8. Any person, not being a legal practitioner, a chartered accountant or a person regularly employed by an assessee, shall be entitled to appear on behalf of an assessee before any wealth-tax authority or the Appellate Tribunal as provided in section 44 of the Act, if he—

          (i)  has at any time before the 1st day of October, 1957, appeared before any income-tax authority in the capacity of an income-tax practitioner; and

          (ii)  has not been disqualified to represent an assessee in any income-tax proceeding by reason of any direction made under sub-section (5) of section 288 of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Qualifications of registered valuers.

8A. (1) For the purposes of sub-section (2) of section 34AB, the qualifications for registration as valuers of different classes of asset shall be as specified in sub-rules (2) to (11).

      (2) A valuer of immovable property (other than agricultural lands, plantations, forests, mines and quarries) shall have the following qualifications, namely :—

              (i)  he must—

     (A)  be a graduate in civil engineering, architecture or town planning of a recognised university; or

     (B)  be a post-graduate in valuation of real estate from a recognised university; or

     (C)  possess a qualification recognised by the Central Government for recruitment to superior services or posts under the Central Government in the field of civil engineering, architecture or town planning; and

           (ii)   (A) he must be a person formerly employed—

     (a) in a post under Government as a gazetted officer; or

     (b) in a post under any other employer carrying a remuneration of not less than Rs.2,000 per month, and, in either case, must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service for not less than ten years as a valuer, architect or town planner, or in the field of construction of buildings, designing of structures, or development of land; or

     (c) as a professor, reader or lecturer in a university, college or any other institution preparing students for a degree in civil engineering, architecture or town planning, or for any qualification referred to in clause (i), and must have retired or resigned from such employment after having taught for not less than  ten years any of the subjects of valuation, quantity surveying, building construction, architecture, or town planning;

             OR

         (B)  he must have been in practice as a consulting engineer, valuer of  real estate, surveyor or architect for a period of not less than ten years and must have acquired experience in any of the following four fields :—

         (a) valuation of buildings and urban lands; or

         (b) quantity surveying in building construction; or

         (c) architectural or structural designing of buildings or town planning; or

         (d) construction of buildings or development of land;

           and his gross receipts from such practice should not be less than fifty thousand rupees in any three of the five preceding years :

Provided that in the case of a person possessing a post-graduate degree in valuation of real estate from a recognized university, the provisions of this sub-rule shall have effect as if,—

         (a) for the words “ten years”, the words “two years” had been substituted;

         (b) for the words “fifty thousand rupees in any three of five preceding years”, the words “fifty thousand rupees in any one of the two preceding years” had been substituted.

         (3) A valuer of agricultural lands [other than plantations referred to in sub-rule (4)] shall have the following qualifications, namely :—

              (i) he must be a graduate in agricultural science of a recognised university and must have worked as a farm valuer for a period of not less than five years; or

              (ii) he must be a person formerly employed in a post under Government as a Collector, Deputy Collector, Settlement Officer, Land Valuation Officer, Superintendent of Land Records, Agricultural Officer, Registrar under the Registration Act, 1908 (16 of 1908), or any other officer of equivalent rank performing similar functions and must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service in any one or more of the posts aforesaid for an aggregate period of not less than five years.

          (4) A valuer of coffee plantation, tea plantation, rubber plantation or, as the case may be, cardamom plantation shall have the following qualifications, namely :—

(i)     he must have, for a period of not less than five years, owned, or acted as manager of a coffee, tea, rubber or, as the case may be, cardamom plantation having an area under plantation of not less than four hectares in the case of a cardamom plantation or forty hectares in the case of any other plantation; or

(ii)    he must be a person formerly employed in a post under Government as a Collector, Deputy Collector, Settlement Officer, Land Valuation Officer, Superintendent of Land Records, Agricultural Officer, Registrar under the Registration Act, 1908 (16 of 1908), or any other officer of equivalent rank performing similar functions and must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service in any one or more of the posts aforesaid for an aggregate period of not less than five years, out of which not less than three years must have been in areas, wherein coffee, tea, rubber or, as the case may be, cardamom is extensively grown.

