I-T Officials Trail Mukesh Ambani Money Overseas

The Income Tax Department has stated that it has ‘exchanged’ information regarding “members of the Mukesh Ambani family” about alleged “undisclosed foreign income and assets” in a quarterly meet which took place at Ukraine on December 2019, with seven countries India has signed pacts.

India’s Income Tax Department is expected to receive a response within 90 days from its counterparts in seven countries namely Switzerland, St Lucia, Mauritius, Luxembourg, US, UK and Belgium, under the Double Tax Avoidance Agreements (DTAAs) as well as the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism pacts signed by India with these countries.

However, even if a response is received under the common reporting system agreed upon by countries as part of the recently signed Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) pact, it may take a long time before a ‘Letter Rogatory’ (LR) could be initiated by the Income Tax Department to approach authorities in old tax havens, according to Income Tax Department officials.

It was reported previously that the Income Tax Department had served a notice on March 28, 2019, to the Mukesh Ambani family under provisions of the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act of 2015, regarding holdings in the Capital Investment Trust.

Earlier, a media report had also claimed the Income Tax Department notice had included names of the three children of Mukesh Ambani, stating that the Ambanis had failed to disclose details and holdings in the Cayman Islands-based Infrastructure Company Limited of which they happen to be the “ultimate beneficiaries”.

Incidentally, it may be recalled that in 2015, the Swiss Leaks had named 1,195 Indian accounts, including 14 holdings connected to Capital Investment Trust, linked to 628 Indians who had accounts in HSBC Private Bank, including the Ambanis. The collective worth of these accounts was estimated to be Rs 25,000 crore in 2006-07.