Bengaluru: Despite repeated notices and warnings from the income tax department, at least 32 sub-registrars in Karnataka have not reported high-value transactions of immovable properties. This includes sub-registrars from Byatarayanapura, Banashankari, Gandhinagar, Yelahanka, Basavanagudi, and the BDA within the Bengaluru jurisdiction.
The income tax department has communicated these concerns to the Chief Secretary of Karnataka. A copy of the correspondence accessed by DH states, “This letter is to bring to your kind notice the continued non-compliance of the statutory requirement of reporting high-value transactions in immovable properties by some sub-registrars, which has wider ramifications in terms of collection of tax due to the Central government and for extending timely taxpayer services.
The income tax department emphasizes that sub-registrars are mandated to furnish a statement of financial transactions (SFT) on immovable properties exceeding Rs 30 lakh to the department. This requirement aims to promote non-intrusive tax administration and voluntary compliance by taxpayers, which is essential for widening and deepening the tax base. The letter indicates that, to date, 33 sub-registrars have not filed the SFT for the reporting period 2024-25, with the prescribed deadline being May 31, 2025.
The letter further notes, “So far, the number of reports filed for the period 2024-25 is less than the number filed for the reporting period 2023-24.” The information submitted by sub-registrars is processed by the department and incorporated into the Annual Information Statement (AIS) of the taxpayer concerned. This information is verified by the taxpayer, and in cases of discrepancies, there is a provision to raise a dispute. Furthermore, the information in the AIS encourages taxpayers to fully disclose transactions in their income tax returns.
The income tax department underscored the critical nature of information received through SFTs in identifying cases of undervaluation of properties and for ensuring they fall within the tax net. Failure to furnish the statement within the prescribed time puts taxpayers into great inconvenience and results in revenue loss for the government,” the department stated.
The continued non-compliance raises significant concerns, with the letter questioning what is preventing these sub-registrars from filing their statements, especially when information is readily available on the Kaveri portal.
According to available information, the income tax directorate has been consistently reaching out to Karnataka’s Department of Stamps and Registration regarding this issue, discussing methods to streamline the timely and error-free filing of SFTs by implementing necessary changes in the Kaveri 2.0 portal.
Mullai Muhilan, MP, Inspector General of Registration and Commissioner of Stamps, stated, “We are validating the online portal for this matter and are in discussions with officials regarding some technical issues related to income tax department parameters.
