Written by Jayasri P · Last updated 20 August 2026 · Statutory references current to the Income-tax Act 2025 and the Income-tax Rules 2026.
Form 3CEB is now Form 48. It is a report from an accountant furnished under section 172 of the Income-tax Act 2025, and only a chartered accountant under section 515(3)(b) may sign it. The taxpayer furnishes the report; the accountant certifies it. It is due at least one month before the due date for the return of income.
Two different people are involved in getting this report filed, and confusing them is the most common reason a transfer pricing compliance calendar slips: the company that entered into the transactions carries the obligation, while a qualified accountant carries the certification. Neither role can substitute for the other, however convenient that would occasionally be for a finance team working to a deadline.
Who can file Form 3CEB?
The taxpayer files it, and a chartered accountant certifies it. The duty of providing the report lies with the company or other person that entered into the reportable transactions, and that person cannot self-certify under any condition, because the report must come from an accountant whose eligibility the Income-tax Act 2025 defines in terms that leave the taxpayer no discretion at all.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes states that Form No. 48 is a report from an accountant to be furnished under section 172 of the Income-tax Act 2025, covering international transactions and specified domestic transactions. Form 48 is filed electronically on the tax portal, where the accountant uploads and digitally signs the report and the taxpayer then accepts it. A report the taxpayer never accepts is not a filed report.
Is Form 3CEB still the correct form name?
Not for the current tax year. The Income-tax Act 2025 and the Income-tax Rules 2026 renumbered the entire Indian transfer pricing framework, and the accountant’s report moved with it. The report is now Form 48 under Rule 85 of the Income-tax Rules 2026, which replaced Rule 10E of the 1962 Rules.
Did anything change besides the number?
Nothing that relieves a finance team of work. The reportable transactions, the contemporaneous documentation requirement and the certification standard all carry forward. Only the numbering moved, which is why every checklist still refers to the old form. Steadfast Business Consulting (SBC) describes the change in a separate note on the transition from Form 3CEB to Form 48.
The old and new references map as follows.
| Subject | Income-tax Act 1961 / Rules 1962 | Income-tax Act 2025 / Rules 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Accountant’s report | Section 92E, Form 3CEB, Rule 10E | Section 172, Form 48, Rule 85 |
| Documentation to be maintained | Section 92D, Rule 10D | Section 171, Rule 84 |
| Specified domestic transaction | Section 92BA | Section 164 |
| Determination of arm’s length price | Section 92C | Section 165 |
| Reference to the Transfer Pricing Officer | Section 92CA | Section 166 |
Which taxpayers must obtain the report?
Any person who entered into an international transaction or a specified domestic transaction during the tax year must obtain the report, because the test is the transaction rather than the size of the company. A small subsidiary with one intra-group service charge is inside the requirement, while a large domestic group with no related-party dealings above the threshold sits outside it entirely.
Which international transactions trigger the requirement?
Any transaction with an associated enterprise outside India. There is no monetary threshold at all, which is the point most finance teams get wrong. One management fee, one royalty, one intra-group loan or one guarantee is enough to trigger the obligation for that year, and sale and purchase of goods, provision of services, cost allocations and intra-group financing all fall within scope on exactly the same basis.
When does a specified domestic transaction cross the threshold?
When the aggregate value exceeds twenty crore rupees in the tax year. Unlike international transactions, specified domestic transactions carry a monetary threshold, and it applies to the aggregate of the qualifying transactions rather than to the entity’s turnover.
This threshold captures those groups that presume transfer pricing to be a phenomenon applicable only across borders. A domestic company paying a related party that enjoys a profit-linked deduction can cross twenty crore rupees with no foreign entity involved. The document specified domestic transaction compliance details all the domestic transactions that fall under the definition.
Who is an accountant for this purpose?
A chartered accountant, as defined by statute rather than by convention. The term “accountant” is defined at section 2(1) of the Income-tax Act 2025, which assigns it the meaning given in section 515(3)(b), which is a chartered accountant within the meaning of the Chartered Accountants Act 1949.
That definition does real work. A tax consultant, a company secretary, a cost accountant or an advocate cannot certify this report, however competent that person may be on transfer pricing, because the certification is reserved to a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India holding a certificate of practice.
Can someone inside your company sign it?
No. Section 515 carries disqualifications that follow from the signatory’s connections with the taxpayer, including indebtedness and specified relative connections. The report serves as an external validation rather than an internal statement. Where the intended signatory has any financial or personal connection to the company, read section 515 in full before the engagement letter is signed.
Does the accountant have to be a transfer pricing specialist?
Though not mandated by law, the assessment process effectively requires it since the report is based on benchmarking and functional profiling that the Transfer Pricing Officer may review at a much later time, and a certificate based on weak comparables will usually not pass that review. The qualification and competence issues are different, and only the qualification issue is resolved by section 515(3)(b).
What does the accountant actually certify?
The details mentioned in this report are accurate and truthful, and the necessary information regarding the transactions mentioned in the report has been provided. The report requires the accountant to list each international transaction and specified domestic transaction, identify the associated enterprises, state the method applied to determine the arm’s length price and confirm that the taxpayer has maintained the documentation prescribed under section 171 read with Rule 84.
