Budget 2026: FM Nirmala Sitharaman announces 6-month foreign asset disclosure scheme for small taxpayers

The Union Finance Minister on Sunday (February 1, 2026) proposed a six-month foreign asset disclosure scheme for small taxpayers like students, tech professionals and relocated NRIs.

Ms. Sitharaman was presenting her ninth consecutive Union Budget for April 2026 to March 2027 in the Parliament on Sunday (February 1).

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Speaking in the Parliament, the Finance Minister said, “I propose a six-month foreign asset disclosure scheme for those who did not disclose overseas incomes and assets, and those who declared income and paid tax, but could not declare assets.”

She said there will be no interest liability on taxpayers on the penalty amount for the period of appeal before first appellate authority, irrespective of outcome.

Ms. Sitharaman also proposed exemptions of three years for dividend income received by notified cooperatives on investments made up to January 31, 2026.

The initiative is aimed at enhancing India’s financial transparency and comes after a ‘Nudge’ campaign by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).

The Non-intrusive Usage of Data to Guide and Enable (NUDGE) campaign — whose first edition was launched in November 2024 and the second in November 2025 — aims at CBDT sending emails and messages to taxpayers to revise their returns, after it found several cases where taxpayers have foreign assets that they have not declared.