Income tax returns (ITR) filing: Taxpayers must include assets while filing tax if earnings overshoot mark

Income tax returns (ITR) filing: The Central Board Of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has made it mandatory to report certain assets in the Income Tax Return (ITR) since 2016. Only those taxpayers whose total income from all the sources taken together exceeds Rs 50 lakh during the year have to furnish details of assets in their ITR.

Taxpayers carrying on business or profession and maintaining books of accounts have to furnish details of the assets, which are not already included in their balancesheet being furnished.

Details to be furnished
The format of the schedule AL is same for all the ITRs. Except for ITR 3 and ITR 4, where you are required to furnish details of shares, you may have, in partnership firms, etc. Since details of assets to be reported are to be mentioned as on March 31, 2018, you need not furnish details of assets sold during the year.

Immovable assets
In case Schedule AL is applicable, furnish particulars of immovable properties, that is, land and building owned by you as on March 31, March 2018. You have to provide the description, address and the cost of such property. The disclosure to be made not only relates to the assets that have been purchased by you, but also assets that are acquired by you through gift or inheritance. In case of jointly owned property, you need to furnish details as regards your share in the property. In case the property is not purchased by you and you might not know the cost incurred by the previous owner, you can disclose the fair market value of the property as on April 1 2001. This is accepted by the income tax department for capital gains computations in cases assets were acquired before April 1, 2001. In other cases you can approach a valuer to obtain a valuation report. Or alternatively you can state the stamp duty valuation of the property in the year in which you acquired it. You need not furnish details if the property is still under construction.

If you have a home loan, you also need to disclose the outstanding home loan as on March 31, 2018. The value of the house to be disclosed would be the cost value. However, the loan amount to be disclosed would be the outstanding on March 31, 2018.

Movable assets
Items to be disclosed under movable assets include financial assets like cash in hand, balances with banks, investments in shares and securities, insurance policies, loans and advances given, and other movable assets like jewellery, bullion, vehicles, yachts, boats and aircraft, work of art, etc, as on March 31, 2018. You are required to disclose details of jewellery as well as bullion held in the form of bar and coins. In this case too, you have to disclose the cost of the asset. In case of inherited assets, the same principle can be followed for figuring out the cost, as mentioned in case of immovable assets. While providing bank balance details, provide details of saving account, recurring deposits, fixed deposits, Public Provident Fund, senior citizen saving account and home loan overdraft account.

For shares and securities the cost is be disclosed. For these assets received by you (other than those bought by you) and where you do not know the cost, the market price as on April 1, 2001 may be furnished as a safeguard.

You may treat traditional life insurance policies as investments. But term insurance plans cannot be treated as insurance because they do not have survival benefits. As no differentiation has been made for various insurance policies, it is advisable to furnish total premiums paid up to March 31, 2018 for all life insurance polices.

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You have to furnish details of vehicles including cars two wheelers, yacht, boats, aircraft, etc. In cases you are vehicles are maintained as antiques, you would need to disclose the cost of that article. In case your antique article is fetching you more value than the cost, you just need to disclose the cost.

By Balwant Jain
(The writer is a tax and investment expert)

Source: DNA Money