Centre flags Rs 40,564 cr tax claims on offshore assets, says no estimate of black money outflow
Responding to a Lok Sabha query, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said neither the Income Tax Act nor the BMA uses the term “black money”, but enforcement data under the BMA reflects the action taken so far on offshore holdings.
- Dec 4, 2025,
- Updated Dec 4, 2025 6:32 PM IST
The Centre has disclosed that tax authorities have raised over Rs 40,564 crore in tax and penalty demands on undisclosed foreign assets under the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) Act (BMA) over the past decade. However, it has no official estimate of how much illicit money may have left India during this period. Responding to a Lok Sabha query, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said neither the Income Tax Act nor the BMA uses the term “black money”, but enforcement data under the BMA reflects the action taken so far on offshore holdings.
The question, raised by MP Mala Roy, sought year-wise details of black money brought back to India in the last ten years as well as the total amount taken out during the same period. The minister reiterated that the term “black money” has no legal definition in relevant tax laws and that the BMA has been in force since July 1, 2015.
When the law was introduced, the government opened a one-time, three-month compliance window in 2015. During this period, 684 disclosures of undisclosed foreign assets were made, totalling Rs 4,164 crore, resulting in tax and penalty collections of Rs 2,476 crore. Since the BMA came into effect, and up to June 30, 2025, authorities have completed 1,087 assessments and raised tax and penalty demands exceeding Rs 40,564 crore. Actual recovery, however, remains at around Rs 339 crore because recoveries can be made only after appellate proceedings are exhausted.
On the question of how much illicit money left the country in the last decade, the government said there is no official estimate. Officials have consistently maintained that tracking such outflows is challenging without concrete disclosures or information-sharing mechanisms.
The Centre also reiterated that Swiss bank deposits should not be equated with black money. In the Monsoon Session earlier this year, the government clarified that data released by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is routinely misinterpreted. SNB figures include interbank transactions, business liabilities, deposits held by branches of Swiss banks located outside Switzerland, and funds that may not even belong to Indian residents. The government had earlier said it was inaccurate to attribute the reported increase of around ₹37,600 crore in 2024 to illicit Indian wealth, and this position was reaffirmed in Parliament.
Chaudhary also pointed to the growing role of the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) framework. Since 2018, Switzerland has been sharing detailed financial information about Indian residents, with the first tranche received in September 2019. India now receives such data annually. Similar arrangements with over 100 jurisdictions have strengthened the country’s ability to detect offshore tax evasion. Upon receiving actionable inputs, the Income Tax Department initiates assessments, recovery proceedings and, where warranted, criminal prosecution.
The Centre has disclosed that tax authorities have raised over Rs 40,564 crore in tax and penalty demands on undisclosed foreign assets under the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) Act (BMA) over the past decade. However, it has no official estimate of how much illicit money may have left India during this period. Responding to a Lok Sabha query, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said neither the Income Tax Act nor the BMA uses the term “black money”, but enforcement data under the BMA reflects the action taken so far on offshore holdings.
The question, raised by MP Mala Roy, sought year-wise details of black money brought back to India in the last ten years as well as the total amount taken out during the same period. The minister reiterated that the term “black money” has no legal definition in relevant tax laws and that the BMA has been in force since July 1, 2015.
When the law was introduced, the government opened a one-time, three-month compliance window in 2015. During this period, 684 disclosures of undisclosed foreign assets were made, totalling Rs 4,164 crore, resulting in tax and penalty collections of Rs 2,476 crore. Since the BMA came into effect, and up to June 30, 2025, authorities have completed 1,087 assessments and raised tax and penalty demands exceeding Rs 40,564 crore. Actual recovery, however, remains at around Rs 339 crore because recoveries can be made only after appellate proceedings are exhausted.
On the question of how much illicit money left the country in the last decade, the government said there is no official estimate. Officials have consistently maintained that tracking such outflows is challenging without concrete disclosures or information-sharing mechanisms.
The Centre also reiterated that Swiss bank deposits should not be equated with black money. In the Monsoon Session earlier this year, the government clarified that data released by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is routinely misinterpreted. SNB figures include interbank transactions, business liabilities, deposits held by branches of Swiss banks located outside Switzerland, and funds that may not even belong to Indian residents. The government had earlier said it was inaccurate to attribute the reported increase of around ₹37,600 crore in 2024 to illicit Indian wealth, and this position was reaffirmed in Parliament.
Chaudhary also pointed to the growing role of the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) framework. Since 2018, Switzerland has been sharing detailed financial information about Indian residents, with the first tranche received in September 2019. India now receives such data annually. Similar arrangements with over 100 jurisdictions have strengthened the country’s ability to detect offshore tax evasion. Upon receiving actionable inputs, the Income Tax Department initiates assessments, recovery proceedings and, where warranted, criminal prosecution.