Govt gets Rs 2,428 cr from black money disclosures

The national exchequer received Rs 2,428.4 crore in payments from disclosures made during a three-month long compliance window under the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act last year, bolstering tax revenue collections.

This is 97 per cent of the amount due from 644 declarations made from holders of black money stashed overseas by December 31, the last day of payment.

The amount included tax and penalty on the declarations made under the three-month compliance window that ended September 30 last year on total disclosures of Rs 4,147 crore.

This added to government's gross tax revenue collection, which touched 66 per cent of Budget Estimates for the full financial year till December, a sharp uptick from 52.4 per cent till November.

Even as government targets a fiscal deficit of 3.9 per cent during 2015-16, it is expecting a shortfall of Rs 30,000-40,000 crore in direct taxes this financial year. Besides, lower than expected nominal GDP (gross domestic product) growth at close to eight per cent will exert further pressure on the fiscal deficit target.

"The amount collected under black money disclosure is Rs 2,428 crores (97 per cent of amount due) by December 31, which was the last date of payment. The total tax revenue collected up to December this year is Rs 9.5 lakh crore, 66 per cent of Budget Estimates," said Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia in a tweet.