Govt will soon open exit window for black money holders: Jaitley

The government is targeting the weeding out of the root causes of black money, finance minister Arun Jaitley has said, adding that a one-time compliance window will be announced shortly for those with undeclared assets abroad to come clean.

''The centre is taking steps to compress the flow of black money. The most important step...is to weed out the root causes,'' said Jaitley, in an interview with PTI.

He said the new law to tackle the black money menace will come into effect from 1 April 2016 and until then the government will put in place a compliance window for those with undeclared wealth stashed abroad to come clean by paying the penalty.

''The time frame of the compliance window will be announced very shortly. We are in the process of consultation,'' he said.

Jaitley, who has held a series of meetings with businesses, investors and government officials during his US trip, said the government has begun taking strong action on black money. ''We have got a law passed by Parliament where illegal assets and accounts kept abroad will be penalised. So, I will impose a tax on that,'' he said.

Earlier, addressing US investors in San Francisco, Jaitley pointed out that India is more investor friendly now and that investments in the country can now be committed without delay.

Jaitley, who concluded his nine-day US tour on Wednesday, alluded to the extensive reforms that have been launched by the government in the last one year. He asked long-term US investors to start investing without any delay as India's growth story is on a firm footing and all outstanding issues are under the government's active consideration.

Addressing investors at a roundtable organised by CII and Kotak in San Francisco on Wednesday, Jaitley said the economic fundamentals are very strong, making India one of the most attractive investment destinations.

The finance minister said India's growth story is on a firm footing and whatever outstanding issues are there are under the government's active consideration.