I-T gets new tech to keep track of taxpayers' address

New Delhi: To check black money,  the income-tax department has set up a new database of multiple addresses of those who do not file their income-tax returns.

Altogether 11 lakh taxpayers filed returns for 2014-15 after the department tracked them through this programme.

Earlier, the I-T department used to send intimation letters to addresses of non-filers based on PAN databases, under a special drive called “Non-Filers Management System”.

But many such notices went undelivered as the addressees were no longer living there.

Now, a new pool of data has been provided to I-T sleuths by electronically collating addresses which assesses use in his/her ITR or AIR filing, and notices sent to these too.

While an ITR is supposed to be filed by any person who has taxable income, an AIR is stipulated to be filed by a specific category of people undertaking high-value transactions.

The NMS database is run by using technology intelligence tools to track erring taxpayers who either forget or just skip filing their returns.

“The department found that the addresses provided in the Permanent Account Number database were no longer valid in many cases as the assessee had changed location.

Hence, a new pool of data has been provided to IT sleuths by electronically collating the address which such an assessee uses in his ITR or AIR or may be by the entities connected with such a person.