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FAST-DS 2026 — The Foreign Asset Amnesty Scheme, Explained for Tech Employees

9 min read · Published July 2026 · Updated October 2026 · Based on the Finance Act, 2026 and the CBDT FAST-DS Rules, 2026

The short version: If your RSU or ESPP income was already taxed through payroll but you never declared the shares in Schedule FA, FAST-DS 2026 lets you settle every past year for a flat ₹1,00,000 fee — with immunity from the ₹10 lakh per year Black Money Act penalty and from prosecution. The scheme is now open: declarations in Form 1 can be filed until 31 December 2026.
Work out your number: the FAST-DS calculator values your assets as on 31 Mar 2026, picks Category A or B, and shows the settlement and payment dates. Or generate your Schedule FA first for the asset history.

What FAST-DS 2026 is

The Foreign Assets of Small Taxpayers Disclosure Scheme, 2026 is a one-time voluntary disclosure scheme enacted as Chapter IV (sections 130–144) of the Finance Act, 2026, which received presidential assent on 30 March 2026. It was operationalised by CBDT Notification No. 114/2026 dated 14 August 2026, which notified the Foreign Assets of Small Taxpayers – Disclosure Scheme Rules, 2026, along with an official FAQ. It gives taxpayers a window — 16 August 2026 to 31 December 2026 — to declare foreign assets or foreign income they failed to report, pay a fixed amount, and receive statutory immunity from further tax, penalty and prosecution under the Black Money Act for the declared items.

This scheme was written with people like ITRFA.in's users in mind. The Finance Minister's Budget speech (1 February 2026, para 111) says it addresses the practical issues of "small taxpayers like students, young professionals, tech employees, relocated NRIs, and such others." The single most common fact pattern: RSUs vested at a US employer, perquisite tax deducted in payroll, capital gains reported on sale — but the Fidelity or Schwab account and the shares themselves never disclosed in Schedule FA.

The two categories

Section 133 of the Act sets out a table with two routes. Which one you fall into decides whether this costs you ~60% of the asset or a flat ₹1 lakh.

Category A — never taxedCategory B — taxed, but Schedule FA missed
Section 133 table Sl. No. 1 Sl. No. 2
What it covers Undisclosed foreign assets, or foreign income that was chargeable to tax in India but never offered to tax. Assets acquired from income already offered to tax in India, or from income earned while you were a non-resident — but not declared in the relevant Schedule of your return.
What you pay 30% tax on the asset's fair market value as on 31 March 2026, plus 30% tax on undisclosed foreign income, plus an amount equal to that tax — roughly 60% overall. A flat fee of ₹1,00,000 for the whole declaration, regardless of how many assets or years it covers.
Ceiling Aggregate undisclosed asset value + income ≤ ₹1 crore. Aggregate value of foreign assets ≤ ₹5 crore. Above ₹5 crore you cannot use the scheme at all.
What you get Immunity from further tax, penalty and prosecution under the Black Money Act for the declared income/asset (section 139). The declared amount is not added to your total income under the Income-tax Act or the Black Money Act (section 136).

Why most RSU/ESPP holders are Category B

For a typical tech employee, the income side was never the problem. RSU vests are taxed as salary perquisite through payroll and sit in Form 16. ESPP discounts are taxed the same way. Sale gains usually get reported in Schedule CG. What gets missed is the asset disclosure — the Schedule FA tables for the foreign brokerage account and the shares in it. That is exactly clause (b) of Category B: "asset acquired from income which has been offered to tax… but such assets were not declared by him in the relevant Schedule in the return of income."

The other Category B clause covers returned NRIs: shares acquired from salary earned abroad while non-resident, never declared in Schedule FA after moving back to India. Both fact patterns settle for the same flat ₹1 lakh.

How the assets are valued (Rule 3)

The FAST-DS Rules, 2026 prescribe the valuation method the Finance Act had left open. Everything is valued as on the valuation date, 31 March 2026.

