Transfer of foreign assets required to be declared in annual return

Transfer of foreign assets required to be declared in annual return

ISLAMABAD: A person makes transaction or transfer of foreign assets during a tax year is required to declare the same in annual return.

Officials in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) said that according to Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 a person having foreign assets or foreign income is required to file annual return of income and wealth statement.

The law also makes mandatory for the person to declare any foreign assets transferred to any other person during the tax year and the consideration for the said transfer.

Section 116A of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 explains the return filing requirement for a person having foreign income and assets statement.

Section 116A. Foreign income and assets statement.

(1) Every resident taxpayer being an individual having foreign income of not less than ten thousand United States dollars or having foreign assets with a value of not less than one hundred thousand United States dollars shall furnish a statement, hereinafter referred to as the foreign income and assets statement, in the prescribed form and verified in the prescribed manner giving particulars of—

(a) the person’s total foreign assets and liabilities as on the last day of the tax year;

(b) any foreign assets transferred by the person to any other person during the tax year and the consideration for the said transfer; and

(c) complete particulars of foreign income, the expenditure derived during the tax year and the expenditure wholly and necessarily for the purposes of deriving the said income.

(2) The Commissioner may by a notice in writing require any person being an individual who, in the opinion of the Commissioner on the basis of reasons to be recorded in writing, was required to furnish a foreign income and assets statement under sub-section (1) but who has failed to do so to furnish the foreign income and assets statement on the date specified in the notice.