           (5) A valuer of forest must be a person formerly employed in a post under Government and must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service for not less than five years in a gazetted post requiring specialised knowledge in forestry.

           (6) A valuer of mines and quarries shall have the following qualifications, namely:—

(i) he must be a graduate in mining of a recognised university, or must possess a qualification recognised by the Central Government for recruitment to superior services or posts under the Central Government in the field of mining; and

(ii)    he must be a person formerly employed—

(a)    in a post under Government as a gazetted officer, or

(b)    in a post under any other employer carrying a remuneration of not less than Rs. 2,000 per month,

and, in either case, must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service as a mining engineer for not less than ten years.

            (7) A valuer of stocks, shares, debentures, securities, shares in partnership firms and of business assets, including goodwill but excluding those referred to in sub-rules (2) to (6) and (8) to (11), shall have the following qualifications, namely :—

                 (i)  he must be a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India or the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India or the Institute of Company Secretaries of India; and

                 (ii) (A)  he must have been in practice as a chartered accountant or a cost and works accountant or a company secretary for a period of not less than ten years and his gross receipts from such practice should not be less than fifty thousand rupees in any three of the five preceding years, or

     (B)  he must be a person formerly employed—

     (a)  in a post under Government as a gazetted officer, or

     (b)  in a post under any other employer carrying a remuneration of not less than Rs. 2,000 per month,

           and, in either case, must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service for a period of not less than ten years in the field of audit and accounts or taxation work , or

     (c)  as a Company Secretary or a Deputy Company Secretary] or an Assistant Company Secretary in a post carrying a remuneration of not less than Rs. 2,000 per month and must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service for a period of not less than ten years.

             (8) A valuer of machinery and plant shall have the following qualifications, namely :—

                   (i)  he must—

            (A)  be a graduate in mechanical or electrical engineering of a recognised university; or

            (B)  possess post-graduate degree in valuation of machinery and plant from a recognised university; or

            (C)  possess a qualification recognised by the Central Government for recruitment to superior services or posts under the Central Government in the field of mechanical or electrical engineering; and

                     (ii) (A)  he must be a person formerly employed—

              (a)  in a post under Government as a gazetted officer; or

              (b)  in a post under any other employer carrying a remuneration of not less than Rs. 2,000 per month,

           and, in either case, must have retired or resigned from such employment after having rendered service as a mechanical or electrical engineer or valuer  of machinery and plant for a period of not less than ten years, or

              (c)  as a professor, reader or lecturer in a university, college or institution preparing students for a degree in mechanical or electrical engineering or for any qualification referred to in clause (i), and must have retired or resigned from such employment after having taught for a period of not less than ten years; or

             (B)  he must have been in practice as a consulting engineer or valuer of machinery and plant for a period of not less than ten years and must have acquired experience in the valuation of machinery and plant and his gross receipts from such practice should not be less than fifty thousand rupees in any three of the five preceding years :

Provided that in the case of a person, possessing a post-graduate degree in valuation of machinery and plant from a recognised university, the provisions of this sub-rule shall have effect as if,—

                               (a)  for the words “ten years”, the words “two years” had been substituted;

                               (b)  for the words “fifty thousand rupees in any three of five preceding years”, the words “fifty thousand rupees in any one of the two preceding years” had been substituted.

             (9) A valuer of jewellery must have been, for a period of not less than five years, a sole proprietor or partner in a partnership firm carrying on jewellery business which has on an average an annual turnover of not less than rupees 15 lakhs or profit (including fees for valuation of not less than rupees fifty thousand) in the last three accounting years immediately preceding the year in which the application for registration as a valuer is made by him.

