ITAT Form 36 Appeal Format — Grounds of Appeal & Paper-Book Index
GROUNDS OF APPEAL
[Annexure to Form No. 36 — Appeal to the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal under section 253 of the Income-tax Act, 1961]
Before the {{officer_designation}}
Appellant: {{client_name}} | PAN: {{client_pan}} | Assessment Year: {{assessment_year}}
Address: {{client_address}}
Order appealed against: Order of the CIT(A) / JCIT(A), dated , arising from the order u/s {{order_section}} of the Assessing Officer
1. On the facts and in the circumstances of the case and in law, the learned CIT(A) erred in confirming the addition / disallowance of ₹ ____________ made by the Assessing Officer on account of ____________ [state the ground concisely: ____________].
2. On the facts and in the circumstances of the case and in law, the learned CIT(A) erred in ____________ [second issue — one issue per ground].
3. Without prejudice to the above, the learned CIT(A) erred in ____________ [alternative / quantum ground].
4. On the facts and in the circumstances of the case and in law, the learned CIT(A) erred in confirming the levy of interest under sections 234A / 234B / 234C, which is consequential.
5. The appellant craves leave to add, alter, amend or withdraw any of the above grounds of appeal at or before the time of hearing.
- Drafting hint: ITAT Rules require grounds to be concise, under distinct heads, numbered consecutively, and not argumentative or narrative — reserve argument for the hearing and the paper book.
- Drafting hint: a ground not raised before the CIT(A) is an additional ground — flag it as such and be ready to justify its admission (pure question of law on facts already on record).
PAPER BOOK — INDEX
[File the paper book in accordance with the ITAT Rules: legibly paged, indexed, and certified. Every document must have been part of the record before the lower authorities, or be accompanied by an application for admission of additional evidence.]
| Sl. | Particulars of document | Pages | Before AO / CIT(A)? |
|---|
| 1 | Return of income with computation for AY {{assessment_year}} | ____ | AO |
| 2 | Audited financial statements for the year | ____ | AO |
| 3 | Submissions filed before the Assessing Officer dated ____________ | ____ | AO |
| 4 | Assessment order u/s {{order_section}} with demand notice | ____ | — |
| 5 | Statement of facts and grounds before the CIT(A); written submissions | ____ | CIT(A) |
| 6 | Order of the CIT(A) / JCIT(A) appealed against | ____ | — |
| 7 | ____________ [evidence relied upon — confirmations, valuation report, case-law compilation] | ____ | ____________ |
Certified that the documents at Sl. Nos. ____________ above formed part of the record before the authorities below, and that the copies filed are true copies.
VERIFICATION
I, ____________, the appellant / authorised signatory of the appellant, do hereby declare that what is stated above is true to the best of my information and belief.
Place: __________________
Date: 31 July 2026
For {{client_name}}
_______________________________
Authorised Signatory