New Delhi: Seeking to allay fears of income tax payers, Finance Minister P Chidambaram today (Oct 31, 2004) said every assessee need not maintain accounts of his spendings above Rs 50,000 and file Annual Information Return (AIR) of high-value expenditure.

"There is no budgetary proposal that will require every taxpayer to file his annual expenses beyond Rs 50,000," Chidambaram said in a letter to Rajeev Shukla, MP, who expressed apprehension over AIR.

However, he said certain assessees and Government agencies who are responsible for registering or recording financial transactions under law, shall furnish AIR in respect of transactions aggregating Rs 50,000.

Section 285-BA of the Income Tax Act, which was substituted by the Finance Act 2004, provides for mandatory filing of AIR for expenditures above Rs 50,000 annually.

"This section does not require every assessee to maintain accounts of his expenditure beyond Rs 50,000," he said.

Central Board of Direct Taxes is yet to prescribe the guidelines on AIR, he said.

AIR would cover only "certain high-value transactions," he said.