, on ICAI's site: the income tax Statutory Update for January 2027 (PDF) (opens in a new tab) and, for GST, the September 2026 update (PDF) (opens in a new tab) plus the January 2027 update when ICAI posts it on its Amendments page.
Does the Income-tax Act, 2025 apply to CA Inter Jan 2027?
No. January 2027 is on the Income-tax Act, 1961 for AY 2026-27. ICAI applies the 2025 Act to Inter Paper 3A from the May 2027 exams. Don't use study material marked for May 2027 onwards.
Which amendments matter most for marks?
The ones that change a figure inside a computation: Rule 3C in a salary computation, the 60% UPS exemption, and in GST the ECO and GTA changes in the liability question. Registration rules and the annual return limit suit MCQs or short parts.
Practise the amendments in a full Paper 3
Our CA Inter Taxation test series is 3 full-syllabus Paper 3 mocks, set by 15+ qualified CA faculty on ICAI's latest pattern, and every amendment that applies for January 2027 is tested. You answer by hand, upload one PDF, and get the copy back within 24 hours with the reason for every mark cut and the correct line to write. Preview pages of Mock Test 1 are on that page. Taxation is also part of the CA Inter Group I mock tests, and the home page lists every CA test series and CA mock tests level by level.