             (10) A valuer of works of art shall have the following qualifications, namely:—

                    (i)  he must have specialised by virtue of his academic and professional pursuits in the particular line of art, for the works of which he seeks to be registered as a valuer, and

                    (ii)  he must have served in any one or more of the following capacities, namely:—

               (a)  Director General or Superintending Archaeologist of the Archaeological Survey of  India ;

               (b)  Director of National Museum, New Delhi, Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, Prince  of  Wales Museum, Bombay, Indian Museum, Calcutta, Asutosh Museum, Calcutta, Madras Museum, Madras or Bharat Kala Bhavan, Varanasi;

               (c)  principal of a Government School of Art;

               (d)  member of the Art Purchase Committee of any of the museums referred to in sub-clause (b), or of the Lalit Kala Akademi.

              (11) A valuer of life interest, reversions and interest in expectancy shall have the following qualifications, namely:—

                     (i)  he must be a graduate of a recognised university; and

                     (ii) (a)  he must have been in practice as an actuary under the Insurance Act, 1938 (4 of 1938), for a period of not less than [ten] years; or

                (b)  he must have rendered continuous service for a period of not less than ten years as an actuary under Government or in the Life Insurance Corporation of India established under the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956 (31 of 1956); or

                (c)  he must have practised as an actuary or served as such under Government or in the Life Insurance Corporation of India referred to in sub-clause (b) for an aggregate period of not less than ten years.

               (12) No person shall qualify for registration as a valuer, other than as a valuer of works of art, if he is employed under Government or any other employer.

               (13) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-rules (1) to (12), no person shall qualify for registration as a valuer if,—

                     (a)  he has been dismissed or removed from Government service; or

                         (b)  he has been convicted of an offence connected with any proceeding under the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961), or the Wealth-tax Act, 1957 (27 of 1957), or the Gift-tax Act, 1958 (18 of 1958), or a penalty has been imposed on him under clause (iii) of sub-section (1) of section 271 or clause (i) of section 273 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, or under clause (iii) of sub-section (1) of section 18 of the Wealth-tax Act, 1957, or under clause (iii) of sub-section (1) of section 17 of the Gift-tax Act, 1958; or

                     (c)  he is an un-discharged insolvent; or

                     (d)  he has been convicted of any offence and sentenced to a term of imprisonment; or

                     (e)  he has been found guilty of misconduct in his professional capacity,—

               (i)  in a case where he is a member of any association or institution established in India having as its object the control, supervision, regulation or encouragement of the profession of engineering, architecture, accountancy, or company secretaries or such other profession as the Board may specify in this behalf by notification in the Official Gazette, by such association or institution; or

               (ii)  in any other case, by the Chief Commissioner or the Director General in accordance with the procedure laid down in rule 8F and rules 8H to 8K, which in the opinion of the Chief Commissioner  or the Director General, renders him unfit to be registered as a valuer.

                 (13A) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-rules (2), (6), (7), (8) and (11) as amended by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1988, the provisions of the said sub-rules, as they stood immediately before such amendment, shall continue to apply in the case of a person whose name is included in the Register of Valuers immediately before the 1st day of June, 1988, and who makes an application for continuation of his registration as a valuer under sub-section (1) of section 34AE, subject to the modification that in addition to the requirement that such person should have, for a period of not less than five years, rendered service in any capacity or taught any subject or practised any profession, such person should also have an experience of not less than five years as a valuer registered  under section 34AB.

                 (14) The requirement laid down in any of the foregoing sub-rules that the applicant should have, for a period of not less than ten years or five years, as the case may be,—

                         (i)  rendered service in any capacity, or

                         (ii)  taught any subject, or

                         (iii)  practised any profession, or

                         (iv)  gained experience in any other capacity or field,

as specified therein, shall be deemed to have been fulfilled if the period for which the applicant has rendered such service, taught such subject, practised such profession or otherwise gained experience in such other capacity or field, taken either singly or collectively, is not less than ten years or five years, as the case may be, in the foregoing sub-rules.

Explanation 1.—In this rule, “recognised University” means any of the universities specified below, namely:—

           I.  Indian Universities : Any Indian University incorporated by any law for the time being in force.

           II.   Rangoon   University .

           III.  English and  Welsh   Universities  : The Universities of  Birmingham ,  Bristol ,  Cambridge ,  Durham ,  Leeds ,  Liverpool ,  London ,  Manchester ,  Oxford ,  Reading , Sheffield  and  Wales .

