What is Income Tax Form 157 and Who Needs to File It?

Form 157 is an undertaking required to be furnished by individuals domiciled in India at the time of departing the country. This requirement is prescribed under Section 420(4) of the Income-tax Act, 2025 (ITA 2025), read with Rule 228 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026 (IT Rules, 2026). As per Notification No.-22/2026/F. No. 370142/41/2025-TPL, Form 157 comes into effect from 1 April 2026, i.e., from Financial Year 2026–27 onwards. Accordingly, individuals falling within the specified categories will be required to furnish this form prior to leaving India on or after that date.

Form 157 is required to be furnished by individuals domiciled in India prior to leaving the country only in limited circumstances specifically where such individuals do not possess a PAN, or their total income is not chargeable to tax, or they are otherwise not required to obtain a PAN.

However, it is important to note that filing of Form 157 is not mandatory for all such persons. As clarified by the CBDT through Instruction No. 1/2004 dated 5 February 2004, the requirement applies only to specified cases namely, where the individual is involved in serious financial irregularities and their presence is necessary for investigation under the tax laws (including the ITA 1961, the ITA 2025, or the Wealth-tax Act), and a potential tax demand is likely to arise or where the individual has outstanding direct tax arrears exceeding Rs. 10 lakhs which have not been stayed by any competent authority. Further, this position is expected to continue under ITA 2025. Section 536 (Repeal and Savings) of the Act provides that circulars, instructions, and directions issued under the erstwhile Income-tax Act, 1961 (ITA 1961) shall remain in force, to the extent they are not inconsistent with the provisions of the new law.

In terms of procedure, Form 157 is to be submitted manually to the jurisdictional Assessing Officer before departure from India. At present, there is no online facility for filing this form, particularly as it may apply to individuals who do not hold a PAN.

Form 157 is event-driven and is required to be filed each time an applicable domiciled individual departs from India. Accordingly, the filing frequency depends on the number of such international departures undertaken by the individual.