Indian black money

In India, black money is funds earned on the black market, on which income and other taxes have not been paid. Also, the unaccounted money that is concealed from the tax administrator is called black money. The black money is accumulated by the criminals, smugglers, and tax-evaders. Around ₹22,000 crores are supposed^{[citation needed]} to have been accumulated by the criminals for vested interests, though writ petitions in the supreme court estimate this to be even larger, at ₹900 lakh crores.^[1]

The total amount of black money deposited in foreign banks by Indians is unknown. Some reports claim a total of US$10.6 – $11.4 trillion is held illegally in Switzerland.^[2] Other reports, including those reported by the Swiss Bankers Association and the Government of Switzerland, claim these reports are false and fabricated, and the total amount held in all Swiss bank accounts by citizens of India is about US$2 billion.^[3][4] In February 2012, the director of India's Central Bureau of Investigation said that Indians have US$500 billion of illegal funds in foreign tax havens, more than any other country.^[5][6] In March 2012, the government of India clarified in its parliament that the CBI director's statement on $500 billion of illegal money was an estimate based on a statement made to India's Supreme Court in July 2011.^[7]

In March 2018, it was revealed that the amount of Indian black money currently present in Swiss and other offshore banks is estimated to be ₹300 lakh crores or US$4 trillion.^[8]