Salary Tax Planner: Old vs New Regime Calculator

Usually the new regime. With no deductions, the tax for FY 2026-27 is:

• New regime: ₹97,500
• Old regime: ₹2,57,400
• Break-even: the old regime wins only with more than ₹5.44 lakh of deductions and exemptions on top of the standard deduction

80C (₹1.5 lakh), 80D (₹25,000), NPS (₹50,000), ₹2 lakh of home-loan interest and ₹2 lakh of HRA together bring the old regime down to ₹80,600.

The deductions and exemptions (beyond the standard deduction) the old regime needs to match the new one:

• ₹10 lakh salary: ₹4.5 lakh
• ₹15 lakh: ₹5.44 lakh
• ₹20 lakh: ₹7.08 lakh
• ₹25 lakh and above: about ₹8 lakh

Up to a ₹12.75 lakh salary the new regime is tax-free, so the old regime can at best tie.

Gross salary is your total salary for the year before any tax-free allowance or deduction is taken off: basic pay, DA, HRA, special allowance, LTA, bonus, other allowances and taxable perks. Your Form 16 from your employer shows it. In the Old and New Regime calculators you enter the yearly total; the planner asks for each part separately and adds them up.

CTC is what your employer spends on you, so it also includes the employer's PF share, gratuity provision and group insurance, which aren't part of your gross salary. Take-home pay is what reaches your bank after your own PF, professional tax and TDS are deducted. Tax starts from gross salary, not from either of those. Employer NPS is the exception: it's included in gross salary and then deducted again.

Old regime: gross salary, minus tax-free allowances (HRA, LTA, children's allowances), minus the ₹50,000 standard deduction and professional tax, plus other income such as interest or rent, minus deductions like 80C, 80D and home-loan interest. New regime: gross salary, minus the ₹75,000 standard deduction and employer NPS, plus other income. In both, the tax-free part of gratuity and leave encashment comes off too. Slab rates then apply to what's left: your taxable income.

It depends on how much you can claim. The new regime has lower rates and no tax up to ₹12.75 lakh of salary, while the old regime has higher rates but lets you subtract HRA, 80C, 80D, home-loan interest and more. If your exemptions and deductions together are small, the new regime wins; if they are large, the old one can. The planner computes both for your exact numbers and shows the break-even amount.

Yes. If you only have salary (and no business income) you can choose the regime afresh every year when you file your return, regardless of what you told your employer for TDS. People with business or profession income can switch back to the old regime only once.

The new regime is the default. Your employer will deduct TDS under it. If the old regime turns out to be better, you can still choose it while filing your return and claim the extra refund, but you'll have paid more tax during the year.

The new regime's lower rates and higher rebate are worth a lot. At ₹18 lakh, for example, someone with a typical HRA exemption and full 80C may still need over ₹2 lakh more in deductions before the old regime catches up. The break-even meter shows the exact gap for you.

The Income-tax Act, 2025 replaced the 1961 Act, so section numbers changed (80C is now section 123, 80D is 126, the rebate is 156). Slab rates did not change. The new Rules raised several limits: HRA's 50% rate now covers Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad too, children education and hostel allowances went up sharply, and meal vouchers rose to ₹200 a meal.

Not yet. Gains from shares and mutual funds are taxed at special rates (and the rebate doesn't apply to some of them), so they need separate treatment. Enter only salary, interest and other slab-rate income here; a capital gains tool is planned.

No. Every calculation runs in your browser. Your inputs are kept only in your own browser and in the page link, so you can come back or share the link; nothing is sent to our servers.

Your employer deducts TDS on a projection: the salary it expects to pay you and the proofs you submitted. A bonus, a job change, investments you never declared or interest income can all change the final figure. What counts is the tax worked out in your return: extra TDS comes back as a refund, and any shortfall is paid as self-assessment tax before you file.

Add the salary from both employers and enter the total. You get the standard deduction and each deduction limit only once for the year. Each employer may have given you the 0% slab and the rebate in its own TDS, so tax is often short: give your new employer your earlier salary details (Form 12B) or pay the balance before filing.

The law doesn't insist on a rent agreement, and employers usually accept rent receipts. Cash rent is allowed but is weak proof if the tax department asks; paying by bank transfer and keeping a signed agreement is the safe way. If your rent is over ₹1 lakh a year, you also need the landlord's PAN.

Yes, if you both get HRA. Each of you claims on the share of rent you actually pay, ideally from your own bank account and shown on the receipts. Together you can’t claim more than the rent paid, so don’t both claim the full amount.

Only the months you paid rent count. The three limits are applied to those months, and HRA received in the other months is fully taxable. If your rent or salary changed during the year, the exemption is worked out separately for each period and added up.

