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All tax deductions are not worth claiming

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The tax season has kicked off. Yet again, taxpayers will be rushing to complete their formalities and more important, claim deductions. But there are many deductions or benefits the Income Tax ( I- T) Act offers that are not in line with the current expenses of individuals or in keeping with the pace of inflation.

As an income tax consultant puts it, "Some of the deductions are a joke." The tax rates for various income brackets aren't too high as compared to many other countries.

But the inflation and interest rates are low in the latter. So, while one pays a higher income tax, they are not paying high equated monthly instalments or food prices have not gone through the roof.

Most countries across Europe, including the United Kingdom, have the highest tax rate in the range of 45- 55 per cent and the gap between the income brackets is much wider compared to India. In the highest slab, Sweden has a tax rate of 56.6 per cent, Denmark 55 per cent, the Netherlands 52 per cent, Austria and Belgium 50 per cent, Ireland, Finland and Norway nearly 45 per cent, Japan 50 per cent, and Australia, China and Israel 45 per cent. The income threshold for the basic exemption and for the highest tax bracket in most other countries are quite high.

There are various expense- and investmentbased deductions in Indian I- T laws that have not been revised for a long time. Here's a look at some.

Medical expenses

Something as basic as the annual medical reimbursement has been kept at ₹ 15,000 for the last 15 years ( it was raised from ₹ 10,000 to ₹ 15,000 in April 1999). This should be revised to be on a par with medical inflation, which has been huge in the past years. For those battling health issues or having elders who need medical attention, ₹ 15,000 is a rather small amount to claim.

Some tax consultants say senior citizens should be given some relief for medical expenses as their income might not be much but health care expenses could be high. Also, senior citizens get negative returns when there is a limited income flow.

Preventive health check- ups

In 2012, then finance minister Pranab Mukherjee brought an additional deduction for preventive health checks. You can claim up to ₹ 5,000 for this under Section 80D. Unfortunately, this ₹ 5,000 deduction is a part of the ₹ 15,000 deduction you can claim for contribution towards premiums of a health insurance policy.

In effect, it eats into your deduction for the health insurance premium if you have a high cover and premium.

At the same time, ₹ 5,000 for health checks is small. Definitely not enough when looking to get your family a preventive health check. In most cases, this can cost you ₹ 9,000- 12,000.

Health insurance

The ₹ 15,000 deduction available for individuals for contribution towards premium of a health insurance policy for oneself could be good enough. But the deductions for contribution towards premium of a health insurance policy for elderly parent( s) might not be enough.

If you buy a policy for a retired parent, you will need an individual policy as an elderly person could have complicated health issues. A health insurance policy of ₹ 5 lakh for a retired individual can cost you between ₹ 20,000 and ₹ 36,000 annually. In case you contribute this most of the ₹ 1 lakh allotted under this section.

Hence, there is little left for you to claim for your children's tuition fee. The annual tuition fee in schools can easily be ₹ 50,000 and upwards.

if your employer pays you an allowance for children's education, you can claim ₹ 100 per child per month, for up to two children. And, ₹ 300 per month per child for up to two children for expenses towards their hostel accommodation.

When the tax deduction amounts are so small, you probably have no inclination left to claim deductions. Imagine paying around ₹ 50,000 a year towards your child's education, for which you get deductions of up to ₹ 1,200 in ayear ( for two children).

We suggest clients not take such an allowance, if possible, because it doesn't make sense to keep records of such meagre deductions.

Instead, take deductions under Section 80C. This way, you make up for the cost to at least some extent. For those who can't deny having received such allowances, we suggest they don't bother claiming.

Repayment of home loan principal

Can you really claim a ₹ 1- lakh deduction on your home loan principal repayment? Given that it is under Section 80C and amid all those other heads like EPF, child's education, insurance claims, etc, one will seldom be able to claim it.

The deduction for interest repayment up to ₹ 1.50 lakh is significant but might not work much in metro cities, where houses cost way more than the ₹ 15- 18 lakh of loan amounts (which would provide a ₹ 1.50- lakh benefit).

Someone who has a home loan of ₹ 50 lakh pays an equated monthly instalment ( EMI) of roughly ₹ 50,000. Of that, at least 80 per cent goes towards servicing the interest portion, which comes to ₹ 40,000 or ₹ 4.80 lakh annually.

The person gets tax benefit on only ₹ 1.50 lakh of that, unless it is a second property. You get unlimited tax benefit for repaying interest on asecond home loan.

Similarly, if you avail a loan for renovating your house, you can claim for the interest paid on this loan as a tax deduction, subject to a cap of ₹ 30,000 annually for a self- occupied property.

Renovation can actually cost way higher. Surana says the ₹ 2,000 rebate to every person with a total income of up to ₹ 5 lakh, introduced in the previous Budget under Section 87A, is also on the lower side and might not be worth the effort of claiming.

Too Many Deductions For Saving ₹ 1 Lakh ( Under Section 80C)

The limit allowed for claiming deductions under this section is low in the context of the number of instruments listed in the section. Initially, Section 80Cwas supposed to cover only investments

Instruments approved in Section 80C Tax treatment for interest income EPF Exempt PPF Exempt Life insurance premium Unit- linked insurance premium Exempt Equity- linked saving scheme ( ELSS) Exempt Home loan principle repayment National Pension System ( NPS, under Section 80CCC) Withdrawals are taxable Tax- saving fixed deposits Taxable at slab rate 5- year time deposit Taxable at slab rate National Saving Certificate ( NSC) Taxable at slab rate Senior Citizen Savings Scheme Exempt Stamp duty and registration charges for a housing property Children's tuition fee

 

 

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