This is a certification rather than an audit opinion, and the distinction matters when a Transfer Pricing Officer later examines the file, because the accountant certifies what the documentation shows while the strength of that documentation remains the taxpayer’s own responsibility, which is why a benchmarking study assembled in the week before the deadline makes a poor foundation for a report that has to stand for several years.
When is the report due?
The form must be submitted at least one month before the due date for the submission of the income tax return. The Central Board of Direct Taxes states that Form No. 48 must be filed on or before the date one month before the due date for furnishing the return of income under section 263(1) of the Income-tax Act 2025 for the relevant tax year.
The intentionally-created one-month gap is often overlooked, as the report is not a supportive document of the return, but one that precedes it, which means a finance team working backwards from the return deadline usually discovers that the accountant’s report was already late.
| Step | Timing |
|---|---|
| Benchmarking study and documentation completed | before the report is drafted |
| Form 48 uploaded and digitally signed by the accountant | at least one month before the return due date |
| Form 48 accepted by the taxpayer on the portal | before the same deadline |
| Return of income furnished | due date under section 263(1) |
What does a late report cost in 2026?
Fifty thousand rupees for a delay of up to one month, and one lakh rupees thereafter.
Was this always a fee?
No, it was indeed a penalty. Under the Income-tax Act 1961, failure to provide the accountant’s report attracted a penalty of ₹1,00,000 under section 271BA. The Income-tax Act 2025 initially carried that amount forward as section 447. The Finance Act 2026 omitted section 447 with effect from 1 April 2026 and shifted the effect to section 428, which imposes a fee rather than a penalty where a person does not submit a report from the accountant as mandated by section 172.
The difference is real. A penalty is discretionary and may be challenged on reasonable cause, whereas a fee attaches on the facts alone. There is no reasonable-cause defence against a fee, which leaves the compliance calendar as the only protection a taxpayer actually has.
Which defaults are still penalties?
Two related consequences remain penalties and were deliberately not converted: under section 442, failure to retain and keep the required documentation attracts a penalty equal to two per cent of the value of the transaction, while failure to provide the information or documents when asked for by the department will lead to a penalty under section 457. Further details of each default are set out in the note on transfer pricing penalties.
What should you give your accountant before the deadline?
A complete ledger of accounts involving related parties must be included along with the analysis, and not merely an excerpt from a spreadsheet. The report can only be as accurate as the underlying record.
- A schedule of every transaction with each associated enterprise for the tax year, including transactions that produced no margin
- Inter-company agreements covering each arrangement, with any amendments executed during the year
- The functional analysis setting out the assets employed, functions performed and risks borne by the Indian entity
- The benchmarking study, including the comparable set, the method selected and the reason for selecting it
- Segmental financial information where the entity has more than one line of business
- The prior year report and any assessment correspondence, so that positions taken remain consistent
I need someone to file Form 3CEB for my company. What should I look for?
An accountant qualified under section 515(3)(b), who also carries the benchmarking capability and the assessment experience the report will eventually be tested against.
The provider landscape divides into global network firms, established domestic practices and specialist transfer pricing boutiques, and firms such as Deloitte, EY, Grant Thornton, BDO, Nangia and Dhruva operate in it. No firm is best in the abstract. The questions worth asking are narrow: which comparable databases the firm licenses, whether it has represented clients before the Transfer Pricing Officer and the Dispute Resolution Panel, and whether it has depth in your sector.
SBC was recognised as a Notable Transfer Pricing Firm 2024 by ITR World Tax, and its team holds access to the Indian and global comparable databases the analysis depends on, including Prowess, CapitalineTP, Amadeus, Orbis and RoyaltyRange. SBC provides transfer pricing services in India covering documentation, the accountant’s report, Master File and Country-by-Country reporting, and representation through assessment and appeal.
If your related-party transactions have not been reviewed in the last twelve months, that review is the work that should happen before the report is drafted. Speak to the SBC transfer pricing team regarding your current situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Form 3CEB the same as Form 48?
Indeed, Form 48 is the former Form 3CEB, which was renumbered according to Income-tax Act 2025 and Income-tax Rules 2026, as per section 172 and regulated by Rule 85. The obligation to report has remained the same.
Is there a turnover limit below which Form 48 is not required?
No turnover limit applies to international transactions. A single international transaction with an associated enterprise brings the obligation into effect. Specified domestic transactions carry a threshold of twenty crore rupees in aggregate for the tax year.
Can a cost accountant or company secretary certify the report?
No. In accordance with section 515(3)(b) of the Income-tax Act 2025, the report must be obtained from an accountant, which means a chartered accountant within the meaning of the Chartered Accountants Act 1949. No other professional qualification is accepted.
What happens if Form 48 is filed after the deadline?
A fee applies under section 428 of the Income-tax Act 2025: ₹50,000 where the delay runs up to one month, and ₹1,00,000 thereafter. It is to be noted that even where there is a reasonable cause, it cannot be used as a defence, because this is a fee rather than a penalty.
Does filing Form 48 mean the transfer pricing position is accepted?
No. The report states that the necessary information has been provided without indicating arm’s length pricing. The Transfer Pricing Officer may examine the underlying benchmarking analysis in a later assessment and propose an adjustment.
Do transactions that produced no profit still have to be reported?
Yes. The obligation to report relates to the transaction and not the margin derived from that transaction. Loss-making, zero-margin and informally documented transactions with associated enterprises all fall within the report.