| The provisions of clubbing of income of certain close relatives for the purpose of income tax, as discussed are equally relevant for the purposes of wealth tax. Hence, a non-resident Indian, like any other resident person, should so adopt proper tax planning that there is no clubbing of wealth of his wife with his own wealth. Thus, he should refrain from making any gift whether out of assets outside India or assets in India to his wife. That is why the wife of the non-resident Indian should also not make any gift of any assets, whether out of funds in India or funds outside India to her husband. Likewise, the non-resident Indian should not make any gift of any property in favour of the daughter-in-law or to any trust in favour of or for the benefit of the daughter-in-law. If these precautions are taken, the gifted assets are not to be clubbed with the assets of the person making the gift under the provisions of Section 4(1) of the Wealth Tax Act. This aspect of tax planning is very relevant for saving wealth tax and particularly for saving oneself from the clubbing provisions of wealth tax. Of course, the taxable wealth of a minor child would be clubbed with the wealth of the NRI under Section 4(1) of the Wealth Tax Act from the Assessment Year 1993-94. Usually, it is seen that a non-resident transfers certain amount of money out of his own funds in favour of his wife and minor children, under the impression that each one of them would be liable to wealth tax independently. In particular he is under the impression that for seven years there is complete exemption of the assets from the payment of wealth tax if he returns to India permanently. Though this is true, after the end of the seven-year period the transferred assets in favour of wife and minor children would be liable to be clubbed for the purposes of wealth tax in his hands. |
