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Up to 18 lakh people asked to provide info about source of cash deposited after note ban, but no notices sent out yet Over 2 lakh people logged on to the website of the income tax department, which has sought clarifications from 18 lakh people who deposited large sums of cash after demonetisation. As many as 60,000 have responded and some have even agreed to pay tax, said Sushil Chandra, chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes, clarifying that no notice has been sent to anyone as yet. “It's a request for e-verification of their accounts and an explanation,“ said Chandra. The department expects to hear from most of the people who have been sent the requests by March 31, failing which formal notices under the income tax law will be sent to them. “The department will have to issue notices and make assessments,“ said Chandra.More requests for information are likely to go out soon as deeper data mining starts, he said. REQUEST FOR INFORMATION The 18 lakh people have

Taxman not to question FPIs for bringing money via Mauritius, Singapore till March 31 India-focused offshore funds are asking clients to advance their planned investments into them before April 1 -the deadline for foreign portfolio investors to avail treaty tax benefits. From the new financial year, foreign investors using countries such as Mauritius and Singapore to route their investments into India will have to start paying capital gains, though at a reduced rate for the time being. Also, the tax department will not question investors for bringing money through this route till March 31. “Foreign investors may upfront their planned purchase of Indian stocks to before March 31 to take advantage of the grandfathering window so they don't have to pay any extra capital gains tax,“ said Samir Arora, fund manager, Helios Capital. Last year, India amended its tax treaty with Mauritius and Singapore, from where close to 80% of foreign portfolio money flows into the country . The am

The government has decided that all future foreign atomic reactors in India will have a capacity to generate 1,200 Mw and above, in a bid to augment nuclear power generation. "We already have foreign power plants with a capacity of 1,000 Mw (Kudankulam). The technology too has advanced that we have reactors with such a capacity. If we are installing them, then might as well have reactors that can generate more power and make optimum use of it," a senior government official said. According to sources, the second site to be allocated to the Russians at Kavali in Andhra Pradesh for its proposed nuclear power park will also have atomic reactors with an enhanced capacity of 1,200 Mw. Business Standard New Delhi,13th Febuary 2017

With sophisticated technology now at their disposal, tax authorities are trying to be one step ahead of evaders. The income tax (IT) department always had information at their disposal, using which they sent out notices to taxpayers. But, most of these were looked at in silos. They are now using technology like big data analytics to combine all the information and geta360degree income profile. Earlier, if you purchasedahouse that didn´t match the returns filed, they would call for you to explain how you funded it. All you had to do then was show the assessing officer loan documents and statement of savings. The same verification is now done withadeeper understanding of your income profile. Now, the officer can look at your purchases and spending —likeacar, gold or credit card bills —and check if the savings you showed are justified or not. Beyond deposits: The deposits made during demonetisation is only the starting point for investigations. “The tax authorities are a

1 Usually, the Union Budget generates excitement among tax payers, as many amendments to the laws here are made. This time, hardly any changes were made in the excise and service tax laws, to be phased out when the goods and services tax laws will replace these in the next few months. However, the Finance Bill proposes a few changes in the Customs law, which is set to continue. Sub-section (3) of Section 46 of the Customs Act is being substituted, to make it mandatory to file a bill of entry before the end of the next day after the one (excluding holidays) on which a vessel or aircraft or vehicle with the goods arrives at a Customs station at which such goods are to be cleared, for home consumption or warehousing. At present, this section does not prescribe any time period within which the bill of entry has to be filed. Once the proposed change takes effect, an importer will get only one day from arrival of the vessel to file the bill of entry. If he fails to do so, he will have

Government is hopeful of getting the supporting legisla tions of Goods and Services Tax (GST) passed by Parliament in the second phase of the Budget session for rolling out the new indirect tax regime by July. Replying to a question on GST Bill, Parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar today said, “That is on the plate. GST Council is meeting on 18th and it will be decided after that, but we are hopeful that supporting GST bills will be passed in the next phase of the session. “ The government is hopeful of getting Central GST (CGST) and Integrated GST (IGST) draft legislations approved at the next GST Council meeting on February 18 and bring them in the second half of the ongoing Budget Session along with GST Compensation Act. 10TH FEBRUARY, 2017, THE ECONOMIC TIMES, NEW-DELHI

The bigwigs of ecommerce, including Amazon India Head Amit Agarwal, Flipkart Cofounder Sachin Bansal and Snapdeal Cofounder Kunal Bahl joined hands to seek modifications in the draft version of the GST (goods and services tax) law. Ecommerce companies are worried about the tax collection at source (TCS) provision in the GST. The proposed GST model makes these companies responsible for the collection of taxes on behalf of its sellers and merchants. With GST expected to be finalised by this month, ecommerce rivals for the first time presented a joint front to put pressure on the government. “The proposal of tax collection at source, directed only at ecommerce marketplaces, in the Draft Model GST Law, will hurt lakhs of small sellers by making online sales expensive and cumbersome for them,“ said Bahl of Snapdeal. “The proposal, while adding needless complexity for the sellers, provides no benefit to the tax authorities and will lead to duplication of information followed by the need for