Taxpayers Declare Rs 29,208 Crore In Foreign Assets Under CBDT Compliance Drive, Sources Say
The compliance drive was focused on a “Trust First Approach,” encouraging taxpayers to voluntarily disclose foreign assets before any formal verification.
A total of 30,161 taxpayers declared foreign assets worth Rs 29,208 crore under the Central Board of Direct Taxes' compliance-cum-awareness campaign, according to people familiar with the matter.
The initiative, launched in November 2024, urged taxpayers to revise their income tax returns for the assessment year 2024-25 to disclose foreign assets and income.
India has received financial data under Common Reporting Standards since 2018 and exchanges similar information with the United States under the Foreign Accounts Tax Compliance Act., the people quoted above told NDTV Profit on the condition of anonymity, adding that in September 2024, India received financial details from 108 countries, covering foreign accounts, income, dividends, and interest earnings.
Using this data, the CBDT campaign sent SMS and emails to 19,501 taxpayers with high foreign account balances or significant foreign income, the people said. Additionally, 30 outreach sessions and webinars engaged over 8,500 participants. The Income Tax Department provided guidance on filing foreign assets and income details in revised ITRs, they added.
Following the campaign, 24,678 taxpayers reviewed their returns and 5,483 filed belated ITRs, reporting additional foreign income of Rs 1,089.88 crore, according to the people. Separately, 6,734 taxpayers revised their residential status from Resident to Non-Resident.
The current development followed NDTV Profit’s report in November, which stated that the Income Tax Department issued notices to at least 400 individuals for not disclosing foreign assets held mainly in the UAE, Singapore, and the UK. This action was based on data received under India’s Automatic Exchange of Information agreement, which identified over a thousand individuals who had not declared foreign income and properties as required under the Black Money Act.
The number of taxpayers voluntarily declaring foreign assets has increased from 60,000 in the assessment year 2021-22 to 2,31,452 in the assessment year 2024-25, marking a 45.17% rise compared to the assessment year 2023-24.
