Everyone knows 80C. The filers who pay noticeably less tax are the ones who know what comes after it. Here are the levers, roughly in order of how many people can actually use them.
The big levers
- ✓Choose the right regime: the single biggest decision, often worth more than every deduction combined
- ✓NPS 80CCD(1B): Rs 50,000 beyond the 80C cap
- ✓Health insurance 80D: up to Rs 75,000 covering family and senior parents
- ✓HRA exemption if you live on rent, or 80GG up to Rs 60,000 without HRA
- ✓Home loan interest under 24(b): up to Rs 2 lakh
The overlooked ones
- ✓80G donations: 50% to 100% of eligible donations, keep receipts with the organisation's PAN
- ✓80TTA and 80TTB: savings interest up to Rs 10,000, or Rs 50,000 for seniors
- ✓80E: the entire interest on an education loan, no upper cap, for 8 years
- ✓80U and 80DD: substantial fixed deductions for disability, self or dependent
- ✓LTCG harvesting: use the Rs 1.25 lakh annual equity exemption every single year
The mindset
Good tax planning happens across the year, not in a March panic, and never means buying a bad product for a deduction. It also increasingly means doing the regime math honestly: for many salaried Indians, the new regime plus disciplined investing now beats a folder full of old regime receipts.
Run your own numbers in the Saathi.Tax calculator, then let the interview claim everything you are entitled to. Paying your fair share means not a rupee more either.
