I-T Dept nudges taxpayers to disclose foreign assets correctly

The campaign is being launched with the aim to reach out to those taxpayers who have not disclosed details of their foreign income and assets correctly in their income tax returns but the tax department has received information about them through various information-gathering and sharing agreements of India with other countries, an official said. “There is substantial information being received from other countries about ownership of foreign income and assets. This campaign will provide a window to taxpayers to disclose their information of foreign income and assets correctly in their income tax returns,” the official said.

The Income Tax Department has urged taxpayers that by ensuring full transparency in tax returns, taxpayers can “avoid legal hassles and contribute to national development”.

“If you have not disclosed your foreign assets and income in your original ITR, there is an opportunity to rectify this through filing a revised return. The Income Tax Department allows taxpayers to correct any omissions or inaccuracies by filing a revised return. For the AY 2024-25 revised return can be filed up to 31.12.2024,” the Department said in a note.

The details about foreign assets and income are shared between the countries in line with international reporting frameworks such as the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) aimed to tackle tax evasion by increasing transparency and cooperation among tax authorities globally. Under CRS and FATCA, India receives detailed information about financial accounts held by its residents in foreign jurisdictions, which includes account holder’s name, address, and tax identification number (TIN), account number and balance, income details such as interest, dividends, and other financial proceeds.