Section 15 in The Voluntary Disclosure Of Income And Wealth Act, 1976
15. Voluntary disclosure of wealth.
(1)Subject to the provisions of this section, where any person makes, on or after the date of commencement of this Act but before the 1st day of January, 1976, a declaration in respect of-(a)the net wealth chargeable to wealth-tax for any assessment year for which he has failed to furnish a return under section 14 of the Wealth-tax Act; or(b)the value of the. assets which has not been disclosed, or the value of the assets which has been understated, in any return of net wealth for any assessment year, then, notwithstanding anything contained in that Act, the net wealth, or, as the case may be, the value so declared shall not be taken into account for the purposes of any proceedings relating to imposition of penalty on the person making the declaration under this sub-section (hereafter in this section referred to as the declarant) or for the purposes of the prosecution of the declarant under that Act:Provided that-(i)nothing contained in clause (a) shall apply in relation to the net wealth assessable for any assessment year for which a notice under section 14 or section 17 of that Act has been served upon the declarant before the commencement of this Act;(ii)nothing contained in clause (b) shall apply in relation to so much of the value of such assets as has been assessed in any assessment for the relevant assessment year made by the Wealth-tax Officer before the date on which the declaration under this sub-section is made.(2)The declaration under sub-section (1) shall be made to the Commissioner and shall be in such form and shall be verified in such manner is may be prescribed by rules made by the Board.(3)A declaration under sub-section (7) shall be signed by the person specified in sub-section (2) of section 4 as if the declaration had been made under that section.(4)A copy of the declaration made by the declarant under sub-section (1) shall be forwarded by the Commissioner to the Wealth-tax Officer and the information contained therein may be taken into account for the purposes of the proceedings relating to assessment or reassessment of the net wealth of the declarant under the provisions of the Wealth-tax Act.(5)The immunity provided under sub-section (1) shall not be available to the declarant unless the wealth-tax chargeable in respect of the net wealth for the assessment year or years for which the declaration has been made is paid by the declarant in accordance with the provisions of section 5 and the declarant invests in the securities referred to in sub-section (3) of section 3 within the time specified in sub-section (4) of section 5 the sum specified in sub-section (6) of this section.Explanation. [For the purposes of this sub-section and sub-section (5A),] [Inserted by Act 29 of 1977, s.38 (w.e.f. 1-4-1976) ] wealth-tax chargeable in respect of the net wealth for any assessment year for which the declaration is made shall be-(a)in a case falling under clause (a) of sub-section (1), the wealth-tax payable in respect of the net wealth declared under that clause for that year;(b)in a case falling under clause (b) of sub-section (1),--(i)where no assessment has been made in pursuance of the return of net wealth furnished by the declarant, the wealth-tax payable on the aggregate of the net wealth returned and the value declared under that clause for that year as if such aggregate were the net wealth, as reduced by the wealth-tax payable on the basis of the net wealth returned;(ii)where an assessment has been made in pursuance of the return of net wealth furnished by the declarant, the wealth-tax payable on the aggregate of the net wealth as assessed and the value declared under that clause for that year as if such aggregate were the net wealth, as reduced by the wealth-tax payable on the net wealth as assessed.(5A)[ A declarant--(a)who has not paid, in accordance with the provisions of section 5,the wealth-tax chargeable in respect of the net wealth for the assessment year or years for which the declaration has been made; of (b) who has not invested in the securities referred to in sub-section of section 3 within the time specified in subsection (4) of section 5 the sum specified in sub-section (6); or(c)who has neither so paid such wealth-tax nor so invested such sum, shall, notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (5), be entitled to the immunity provided under sub-section (1), if the declarant-(i)in a case falling under clause (a), Pays before the 1st day of January, 1978 (hereafter in this sub-section referred to as the said date) the amount of such wealth-tax remaining unpaid and also simple interest at the rate of twelve per cent. per annum on the amount of such wealth-tax remaining unpaid on the 31st day of March, 1976, from the 1ST clay of April, 1976 to the date of payment of such wealth-tax;(ii)in a case falling under clause (b), invests before the said date in the securities aforesaid the sum specified in sub-section (6) or, as the case may be, the amount which falls short of the sum required to be invested;(iii)in a case falling under clause (c), pays before the said date the amount of such wealth-tax remaining unpaid and also simple interest at the rate of twelve per cent. per annum. on the amount of wealth-tax remaining unpaid on the 31st day of March, 1976, from the 1st day of April, 1976 to the date of payment of such wealth-tax and invests before the said date in the securities aforesaid the sum specified in sub-section (6) or, as the case may be, the amount which falls short of the sum required to be invested.(5B)The provisions of the Wealth-tax Act and any ruler, made thereunder shall, so far as may be, apply to the interest payable under sub-section (5A) as if such interest were interest payable under sub-section (2) of section 31 of the Wealth-tax Act.] [Inserted by Act 29 of 1977, s.38 (w.e.f. 1-4-1976) ](6)The sum referred to in sub-section (5), shall be,-(a)where the declaration has been made in respect of one assessment year, a sum equal to two and a half per cent. of the amount of net wealth declared under clause (a) of sub-section (1), Or, as the case may be, the value declared under clause (b) of that sub-section;(b)where the declaration has been made in respect of more than one assessment year, a sum equal to two and a half per cent of the net wealth declared under clause (a) of sub-section (1), or, as the case may be, the value declared under clause (b) of that subsection, in respect of the last of such assessment years.(7)Where any wealth-tax is paid by the declarant for any assessment year credit therefor shall be given to the declarant [in accordance with the provisions of section 5, read with sub-section (5) or, as the case may be, in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (5A)] [Substituted by Act 29 of 1977, s.38 (w.e.f. 1-4-1976) ] credit therefor shall be given to the declarant in the assessment made under the Wealth-tax Act for that year.
