New Delhi, Dec. 21 -- Even a small, inadvertent oversight in declaring foreign assets can trigger intense scrutiny and label honest taxpayers as holders of 'black money', causing financial and mental stress.

A Mumbai-based professional learned this the hard way after receiving a penalty order from the tax department, which accused him of concealing foreign assets and imposed a Rs.40 lakh penalty under the Black Money Act (BMA).

This senior executive at a multinational company (MNC), who did not wish to be identified, held stock options in his firm's foreign parent between 2016 and 2020. He earned no dividend or other income from these holdings, but his only lapse was failing to disclose them in the Foreign Assets (FA) Schedule of his in...