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Key Takeaways
- The email or SMS about foreign assets is not a notice. CBDT says it is sending these messages to tell taxpayers that foreign account data received from abroad now shows in their AIS.
- Open AIS, then Compliance Portal, then Reports, then Foreign Assets Information and download each year. Calendar years 2022 to 2024 are shown; 2025 is being added.
- Compare it with Schedule FA and Schedule FSI of each past ITR. If everything was reported and taxed, you need do nothing more.
- If something was missed, FAST-DS 2026 is open until 31 December 2026: 60% of value for untaxed money (up to Rs 1 crore), or a flat Rs 1 lakh for already-taxed assets that were only left out of Schedule FA (up to Rs 5 crore).
- A foreign bank account is valued at the total of all deposits since opening, not its balance. Check this before you assume you are under a limit.
What should I do if I get a FAST-DS or foreign assets email from the Income Tax Department? Don't reply to it and don't click its links. Log in to the e-filing portal yourself, download the Foreign Assets Information report from AIS, and check whether each account and its income appeared in Schedule FA and Schedule FSI of your past returns. If something was missed, decide before 31 December 2026 whether FAST-DS, a revised return or no action fits your case.
Since mid-2026, many taxpayers have received an SMS or email from the Income Tax Department about foreign assets. Many forward it to their accountant and wait. That wait costs time, because the only scheme that settles old omissions cheaply closes on 31 December 2026, and the documents it needs (old bank statements, foreign valuation reports, proof of residential status) take weeks to collect.
This guide covers what the message means and what to do in the order you'll do it. For the full rules of the scheme itself, see our FAST-DS 2026 guide.
What the email is, and what it isn't
In July 2026, CBDT's Investigation Division published a note announcing that information on foreign assets and income received under the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) framework is now shown in taxpayers' Annual Information Statement (AIS). India gets this data from over 100 partner jurisdictions, covering foreign bank accounts, custodial accounts, certain investments, interest and dividends.
The same note says SMSs and e-mails are being issued to taxpayers to tell them about this feature and remind them to report foreign assets and income correctly. CBDT describes the initiative as meant "to facilitate, and not to investigate".
Comparison
The Foreign Assets Email: What It Is and Isn't
| It is | It is not |
|---|---|
| A message that the Department holds foreign account data linked to your PAN | A notice under any section of the Income-tax Act |
| A pointer to the Foreign Assets Information report in your AIS | An assessment or a tax demand |
| A reminder to report correctly in Schedule FA and Schedule FSI | Something you reply to |
Source: CBDT (Investigation Division) note: Display of CRS/FATCA information in AIS, hosted on incometax.gov.in, July 2026
Not being a notice doesn't make it safe to ignore. The data the email refers to is already with the Department. If your returns don't match it, that gap can be picked up later in an assessment, when FAST-DS is no longer open.
A safety point: never log in or upload documents through a link in an email or SMS. Type the e-filing portal address yourself and go to AIS from your dashboard.
Step 1: Download your Foreign Assets Information report
CBDT's note gives these steps:
Step-by-Step Guide
How to View Foreign Assets Information in AIS
Log in to the e-filing portal
Go to eportal.incometax.gov.in and sign in with your PAN.
Open AIS
Click AIS. You are taken to the Compliance Portal.
Open Reports
On the Compliance Portal, click Reports.
Choose Foreign Assets Information
This shows the data reported against your PAN.
Download each year
Pick a calendar year from the drop-down and click Download PDF. Repeat for every year shown.
Source: CBDT note: Display of CRS/FATCA information in AIS (July 2026)
Data for calendar years 2022, 2023 and 2024 is displayed. CBDT said 2025 data would be added once received in September or October 2026, so check again even if you looked earlier.
Two things to remember while reading it:
- It is not complete. CBDT says the AIS shows only what partner countries have sent. You must report every foreign asset and every rupee of foreign income in Schedule FA and FSI, whether or not it appears in AIS.
