The core message is simple: We know you have assets abroad. Fix your return now.
The Target and The Data
The CBDT has signed agreements with partner nations for Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI). This framework, which includes the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and the US’s FATCA, gives the tax department data on Indian residents’ foreign financial accounts, investments, and property.
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Initial Target: Approximately 25,000 “high-risk” cases have been flagged based on AEOI data analysis for the financial year 2024-25 (AY 2025-26).
The Nudge: These taxpayers will receive SMSs and emails starting today, November 28, 2025.
The Deadline: You must review and revise your returns on or before December 31, 2025, to avoid severe penal consequences. The campaign will be widened to include more cases from mid-December.
The Consequences of Ignoring the Nudge
The CBDT is giving a final opportunity for voluntary compliance before they move to enforcement. Ignore this, and you trigger the nuclear option: the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) Act, 2015.
Penalty: ₹10 lakh fine for non-disclosure.
Tax: 30% tax on the undisclosed income.
Additional Penalty: A huge 300% penalty on the tax payable.
The department is serious. Sources indicate they have already assessed about 1,080 cases and raised a demand of nearly ₹40,000 crore till June 2025, with searches conducted in cities like Delhi and Mumbai based on this foreign data.
The thing is, the department is also bringing in big companies to sensitize their employees about the mandatory reporting of foreign assets in Schedule FA (Foreign Assets) and Schedule FSI (Foreign Source Income) of the ITR. This isn’t just about high-net-worth individuals anymore; anyone with an overseas bank account, stock investments, or property must comply.
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