  • Quoted shares and securities (RSUs, ESPP shares, listed stock): the higher of the cost of acquisition and the average of the lowest and highest price quoted on an established securities market on 31 March 2026 — or the nearest preceding trading day if there was no trade that day.
  • Foreign bank accounts: the sum of all deposits from the day the account was opened up to the valuation date, with exclusions to avoid double-counting (internal transfers, re-deposited withdrawals, and amounts already declared under Chapter VI of the Black Money Act).
  • Other assets (immovable property, unquoted shares, jewellery, art): the higher of cost of acquisition and open-market price on the valuation date, ideally supported by a recognised valuer's report; where no market valuation is done, the indexed cost of acquisition is deemed to be the fair market value.
  • Reinvestment: if the sale proceeds of one asset were used to buy another, the old asset's value is reduced by the amount reinvested, so the same money is not counted twice.
Currency: the declaration value is reported in Indian Rupees at the RBI reference rate on 31 March 2026 — not the SBI TTBR rate used for the annual Schedule FA. For currencies the RBI does not designate, convert to US Dollars at the asset country's regulated-bank rate first, then USD→INR at the RBI reference rate. A variance up to 20% of the declared fair market value (for assets other than a bank account) does not by itself invalidate the declaration.

The filing process — Forms 1 to 4

  1. Form 1 — declaration. Filed electronically to the Principal DGIT (Systems) / DGIT (Systems). One Form 1 can list multiple assets, income items and years. Upload the documents evidencing acquisition of the asset or earning of the income, plus a valuation report where one is required.
  2. Form 2 — amount payable. After electronic verification, the department issues an order stating the amount due, within one month from the end of the month in which you filed.
  3. Pay. Within two months from the end of the month the Form 2 order is received. A further two months is allowed with simple interest at 1% per month — but the outer limit is four months from the end of the month Form 2 was passed. Miss that and the scheme benefit is lost for that declaration.
  4. Form 3 — proof of payment, filed electronically within the payment window.
  5. Form 4 — certificate, issued by the department within one month from the end of the month your Form 3 is received. This is the document that confirms your immunity.

A worked example

Priya joined a US-headquartered company in Bengaluru in 2021. RSUs vested in FY 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25; perquisite tax was deducted every time, and she reported the one sale she made in Schedule CG. But she filed ITR-1 each year — which has no Schedule FA — so the Fidelity account and roughly ₹40 lakh of vested shares were never disclosed.

  • Her exposure without the scheme: a potential ₹10,00,000 penalty per defaulting year under the Black Money Act, plus prosecution risk — for three years, that is up to ₹30 lakh on fully taxed income.
  • Under FAST-DS Category B: one Form 1 covering all three years, a ₹1,00,000 fee, and statutory immunity for all of it — her shares are worth well under the ₹5 crore ceiling.
Small holdings may not need the scheme — in a narrow case. Since 1 October 2024 (Finance (No. 2) Act 2024), the ₹10 lakh penalty for not reporting a foreign asset in the return does not apply where the aggregate value of foreign assets (other than immovable property) is ₹20 lakh or less, and the Finance Act 2026 extended that to prosecution from the same date. For returns filed before 1 October 2024 the carve-out covered only bank balances up to ₹5 lakh, and it never covers foreign income that was not taxed. If every return you missed was filed on or after that date with holdings within ₹20 lakh, you may not need FAST-DS — though correct Schedule FA filing is still mandatory going forward.
Sound like Priya's situation? Pull your broker history so it's ready for the declaration. Generate your Schedule FA data →

Current status: open until 31 December 2026

  • Enacted: Finance Act 2026, Chapter IV — assent on 30 March 2026.
  • Operationalised: CBDT Notification No. 114/2026 dated 14 August 2026 notified the FAST-DS Rules, 2026 (Forms 1–4 and the Rule 3 valuation method), with an official FAQ.
  • In force from: 16 August 2026.
  • Last date to file Form 1: 31 December 2026. (The Act had left this to notification under section 131(1)(g); it is now fixed.)
  • Valuation date: 31 March 2026.
A declaration with any false particular is treated as invalid (section 134(3)), which forfeits the immunity. The scheme also does not apply to income or assets that are proceeds of crime with PMLA proceedings pending, or to any assessment year where a Black Money Act assessment is already completed (section 140).

