From 25 September 2026 the Income Tax Department has been emailing taxpayers whose foreign bank accounts, shares or property may be missing from past returns. The email is an advisory, not a notice. But the data behind it is real, and the low-cost window it points to shuts on 31 December 2026.
Important Advisory: Opportunity for Voluntary Compliance regarding Foreign Assets (FAST-DS, 2026)
This is a system-generated communication. Please do not reply to this e-mail.
Dear Taxpayer Mr./Ms. [YOUR NAME] (ABCPX••••X),
Our records indicate1 that you may have overseas financial interests (such as bank accounts, shares, or immovable property etc.) acquired in earlier years2, that are required to be reported in Income Tax Return3.
If your overseas financial interests (assets/ income) have been left unreported in your earlier Income Tax Returns or have been acquired through undisclosed sources4, we encourage you to utilize the ongoing, one-time compliance window under the FAST-DS (Foreign Asset of Small Taxpayers - Disclosure Scheme). This dedicated window is open till 31.12.20265. Also, you may view your Foreign Assets Information on the AIS6 through e-filing portal.
You may also use 'Kar Saathi'7 available on incometaxindia.gov.in for assistance regarding tax compliance, forms, procedures, and related queries.
Note: This is an automated advisory to facilitate voluntary compliance and is not a legal notice.9
The Department is not guessing. Foreign banks, brokers and custodians report accounts held by Indian tax residents under the Common Reporting Standard (100+ jurisdictions) and the US FATCA agreement, matched to your PAN. Since July 2026 you can see the same data yourself as Foreign Assets Information in AIS.
Tap any highlighted phrase in the email to see what it means for you. Name and PAN are masked.
Short answer: the FAST-DS email is an automated advisory, not a legal notice, and needs no reply. Open the Foreign Assets Information in your AIS, match it with Schedule FA of each past return, and act only if something was missed. Genuine omissions can be closed under FAST-DS by filing Form 1 of FADS 2026 on or before 31 December 2026.
India now receives automatic information on foreign financial accounts held by its residents from over a hundred countries under the Common Reporting Standard, and from the United States under FATCA. The Department matches each record with what you showed in Schedule FA (foreign assets) and Schedule FSI (foreign source income) of your returns. Where an account, shareholding or property linked to your PAN does not show up, the system flags it.
This is the third step in a deliberate sequence. Earlier rounds of SMS and email asked people to revise returns; according to PTI, one such campaign led 24,678 taxpayers to revise returns and disclose ₹29,208 crore of foreign assets. The current email goes further and points straight to a one-time scheme with a fixed price and statutory immunity.
Compliance-cum-awareness SMS and emails for AY 2024-25 asking residents to complete Schedule FA and FSI.
NUDGE messages for AY 2025-26 asking taxpayers to revise returns by 31 December 2025.
FAST-DS announced in the Union Budget; enacted as Chapter IV (sections 130–144) of the Finance Act, 2026.
Foreign Assets Information goes live in AIS, so taxpayers can see what the Department holds.
FAST-DS Rules, 2026 notified (Notification No. 114/2026, G.S.R. 732(E)); scheme in force from 16 August.
Advisory emails reach taxpayers, naming FAST-DS and the Form 1 navigation path.
Last date for filing Form 1. No declaration can be filed after this date.
The advisory is a real Departmental campaign, which is exactly why fraudsters copy it. Treat the email as a reminder and do everything else on the portal directly.
Answer honestly. The result tells you whether you need to do nothing, correct AIS, revise a return, or file under FAST-DS, and which category applies. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.
Bank or brokerage account, RSUs/ESOPs, foreign shares or funds, property, insurance or pension, or a stake in a foreign entity.
FAST-DS is one exit, not the only one. Pick the route that matches your facts, not the one the email happens to mention.
Match AIS Foreign Assets Information with Schedule FA year by year. Keep the working and statements on file. If an AIS entry is not yours or is duplicated, submit feedback in AIS.
The Finance Act, 2026 extended the revision window to twelve months, so the AY 2026-27 return can be revised up to 31 March 2027. A fee applies to revisions made after 31 December 2026.
Asset bought from income taxed in India, or acquired while you were an NRI, but left out of Schedule FA. Flat fee of ₹1 lakh where the aggregate value is up to ₹5 crore.
Foreign income never taxed, or asset with no satisfactory source. Tax at 30% plus an equal additional amount, effectively 60%, where the aggregate is up to ₹1 crore.
An updated return (ITR-U) pays the income tax on missed foreign income, but many practitioners take the view that it does not cure the separate Schedule FA reporting default under section 43 of the Black Money Act. Both FAST-DS ceilings are cliffs: above ₹1 crore or ₹5 crore the scheme is not available at all for that category, and there is no partial declaration.
After 31 December 2026 the same CRS and FATCA data can be used for assessment under the Black Money Act. This comparison shows the maximum statutory exposure on each path. It is illustrative and excludes interest and prosecution risk.
