Section 62 - Maintenance of books of account
Specified professionals and businesses crossing the relevant conditions must maintain prescribed books and documents for the required period.
Reviewed by CA Nikhil Gupta · Updated 9 October 2026
Section 62 is presented using the consolidated Income-tax Act, 2025 as amended by the Finance Act, 2026. The general commencement date is 1 April 2026. Earlier years and saved proceedings may remain governed by the Income-tax Act, 1961 and the repeal/savings framework.
2-minute professional decode
Specified professionals and businesses crossing the relevant conditions must maintain prescribed books and documents for the required period.
Who should test this section?
Section 62 should be tested by businesses, professionals, non-residents and advisers whenever the computation touches maintenance of books of account; the special rule must be checked before the ordinary business-profit machinery is applied.
Evidence to retain
For section 62, retain the contracts, ledgers, invoices, banking evidence, prescribed reports and computation papers that specifically prove the factual trigger and quantum for maintenance of books of account.
1961 Act bridge
| Legacy provision | Legacy heading | Mapping |
|---|---|---|
| 44AA | Maintenance of accounts by certain persons carrying on profession or business. | Renumbered / mapped |
The bridge is a research aid. Legacy case law carries over only after the current wording and transition rules are matched.
Rules and forms linked to this section
| Rule | Operational role | Mapped form(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Rule 46 | Maintenance of books of account under section 62 | Form 25 |
Worked application
A professional’s receipts and income cross the statutory bookkeeping thresholds. The compliance file should identify the applicable limb, the books/documents prescribed by Rule 46 and the period for which they must be retained.
Common mistake
A recurring section 62 error is to carry the book or ordinary tax treatment into maintenance of books of account without first testing the provision-specific override, eligibility conditions and linked Rule/Form requirements.
Compliance approach
Identify the statutory trigger for section 62, lock the relevant tax year, reconcile the facts to the operative sub-section, preserve the evidence trail and separately test every linked Rule, Form, Schedule and exception before finalising the return position.
Numeric / timing checkpoints in the operative text
- General bookkeeping threshold: business/profession income above Rs. 1.20 lakh or turnover/gross receipts above Rs. 10 lakh in the specified look-back/new-business tests.
- For an individual or HUF, the corresponding thresholds are Rs. 2.50 lakh income and Rs. 25 lakh turnover/gross receipts.
Related provisions
Current statutory text
Primary-source trail
- Consolidated Income-tax Act, 2025 (as amended by Finance Act, 2026) (official external source)
- Income Tax Department - Act/Rules/Forms hub (official external source)
- CBDT commencement material - Act operative from 1 April 2026 (official external source)
- Income-tax Rules, 2026 - Notification No. 22/2026 (official external source)
Source status: full Section 62 statutory text in the local source corpus; reconciled to the current consolidated Act control on 8 October 2026.