The CBDT has clarified that a deductor being an employer shall seek information from each employee having salary income regarding the tax regime they want to opt for.
The income tax department has come out with an important clarification for the taxpayers who will be choosing between the old and the new tax regime while filing the ITR. As the rate of taxation is different in both regimes, the clarification from the government will help taxpayers to take an informed decision. The CBDT clarification will also help taxpayers with income from investments abroad.
Taxpayers must disclose any overseas investments, such as US stocks while filing income tax returns.
Such foreign investments must be recorded in Schedule FA of the ITR-2. The new tax regime has been made the default option for taxpayers, which means one needs to intimate the employer to opt for the old tax regime.
Whether one opts for the old or the new tax regime, for resident Indians, investing in US stocks is taxed, and overseas earnings must be disclosed when submitting an income tax return. While investing in US stocks, you might have realised dividend income, capital gains, or capital losses. To avoid receiving an income tax notice, they must be appropriately recorded in ITR per particular requirements.
But, what if a taxpayer does not initiate the option to the employer? In that case, will your employer deduct tax as per old tax rates or the new tax rates of the new tax regime?
Homi Mistry, Partner, Deloitte India says, “The CBDT has clarified that a deductor being an employer shall seek information from each employee having salary income regarding the tax regime they want to opt for (whether the old regime or the new default tax regime) and every employee shall intimate the same to the employer regarding their intended tax regime for each year and accordingly the deductor (i.e. employer) shall compute the employee’s income and deduct tax thereon based upon the option exercised.
If no intimation is made by the employee, it shall be presumed that the employee continues to be in the new tax regime (being the default tax regime). In such a case, the employer shall deduct TDS in accordance with the tax rates under the new tax regime.”
No matter which regime one opts for, the ITR filing needs to be properly made with full disclosures related to capital gains and dividends earned from foreign stocks.
“As per the Income tax laws, every Indian investor is obliged to disclose the details of transactions pertaining to the Capital Gain and Dividend in “Schedule CG” and “Schedule OS” respectively in their Income tax return in India. Moreover, Resident and Ordinarily Resident investors must also furnish the details of such foreign stocks in “Schedule FA” of their Income Tax Return.
On Non-disclosure of foreign investments in the respective schedules, the Income Tax Authorities might issue a notice to the assessee with a contention of undisclosed asset and income and treat such income tax return as a defective return u/s 139(9) of the IT Act. Apart from this, “The Black Money(Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) And Imposition of Tax Act, 2015” imposes more stringent penalty of Rs. 10 lakhs for non-disclosure of a foreign asset in Schedule FA,” says Dr. Suresh Surana, Founder, RSM India.
Source: https://www.financialexpress.com/business/investing-abroad-investing-abroad-will-tds-apply-on-old-or-new-tax-regime-rates-government-clarifies-3036181/
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