FAST-DS: Category 1 is tax at 30% of the value or income plus an amount equal to that tax (section 133, Sl. No. 1); Category 2 is a flat ₹1,00,000 (Sl. No. 2). Black Money Act: tax at 30% under section 10, penalty equal to three times that tax under section 41, and ₹10 lakh under section 43 for each year the asset was not reported. From 1 October 2024 the section 42/43 penalty does not apply where assets other than immovable property aggregate up to ₹20 lakh. Prosecution under sections 49 and 50 can add rigorous imprisonment; the Finance Act, 2026 aligned it with the same ₹20 lakh threshold.
Form 1 went live on the portal in early September 2026. The email gives this path; reach it by typing the portal address yourself.
Use PAN or Aadhaar with your password. Keep your DSC ready if your income-tax return is required to be verified with DSC (for example, tax audit cases); otherwise EVC works.
From the top menu choose e-File, then Income Tax Forms, then File Income Tax Forms.
Switch to the "Forms as per other Acts" tab, pick the FAST-DS form and click File Now.
The portal shows PAN, submission mode (Online) and filing type (Original). Continue, read the general instructions, then click Let's Get Started.
Part A, your basic information, is pre-filled. Part B carries the details of each foreign asset or income item being declared.
Enter assets in the annexure that matches their source. This choice decides Category 1 or 2. Upload acquisition documents, valuation reports and passport details if you claim non-resident status for any year.
Check the categorised summary, values as on 31 March 2026 and amount payable. One Form 1 can cover several assets and asset types.
Verify through DSC or EVC, submit on or before 31 December 2026 and download the acknowledgement. Then wait for the Form 2 order.
| Annexure in Form 1 | Use it when | Category | Statutory amount | Aggregate ceiling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Undisclosed asset located outside India | Foreign asset with no satisfactory explanation of the source of investment | 1 | 30% tax + equal additional amount | ₹1 crore (with undisclosed income) |
| Undisclosed foreign income | Foreign-source income chargeable in India but never offered to tax | 1 | 30% tax + equal additional amount | ₹1 crore (with undisclosed assets) |
| Asset acquired while non-resident | Bought from income earned during NRI years, not shown in Schedule FA after you became resident | 2 | Flat ₹1,00,000 | ₹5 crore |
| Asset acquired from income taxed in India | Bought from income already taxed here (for example, salary-taxed RSUs) but not shown in the schedule | 2 | Flat ₹1,00,000 | ₹5 crore |
Category 2 is not an option you elect. It rests on facts you must be able to prove: residential status in the year of acquisition and a traceable, taxed source. Need the full valuation rules for each asset class? See the FAST-DS 2026 scheme page with its FMV method finder.
Foreign banks can take weeks to send statements from account opening, and valuers abroad need time too. Pick what you hold and start collecting now.
31 December is the last date to declare, not to pay. A declaration filed in December will have its payment fall in 2027. Missing the outer payment limit voids the declaration.
| Stage | Form | Who acts | Time limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Declaration | Form 1 | You | 16 August to 31 December 2026 |
| Order fixing amount payable | Form 2 | Pr. DGIT / DGIT (Systems) | Within one month from the end of the month in which Form 1 is filed |
| Payment | Challan | You | Within two months from the end of the month in which Form 2 is received |
| Late payment | Challan | You | Further two months, simple interest at 1% per month or part of a month |
| Intimation of payment | Form 3 | You | Within the period allowed for payment, with proof |
| Certificate of payment | Form 4 | Pr. DGIT / DGIT (Systems) | Within one month from the end of the month in which Form 3 is received |
A valid FAST-DS declaration closes the position for good. It does not open a negotiation, so the facts have to be right before you file.
Statutory references: sections 130–144 of the Finance Act, 2026 and the FAST-DS Rules, 2026. Eligibility grounds refer to section 139 (return) and section 147 (income escaping assessment) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, which correspond to section 263 and section 279 of the Income-tax Act, 2025 effective 1 April 2026. Residential status follows section 6 of both Acts.
Most recipients are not hiding money. They are salaried professionals and families whose foreign holdings simply never made it into Schedule FA.
Shares vested in a US brokerage account, perquisite taxed through Form 16, but the shares and dividends were never shown in Schedule FA or Schedule FSI. Shares often point to Category 2; untaxed dividends or sale gains may need Category 1.
Accounts, 401(k)s or investments built abroad while non-resident, kept running after the move back. Reporting became mandatory once you turned resident and ordinarily resident. This is the classic Category 2 case.
Joint accounts opened with children studying overseas, or accounts the parent funded and is beneficial owner of. Beneficial ownership counts even if the account is in another name.
Foreign immovable property is outside the ₹20 lakh Black Money Act relief whatever its value. Valuation needs a valuer recognised in the country where the property is, or indexed cost.
An account from a student or posting period, left open with a small balance. Value is the sum of all deposits since opening, so it can be larger than you expect.
