Here are some personal finance policies that will help you plan better and save some money.
As 2018 ends its time to rethink your personal finances and start preparing to save money on year-end taxes. This is also a good time to set financial goals for the coming year and plan in advance so that you don’t end up cutting corners in future. Here’s how your taxes changed in this financial year; some taxes imposed and some reliefs given to you, the tax-payer.
Standard Deduction | This year, individuals will get a standard deduction of Rs 40,000 on their gross income against the Rs 19,200 as transport allowance and Rs 15,000 as medical reimbursement, which employees were getting earlier.
LTCG Gains on equities | Extra 10 percent of long-term capital gains tax (LTCG) on equity investments will be applicable on capital gains exceeding Rs 1 lakh upon the sale of equity share or units of equity oriented funds.
Higher Cess | Cess on income tax has been raised to 4 percent from 3 percent for individual taxpayers on the amount of total income tax payable.
Dividend Distribution Tax on equity mutual funds | A tax at the rate of 10 percent will be levied on dividend distributed by equity-oriented mutual funds.
NPS maturity withdrawal | The withdrawal of 60 percent from National Pension System (NPS) at the time maturity will now be tax-free. Earlier, withdrawal of 40 percent was tax-free and remaining 20 percent was taxable at the time of maturity.
Tax Deduction limit for senior citizen | Higher deduction limit under section 80D of the Income Tax Act for senior citizens. The limit has gone up from Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000. Thus, if parents are senior citizens, the tax-payer can claim an additional deduction of Rs 50,000 – taking the total deduction to Rs 75,000, which is higher than the previous limit of Rs 55,000.
Tax Deduction limit for specific disease senior citizen | The deduction available towards medical treatment of specified disease for senior citizens has been hiked to Rs 1 lakh. Earlier this was Rs 80,000 for senior citizens above 80 years of age and Rs 60,000 for senior citizen above the age of 60 but less than the age of 80.