- It is per calendar year. Schedule FA in the ITR also works on the calendar year, so match like with like. Our AIS guide explains how to give feedback on an AIS entry that is wrong.
Step 2: Match it against your past returns
For each account or holding in the report, answer four questions:
Comparison
Four Checks for Each Foreign Asset in Your AIS
| Check | Where to look | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Was the asset in Schedule FA? | Schedule FA of each ITR for the years you held it | Missing it is a reporting default under the Black Money Act even if the income was taxed |
| Was the income in Schedule FSI or your salary? | Schedule FSI, Form 16, capital gains schedules | Untaxed income moves you to the costlier FAST-DS category |
| Were you resident that year? | Passport stamps, travel dates | FAST-DS needs you to have been resident when the income arose or the asset was acquired |
| Where did the money come from? | Foreign payslips, Indian returns, transfer records | Taxed or non-resident money is the Rs 1 lakh category; unexplained money is the 60% category |
Source: CBDT FAST-DS FAQs dated 13 August 2026, Q6 to Q19
Many people stop here. If every asset was in Schedule FA and the income was taxed, there is nothing to declare. Keep your working papers in case the Department asks.
Step 3: If something was missed, pick the route
Route A: FAST-DS 2026 (until 31 December 2026)
FAST-DS is a one-time scheme in Sections 130 to 144 of the Finance Act, 2026, with Rules notified on 14 August 2026. It came into force on 16 August 2026, and the CBDT FAQs say no declaration can be filed after 31 December 2026.
Comparison
FAST-DS 2026: The Two Categories
| Section 133, Table Sl. No. 1 | Section 133, Table Sl. No. 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Covers | Undisclosed foreign asset, or foreign income never offered to tax | Foreign asset bought from already-taxed income or while non-resident, but left out of Schedule FA |
| Ceiling | Assets + income up to Rs 1 crore in total | Assets up to Rs 5 crore in total |
| Cost | 30% tax + an equal amount = 60% | Flat Rs 1 lakh |
| Above the ceiling | Scheme not available | Scheme not available |
Source: Finance Act 2026, Section 133; CBDT FAST-DS FAQs, Q12 to Q20
The CBDT example: an undisclosed foreign bank account worth Rs 60 lakh plus Rs 20 lakh of undisclosed foreign income. Tax at 30% is Rs 18 lakh + Rs 6 lakh = Rs 24 lakh, plus an equal Rs 24 lakh, so Rs 48 lakh in all.
The category decides the bill, not the value. A Rs 3 crore flat bought abroad from salary earned while non-resident costs Rs 1 lakh under Sl. No. 2. The same flat bought with money never taxed in India can't use the scheme at all, because it is above Rs 1 crore.
Route B: A revised return for AY 2026-27
If the only gap is in your AY 2026-27 return, a revised return that adds the asset to Schedule FA and the income to Schedule FSI may be enough. For AY 2026-27 the revised return can be filed up to 31 March 2027, with a fee if it is filed after 31 December 2026. Older years are usually out of reach of a revised return. Our revised return guide has the steps.
Route C: Check whether you're under Rs 20 lakh
From 1 October 2024, the Rs 10 lakh penalties under Sections 42 and 43 of the Black Money Act don't apply where the total value of your foreign assets, other than immovable property, is Rs 20 lakh or less. A single small foreign account may fall here. But the asset still belongs in Schedule FA, any untaxed foreign income is still taxable, and a foreign flat is outside this relief whatever its value. Our FAST-DS guide works through cases where the scheme buys only closure, not savings.
Step 4: Value bank accounts the scheme's way
This is the rule that surprises people most. Under FAST-DS, a foreign bank account is valued at the sum of all deposits from the day it was opened to 31 March 2026, not at its balance (CBDT FAQs, Q29).
Two deposits are left out: money that is a re-deposit of an earlier withdrawal from the same account, and, if the account was declared under the Black Money Act's 2015 compliance window, everything before that declaration.