The fine print worth knowing

  • Non-refundable (section 138): amounts paid under the scheme cannot be claimed back, and you cannot use the declaration to reopen or revise completed assessments (section 137).
  • Pending proceedings (section 141): if assessment proceedings are pending, the Assessing Officer takes your declaration into account while finalising them.
  • No set-off: you cannot claim rectification, revision, set-off or relief in any appeal or proceeding in respect of the declared income/asset or the amount paid.

What to do now

  1. Work out your category. If every rupee behind the foreign shares was taxed (payroll perquisite, Schedule CG on sales), you are looking at Category B and a ₹1 lakh settlement.
  2. Pull your broker history. The declaration needs accurate, year-wise asset details. Export your Fidelity NetBenefits, Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, or Morgan Stanley files and build the acquisition dates, quantities and year-wise values. The Schedule FA generator computes all of it from your files in minutes — the same underlying data a FAST-DS declaration needs. Note that the declaration itself values assets on 31 March 2026 at the RBI reference rate, while your annual Schedule FA uses SBI TTBR rates.
  3. File AY 2026-27 correctly regardless. FAST-DS fixes past defaults; it does not replace normal filing. Your current return must carry a complete Schedule FA either way.
  4. Engage a CA for the declaration itself. An amnesty filing is one place where professional sign-off is worth it — especially on valuation and on the Form 1 supporting documents.

FAQ

Yes. CBDT Notification 114/2026 (14 August 2026) notified the FAST-DS Rules, 2026; the scheme came into force on 16 August 2026 and Form 1 can be filed electronically until 31 December 2026.

If the underlying income was already taxed and only Schedule FA was missed, Category B applies: a flat ₹1,00,000 fee for the whole declaration (aggregate foreign assets up to ₹5 crore), with immunity from further tax, penalty and prosecution under the Black Money Act.

Category A is for assets or income never taxed at all — roughly 60% of value, capped at ₹1 crore aggregate. Category B is for assets from already-taxed (or non-resident period) income where only the Schedule FA disclosure was missed — flat ₹1 lakh, capped at ₹5 crore. Above ₹5 crore the scheme is not available.

Yes — a current non-resident or RNOR can declare if they were resident in India in the year the income arose or the asset was acquired. Typical case: shares acquired while working in India, owner has since relocated abroad.

31 December 2026 for filing Form 1. Assets are valued as on 31 March 2026. After Form 1, the department issues a Form 2 order and you pay within two months (extendable by two more with 1% monthly interest, outer limit four months).

Rule 3: quoted shares are valued at the higher of cost of acquisition and the average of the lowest and highest quoted price on 31 March 2026 (nearest preceding trading day if none that day), reported in INR at the RBI reference rate on that date. A 20% variance from a later determination does not by itself invalidate the declaration.

No. FAST-DS settles past defaults. Your AY 2026-27 return still needs a complete Schedule FA.
Get your Schedule FA data ready for the declaration

Upload your Fidelity, Schwab, E*TRADE, or Morgan Stanley files. ITRFA.in computes Table A2, A3 and F with year-wise acquisition, peak and closing values — the asset history a FAST-DS declaration needs.

Generate Schedule FA now →

Related guides

Primary sources

Informational only, based on the Finance Act, 2026, CBDT Notification 114/2026 and the FAST-DS Rules and FAQ as published in August 2026. Consult a chartered accountant for any amnesty declaration.