           IV.  Scottish Universities : The Universities of  Aberdeen ,  Edinburgh ,  Glasgow  and  St. Andrews .

           V.  Irish Universities : The Universities of  Dublin  ( Trinity   College ), the Queen’s University,  Belfast  and the National University of Dublin.

           VI.  Pakistan Universities : Any Pakistan university incorporated by any law for the time being in force.

           VII.  Bangladesh Universities : Any Bangladesh University incorporated by any law for the time being in force.

Explanation 2.—Where the membership of any institution is recognised by the Central Government as a qualification for the purpose of recruitment to superior services or posts under the Central Government in any field, such membership shall not be regarded as a requisite qualification for the purposes of this rule, unless the membership has been granted on the basis of passing the examinations conducted by the institution.

Application for registration as valuer.  

8B. (1) An application for registration as a valuer under section 34AB shall be in Form N and shall be verified in the manner specified therein and shall be accompanied by a fee of Rs. 1,000 which shall not be refunded if the application is rejected.

      (2) In the case of a person whose name has been included in the Register of Valuers on or after the 1st day of June, 1985, but before the 1st day of June, 1988, and who makes an application for continuation of his registration as a valuer under sub-section (1) of section 34AE, such application need not be accompanied by any fee.

      (3) Where an application for registration as a valuer is pending before the Board immediately before the 1st day of June, 1988, and such application includes the details of the revised qualifications specified in sub-rules (2), (6), (7), (8), (9) and (11) of rule 8A, such application may be treated as valid if the applicant remits a further fee of Rs. 750 to the Chief Commissioner or the Director General within a period of three months from the 1st day of June, 1988:

Provided that where such application does not include the revised qualifications as specified in the aforesaid provisions of rule 8A, a fresh application for registration as a valuer shall be made and the fee already paid by the applicant shall be adjusted towards the payment of fee of Rs. 1,000 :

Provided further that where any person has become ineligible for making an application for registration as a valuer in view of the revised qualifications specified in the aforesaid provisions of rule 8A, the fee already paid by the applicant shall be refunded on an application made by him to the Chief Commissioner or Director General.

Furnishing of particulars in certain cases.

 

8BB. [Omitted by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1980, w.e.f. 28-1-1980. Original rule was inserted by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1974, w.e.f. 8-10-1974.]

Scale of fees to be charged by a registered valuer. 

8C. (1) Subject to the provisions of sub-rules (2) and (3), the fees to be charged  by a registered valuer for valuation of any asset shall not exceed the amount calculated at the following rates, namely:—

           (a) On the first Rs. 5,00,000 of the asset as valued                              ¹/₂ per cent of the value;

           (b) On the next Rs. 10 lakhs of the asset as valued                             ¹/₅ per cent of the value;

           (c) On the next Rs. 40 lakhs of the asset as valued                             ¹/₁₀ per cent of the value;

           (d) On the balance of the asset as valued                                           ¹/₂₀ per cent of the value.

      (2) Where two or more assets are required to be valued by a registered valuer at the instance of an assessee, all such assets shall be deemed to constitute a single asset for the purposes of calculating the fees payable to such registered valuer.

      (3) Where the amount of fees calculated in accordance with sub-rules (1) and (2) is less than Rs. 500, the registered valuer may charge Rs. 500 as his fees.

Form of report of valuation by registered valuer

8D.     The report of valuation by a registered valuer in respect of any asset specified in column (1) of the Table below shall be in the Form specified in the corresponding entry in column (2) thereof and shall be verified in the manner indicated in such Form :—

                                                            TABLE

Registered valuer when to be guilty of misconduct in his professional capacity for purposes of  section 34AD 

8E. For the purposes of section 34AD of the Act, a registered valuer shall be deemed to have been guilty of misconduct in his professional capacity if he has been found so guilty,—

      (i)   in a case where he is a member of any association or institution established in India having as its object the control, supervision, regulation or encouragement of the profession of engineering, architecture, accountancy, or company secretaries or such other profession as the Board may specify in this behalf by notification in the Official Gazette, by such association or institution; or

      (ii) in any other case, by the Chief Commissioner or the Director General, in accordance with the procedure laid down in rule 8F and rules 8H to 8K.

