Under the Income-tax Act, 1961 ("the Act") & Wealth Tax Act, 1957, a Hindu Undivided Family ("HUF") is treated as a separate person for the purpose of taxation.
The term HUF is not defined under the Act. Hindu law defined it as consisting of all members lineally descending from a common ancestor, including their wives and daughters. Daughter even after her marriage continues to remain coparcener of HUF of her father. Thus female on her marriage, is at the same time member of two HUFs i.e. HUF of her father and HUF of her husband. Even family with husband & wife without child constitute HUF. The income of a HUF would be assessed as such if there were a coparcenership. The relation amongst the members of HUF arises out of legal status and not from a contract. The HUF is a creation of Hindu Law, it exsists even without any nucleus or ancestral joint family property. The common hotch poch can be filled by partition of a larger HUF, devolution of interest in coparcenary property of a coparcener who dies intestate, inheritance through a specific bequest under a will, reounion of separated coparceners, receipt of gift, blending of individual property with the family hotchpotch, doing joint labour for benefit of HUF, etc. Gifts and wills are the most common way for activating dormant HUF. However special care need to be taken in drafting of the gift deed or the document evidencing the gift by the parent for the benefit of the said HUF. The HUFs are not recognised in the State of Kerala after the enactment of Kerala Joint Family System (Abolition) Act, 1975 with effect from 1-12-1976.
CAclubindia
