Overseas Deposits, Property, Gold Can’t Be Disclosed Under New Amnesty Scheme
Only domestic cash holdings can be declared under new amnesty scheme
Drawing a line for disclosure under the new tax amnesty scheme, the government on Wednesday said only unaccounted domestic cash holdings can be declared through it, and not jewellery, stocks, immovable property or overseas accounts.
Under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, undisclosed income deposited in any bank or post office account can be declared by paying 50 per cent of it in taxes and surcharges. A quarter of the total sum is to be parked in a non-interest bearing deposit for four years.
PMGKY was announced following the government’s decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in a bid to flush out cash earned through illegal activities but never disclosed.
In the second set of clarifications (in the form of frequently asked questions), the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said the scheme provides for “only income represented in the form of cash or deposit in an account can be declared”.
The scheme is hence not available for declaration of an income which is represented in the form of assets like jewellery, stock or immovable propertyA CBDT Clarification
Undisclosed deposits in a foreign bank account are “not eligible for the scheme”, the tax department said.
CBDT said a person against whom a search/survey operation has been initiated is "eligible to file declaration under the scheme".
The government had last year come out with an Income Disclosure Scheme (IDS) for holders of unaccounted wealth held in cash as well as other forms like immovable property and jewellery. IDS closed on September 30, 2016. A separate foreign black money disclosure window was provided in the earlier scheme.
The tax department said a declaration under the PMGKY can be filed in respect of deposits made in an account maintained with an specified entity by any mode such as cash, cheque, RTGS, NEFT or any other electronic transfer system.
No credit for advance tax paid, TDS or TCS shall be allowed under the scheme.
"A person can avail the scheme for any assessment year commencing on or before April 1, 2017. Hence, deposits made in bank account prior to financial year 2016-17 can also be declared under the scheme,” it said.