Centre to keep 50% tax amnesty window open till March 31, 2017

The Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY), a last-resort tax amnesty scheme that comes into effect from December 17, will allow assessees to disclose previously unaccounted and undeclared income under its ambit till March 31, 2017. The PMGKY permits voluntary declarations of previously undisclosed income with an effective tax rate of 50 per cent and requires assessees to deposit a further 25 per cent of such wealth into a four-year interest-free deposit. “The IT Amendment Bill has been notified,” Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia told reporters on Friday. “The Bill aims at plugging the loopholes in the Act. Those availing the PMGKY will be immune from prosecution and penalty and the details of such accounts will be kept secret. The scheme will open tomorrow and the last date will be March 31.” “We have carried out search and seizure in 291 cases and have given 3,000 notices,” he said. “We have seized undisclosed income of about Rs.2,600 crore (admitted by the taxpayers). About Rs.316 crore of this is in cash, of which there were new notes worth Rs.80 crore. Jewellery worth Rs.76 crore has been seized.” “No immunity will be available under criminal acts,” the government said.

Political parties

Mr. Adhia clarified that deposits of old Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 banknotes in bank accounts of political parties would not be taxed.

“If it is a deposit in the account of a political party, they are exempt (under the Income Tax Act). But if it is deposited in individual’s account then that information will come into our radar.”