Remitted under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme from taxed income into foreign stocks or funds, but did not complete Schedule FA. Source is documented through Form 145/146 and bank records.
From 1 October 2024 the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024 switched off penalty under sections 42 and 43 of the Black Money Act where foreign assets other than immovable property aggregate up to ₹20 lakh. CBDT's instruction of 18 August 2025 stopped prosecution in the same cases, and the Finance Act, 2026 wrote that threshold into sections 49 and 50.
So for a resident whose only foreign exposure is a modest brokerage or bank account, the Black Money Act risk may already be nil. Three cautions remain. Untaxed foreign income is still taxable. The asset still belongs in Schedule FA from now on. And whether the threshold protects defaults before 1 October 2024 is a debatable point that needs a view on your specific years.
Getting the category, valuation or residential status wrong can void a declaration at any stage, after a non-refundable payment. Our work is to get those three right before anything is filed.
Professional charges: consultative pricing, quoted after we understand your matter.
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No. The email titled "Important Advisory: Opportunity for Voluntary Compliance regarding Foreign Assets (FAST-DS, 2026)" states that it is an automated advisory and not a legal notice. No reply is required and no penalty is attached to it. It does, however, create a record that you were told about the scheme, so the foreign assets it refers to should be reviewed before 31 December 2026.
The advisory sent from late September 2026 comes from "Income Tax Compliance" at ITD_SUPPORT@insight.gov.in and addresses the taxpayer by name with a masked PAN. Even so, do not log in through links in any email. Type the e-filing portal address yourself and navigate to AIS and Form 1 from there. The Department never asks for your password or OTP by email.
Foreign banks, brokers and custodians report accounts held by Indian tax residents to India under the Common Reporting Standard and FATCA. The Department matches that data with Schedule FA and Schedule FSI of your past returns. Where a foreign account, shareholding or property linked to your PAN appears not to have been reported, the system sends the advisory. Since July 2026 the same data is visible to you as Foreign Assets Information in AIS.
No. If every foreign asset was correctly reported in Schedule FA for each year you were resident and ordinarily resident, and foreign income was offered to tax, no declaration is needed. Reconcile AIS with your returns and submit feedback in AIS for any wrong entry. FAST-DS is for genuine omissions only.
31 December 2026. The scheme came into force on 16 August 2026 under Notification No. 114/2026 dated 14 August 2026, and no declaration can be filed after the last date. As of 4 October 2026 no extension has been announced, while the tax audit season has been extended to 21 October and audit-case returns to 21 November 2026 by CBDT Circular 07/2026.
Form 1 has four annexures: undisclosed asset located outside India, undisclosed foreign income, asset acquired while non-resident and not declared after becoming resident, and asset acquired from income already taxed in India but not declared in the schedule. The first two fall under Category 1 (30% tax plus an equal additional amount, aggregate up to ₹1 crore). The last two fall under Category 2 (flat fee of ₹1 lakh, aggregate up to ₹5 crore).
The Department issues an order in Form 2 within one month from the end of the month of filing. You pay within two months from the end of the month in which Form 2 is received, or within a further two months with simple interest at 1% per month or part of a month. You report payment in Form 3, and the Department certifies it in Form 4 within one month from the end of the month in which Form 3 is received.
On a valid declaration and payment, the declarant gets immunity from further tax, penalty and prosecution under the Black Money Act, 2015 for the declared asset or income, and the declared income or investment is not included in total income under the Income-tax Act or the Black Money Act. The amount paid is not refundable, and the declaration becomes void if any material particular is found false at any stage.
Possibly. A present non-resident or RNOR can declare if he was resident in India in the year the undisclosed foreign income relates to or in the year the foreign asset was acquired. Schedule FA reporting itself applies only for years in which you were resident and ordinarily resident.
Shares acquired from income already taxed in India but missing from Schedule FA generally point to Category 2, the flat ₹1 lakh fee within the ₹5 crore aggregate. Dividends or sale gains on those shares that were never offered to tax are undisclosed foreign income and may need Category 1. The Rules and FAQs do not address mixed cases expressly, so take a considered view on your facts.
For AY 2026-27, a revised return correcting Schedule FA and Schedule FSI can be filed up to 31 March 2027, with a fee for revisions after 31 December 2026. For earlier years the revision window is closed. An updated return (ITR-U) pays the tax but, in the view of many practitioners, does not cure the Schedule FA reporting default under section 43 of the Black Money Act. FAST-DS is designed to close that gap for older years.
From 1 October 2024, penalty under sections 42 and 43 of the Black Money Act does not apply where the aggregate value of foreign assets other than immovable property does not exceed ₹20 lakh, and the Finance Act, 2026 aligned the prosecution provisions in sections 49 and 50 with the same threshold. Untaxed foreign income remains taxable, the asset must still be reported in Schedule FA, and foreign immovable property is outside this relief whatever its value.
