New Delhi, Oct. 18 -- A flat sold just 10 days after registration may appear to qualify as a short-term capital asset for income tax purposes. However, the date of registration is not necessarily the date on which a buyer acquired the property for calculating capital gains tax. An allotment letter issued years earlier can establish an earlier holding period, provided it conferred enforceable rights over the property.

The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Surat, addressed this issue in Jagdishkumar Chhotubhai Gandhi v. ITO (International Taxation), Surat, ITA No. 245/SRT/2024, in an order dated 29 September 2026. The tribunal held that the holding period should be counted from the date of the allotment letter rather than the subsequen...