The Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2016, passed by Lok Sabha on 29.11.2016, interalia seeks to introduce the, ‘Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 2016 (the Scheme)’. A declarant under the Scheme shall be required to pay tax @ 30% of undisclosed income, surcharge @ 33% of tax and penalty @ 10% of undisclosed income. The declarant shall also be required to deposit an amount, which shall not be less than twenty-five per cent of the undisclosed income in, the ‘ Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme, 2016’. Such deposit shall carry no interest and have a locking period of four years.

The Scheme does not provide any immunity to the declarant in respect of detention made under Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974, offence punishable under Chapter IX or Chapter XVII of the Indian Penal Code, the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988, the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act, 2002, the Special Court Act, 1992, and the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015.

A declaration in respect of any income, in the form of cash or deposit in an account maintained by the person with a specified entity, chargeable to tax under the Income-tax Act for any assessment year commencing on or before the 1st day of April, 2017, can be made under the Scheme.

This was stated by Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha.

Tax regime for undisclosed income mandates tax, surcharge, penalty and a locked deposit requirement under the disclosure scheme. The Scheme permits declaration of undisclosed income chargeable to tax for assessment years commencing on or before the 1st day of April, 2017, subject to payment of tax at 30% of undisclosed income, surcharge at 33% of tax and penalty at 10% of undisclosed income, and a deposit of not less than 25% of undisclosed income into the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme, 2016, which carries no interest and has a four-year lock-in; the Scheme does not confer immunity for specified criminal and statutory offences.