India signs convention against black money

• India has entered into a multilateral convention on tax matters which until 2010 was available only for European nations and OECD members, a development that will boost the government’s efforts to bring back money illegally stashed abroad.
• The convention — Mutual Administrative Assistance on Tax Matters — provides for examination of tax affairs of the taxpayers simultaneously in their own territory and share the relevant information with each other.
• The Mutual Administrative Assistance on Tax Matters is based on international standard of transparency and exchange of information and not only facilitates the exchange of information, but also provides for assistance in the recovery of taxes
• It is multilateral and a single legal basis for multi-country cooperation as against the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements (DTAAs) and the Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs) which are bilateral. 
• The Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters also provides for an extensive network and wider forms of cooperation among the signatories on all taxes. 
• It provides for simultaneous tax examinations and participation in tax examinations in other countries.