 Charge sheet 

8F. (1) Where the Chief Commissioner or the Director General, on the basis of information in its possession, is of the opinion that any registered valuer, or any other person, not being a person referred to in sub-clause (i) of clause (e) of sub-rule (13) of rule 8A, who has made an application for registration as a valuer under rule 8B, is guilty of professional misconduct in connection with any proceeding under any law for the time being in force, he shall frame definite charges against such person and shall communicate them in writing to him together with a statement of the allegations in support of the charges.

      (2) On receipt of the charge sheet and the statement referred to in sub-rule (1), the person shall be required to submit within thirty days of the receipt of the said charge sheet and the statement or, within such further time as the Chief Commissioner or the Director General may, on an application made by that person allow in this behalf, a written statement of his defence and also to state whether he desires to be heard in person.

Inquiry Officer.

8G. [Omitted by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1988, w.e.f. 1-6-1988. Original rule was inserted by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1980, w.e.f. 28-1-1980.]

 Proceedings before Inquiry Officer

8H. (1) On receipt of the written statement of defence, or if no such statement is received within the time specified, the Inquiry Officer shall inquire into such of the charges as are not admitted.

      (2) The Inquiry Officer shall, in the course of the inquiry, consider such documentary evidence and take such oral evidence as may be relevant or material in regard to the charges.

      (3) The person who has made an application for registration as a valuer, or, as the case may be, the registered valuer, shall be entitled to cross-examine the witnesses examined in support of the charges and to give evidence in person.

      (4) If the Inquiry Officer declines to examine any witness on the ground that his evidence is not relevant or material, he shall record his reasons in writing.

      (5) At the conclusion of the inquiry, the Inquiry Officer shall prepare a report of the inquiry, recording his findings on each of the charges together with the reasons therefore.

8-I.  (1) The Chief Commissioner or the Director General shall consider the report of the Inquiry Officer and record his findings on each charge and, where he does not agree with the finding of the Inquiry Officer shall record the reasons for his disagreement.

       (2) If the Chief Commissioner or the Director General is satisfied on the basis of his findings on the Inquiry Officer’s report that the registered valuer or, as the case may be, the person who has made an application for registration as a valuer, is guilty of misconduct in connection with any proceeding under any law for the time being in force, he shall pass an order  under section 34AD of the Act removing the name of the registered valuer from the register of valuers or, as the case may be, directing that the person shall not be registered as a valuer.

       (3) The Chief Commissioner or the Director General shall, while communicating his order under sub-rule (2), furnish to the registered valuer, or, as the case may be, the person, a copy of the report of the Inquiry Officer and a statement of his findings together with the reasons for disagreement, if any, with the findings of the Inquiry Officer.

Procedure if no Inquiry Officer appointed

8J. The procedure prescribed in the aforesaid rules shall, mutatis mutandis, apply when the Chief Commissioner or the Director General himself conducts the inquiry without appointing an Inquiry Officer.

Change of Inquiry Officer

8K. If a change of an Inquiry Officer becomes necessary in the midst of an inquiry, the Chief Commissioner or the Director General may appoint any other Inquiry Officer not below the rank of Chief Commissioner or Commissioner and the proceedings shall be continued by the succeeding Inquiry Officer from the stage at which they were left by his predecessor.

Powers of Board and Inquiry Officer.

8L. [Omitted by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1988, w.e.f. 1-6-1988. Original rule 8L was inserted by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1980, w.e.f. 8-10-1980.]

Furnishing of particulars in certain cases.

8M. [Omitted by the Wealth-tax (Third Amendment) Rules, 1984, w.e.f. 1-4-1985. Original rule was inserted by the Wealth-tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 1980, w.e.f. 28-1-1980.]