CBDT's own example (FAQ Q30): an account opened in 2010 received deposits of $1,000, $500, $500, $500, $2,500 and $1,000 over the years, with withdrawals of $700, $400 and $500 that were later re-deposited. The value is $4,900, converted at the RBI reference rate on 31 March 2026. The balance on that date is irrelevant.
So an old salary account from years abroad can carry a FAST-DS value far above what is in it today. Pull statements from the date of opening before you decide which category, or which ceiling, you fall under.
Other assets use the higher of cost and market value on 31 March 2026: the average of the day's high and low for quoted shares, and a report from a valuer recognised in that country for property. For assets other than bank accounts, a later difference of up to 20% from your declared value doesn't by itself void the declaration (FAQ Q36).
Step 5: Plan the payment, not just the filing
31 December is the last date to declare. Payment follows the Form 2 order, so it usually falls in 2027 for late filers.
Step-by-Step Guide
FAST-DS After You File Form 1
Form 1: declaration
Filed online with documents showing how the asset was acquired or the income earned, plus a valuation report where needed. Last date 31 December 2026.
Form 2: order of amount payable
Issued within one month from the end of the month in which you filed Form 1.
Pay
Within two months from the end of the month you receive Form 2. Up to two more months allowed at 1% simple interest per month or part of a month.
Form 3: proof of payment
Filed online within the payment period.
Form 4: certificate
Issued within one month from the end of the month in which Form 3 is received. This is the document that gives immunity.
Source: CBDT FAST-DS FAQs, Q37 to Q46
Example: you file Form 1 on 10 December 2026 and receive a Form 2 order for Rs 12,00,000 on 20 January 2027. Payment without interest is due by 31 March 2027 (two months from the end of January). Paying on 15 April 2027 adds 1% (Rs 12,000); paying in May 2027 adds 2% (Rs 24,000). After 31 May 2027 the scheme benefit is lost.
Once Form 4 issues, you get immunity from further tax, penalty and prosecution under the Black Money Act for what you declared. In exchange, you can't seek rectification, revision or appeal relief on that income or asset, and nothing paid is refunded. The scheme also doesn't cover proceeds of crime under PMLA proceedings, or years where a Black Money Act assessment is already complete. A pending assessment doesn't bar you; the officer must take the declaration into account (FAQs, Q47 to Q50).
The cases we see most
Comparison
Common Foreign Asset Cases After the AIS Email
| Situation | What usually applies |
|---|---|
| Employee with RSUs or ESPP shares in a foreign brokerage, taxed through salary, Schedule FA left blank | Income was taxed, so the omission is reporting only: Sl. No. 2 at Rs 1 lakh if FAST-DS is needed. Untaxed dividends or sale gains are separate income. |
| Returned NRI with an old salary account abroad | Money earned while non-resident: Sl. No. 2. Value the account on total deposits, and check the Rs 20 lakh relief first. |
| Foreign trading account with gains never reported | Untaxed income: Sl. No. 1 at 60%, up to Rs 1 crore in total. |
| Flat abroad bought while working there | Sl. No. 2 if bought from foreign earnings while non-resident, up to Rs 5 crore, with a local valuer's report. |
| Asset in AIS that you never owned or already reported | Give feedback on the AIS entry and keep your evidence. No declaration needed. |
Source: Tax Garden analysis applying the CBDT FAST-DS FAQs dated 13 August 2026
RSU holders should read our guide on RSU tax and Schedule FA. Most of these cases are a missed Schedule FA line, not hidden income.
How Tax Garden helps
We download and read your Foreign Assets Information report, match it against Schedule FA and FSI for each year, and work out your residential status year by year. Then we tell you plainly which route fits: FAST-DS, a revised return, or no action. If FAST-DS is right, we value each asset under the scheme rules, file Form 1 with the documents, and follow through to the Form 4 certificate. For ongoing returns, our ITR filing service keeps Schedule FA right from here on.
