India International Times Latest Business News from India
Indian government is planning to revise the tax treaties with partner countries to enable the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) to use the data for prosecution of those who have stashed black money abroad, said a statement.
Treaty partner countries have been requested to modify the tax treaties to explicitly include provisions that will enable information exchanged for tax purposes, including criminal proceedings in non-tax matters.
About 40 treaties for avoidance of double taxation have been revised accordingly and India has also signed the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters, which also similarly facilitates exchange of information.
India is gearing up drive on compiling information by non-tax agencies, subject to agreement by the Competent Authorities of the Requested Contracting State.
However, not all treaty partner countries have agreed to the proposal. Since a bilateral treaty cannot be modified unless both treaty partners agree, it is not possible to provide any time frame for this purpose, said Mr. Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha.
