How government is targeting big income tax evaders

The government is turning on the heat on big income tax evaders to come clean by availing the four-month long black money window that would come to an end on September 30. 

The Income-tax department has prepared a database of 900,000 cases of high spending and would tell these spenders that information is already there with tax officials, so it is now time to use the window that began in June. 

Of these, the department would send letters first to 100,000 cases where the money spent was at least Rs one crore. Then letters would go to those who had spent at least Rs 50 lakh. Subsequently, letters to others would be sent. 

It should be noted that less than one and a half months are left for the Income Disclosure Scheme (IDS), 2016 to close, so the department will have to issue these letters during this time only. 

Thought it is a veiled warning from the department to tax evaders, it maintained that the scheme is voluntary in nature. 

“We want to say that we have this database and we will make them aware about this. The option is with them (to use the IDS or not).”  Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Chairman Atulesh Jindal had said on Monday. 

The exercise is unique in the sense that these measures were not taken in the previous such schemes such as foreign black money window scheme that started last year, or voluntary disclosure of income scheme of 1997, 

Tax evaders can come clean by using the IDS by paying 30 per cent tax, 7.5 surcharge, 7.5 per cent penalty, totalling 45 per cent. The government has also allowed these payments in instalments till September 30, 2017.

A similar scheme for black money stashed overseas was launched last year, which could not yield much. The scheme fetched just Rs 4,147 crore.