India has received information on around 1,500 transactions from Denmark and Finland under Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements with these countries and the CBDT is looking into the data. “… Information relating to around 1,500 transactions has been recently received from Denmark and Finland under the DTAA (Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement),” Minister of State for Finance S S Palanimanickam said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.
The government has also received information about Indians with accounts in a Switzerland-based bank.
Palanimanickam further said that action under the Direct Tax law is taken in all cases where information is received by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) regarding the foreign assets or transactions of Indians.
“Any undisclosed income detected by way of these actions is brought to tax …,” he added.
Replying to a query on whether France and LGT Bank of Liechtenstein, besides HSBC Bank in Geneva, have also provided details of Indians’ bank accounts, Palanimanickam said various foreign governments give information under DTAAs/Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEA) regarding foreign assets and transactions by Indians.
“Receipt of such information is an ongoing process,” he said.
In a written reply to another question, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said France has provided information about Indians having accounts in a bank.
“On the request of the central government and persistent follow-up, France had also provided details of Indians having bank accounts in one of the banks of Switzerland in June, 2011,” he said, adding that information received under DTAAs is covered by confidentiality provisions.