Yes, in the old regime, through 80GG (section 134 of the 2025 Act): the least of ₹5,000 a month, 25% of your adjusted total income, and rent minus 10% of that income. You can't claim it if you, your spouse or minor child own a home in the city where you live and work.

Twice in a block of four calendar years; the current block is 2026 to 2029. If you used only one trip in the last block, one can be carried into the first year of the next. The trip must be within India, and you must actually travel.

Only the fare, by the shortest route: economy air fare of the national carrier, or AC first-class rail fare where there is a train. Hotels, food, cabs and sightseeing don't count. It covers you, your spouse, children and dependent parents or siblings. In the new regime LTA is fully taxable.

From FY 2026-27, yes: the Income-tax Rules 2026 treat meal vouchers of up to ₹200 per meal as a tax-free perquisite in both regimes. For FY 2025-26 the ₹50 per meal limit applied, and only in the old regime.

No. Only meals given through non-transferable vouchers or meal cards usable at eating places get the ₹200-a-meal limit. A food or meal allowance paid in cash with your salary is fully taxable, and any voucher value above the limit is taxed as a perquisite.

From FY 2026-27, up to ₹3,000 a month per child for education and ₹9,000 a month per child for hostel, for at most two children (it was ₹100 and ₹300 before). The rest is taxable. These exemptions apply only in the old regime.

Yes. The allowance is an exemption from your salary, while tuition fees you pay are an 80C deduction. Both can be claimed for the same two children, as long as the fees are full-time tuition fees to a school, college or university in India.

No. Gratuity paid to the nominee or legal heirs after the employee's death isn't taxed in their hands. The limits in this calculator apply to gratuity an employee receives on retirement or resignation.

The taxable part is added to that year’s salary. Because it was earned over many years, you can claim relief for salary bunched into one year (what used to be section 89 relief) by filing the relief form on the e-filing portal before your return. It recomputes the tax as if the amount had been spread over earlier years.

Yes, fully, as part of that year’s salary, in both regimes. The exemption applies only to leave encashed when you leave the job, on retirement or resignation.

Your basic pay, plus DA if it counts for retirement benefits, plus any commission fixed as a percentage of turnover, averaged over the 10 months just before you leave. Allowances like HRA and special allowance are left out, which is why the tax-free amount is often lower than people expect.

No. It's a flat amount for salary and pension income: ₹75,000 in the new regime and ₹50,000 in the old. It is applied automatically, whatever you actually spent, and only once a year even if you had two employers.

Yes. A pension from your former employer is taxed as salary, so it gets the same standard deduction. Family pension received after a family member's death is different: it gets a deduction of one-third, up to ₹25,000 in the new regime or ₹15,000 in the old.

It's a tax some states charge on employment, deducted from your salary every month. The Constitution caps it at ₹2,500 a year. You can subtract what you paid from your salary only in the old regime. Some states, such as Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, don't charge it, so leave it at 0 there.

Your own EPF contribution (usually 12% of basic + DA) and any voluntary PF do count, and they often use up a large part of the ₹1.5 lakh on their own. Your employer's EPF share doesn't count. Check your payslip before buying extra tax-saving products.

Only the tuition fee part, for full-time education in India, for up to two children per parent. Development fees, transport, hostel, uniforms and donations don’t count. Both parents can claim for their own two children if each pays the fees.

Yes, together with stamp duty and registration in the year you pay them, but only once construction is complete and you have possession. If you sell the house within 5 years of the end of the year you got possession, the deductions already claimed are added back to your income.

Not necessarily. You lose only the tax deduction; PPF interest stays tax-free and ELSS is still an equity fund. Decide on them as investments. Life insurance premiums and tuition fees just stop saving tax.

No. 80CCD(1B) (section 124 of the 2025 Act) is over and above 80C, so the two together allow up to ₹2 lakh. Your own NPS contribution beyond ₹50,000 can still count under 80C if room is left there. Only Tier I contributions qualify, and only in the old regime.

At the 30% slab it saves ₹15,600 a year including cess, at 20% ₹10,400, and at 5% only ₹2,600. The money is locked in until 60, when 60% can be taken tax-free and the rest buys a taxable annuity. Weigh the saving against that lock-in.

Yes. Your employer's contribution to your NPS account is deductible in both regimes. In the new regime the limit is 14% of basic + DA for everyone; in the old regime it is 10% for private employers and 14% for government employers. Your own NPS contributions are deductible only in the old regime.

Yes. Besides the 14% (or 10%) limit, your employer's contributions to EPF, NPS and superannuation together are tax-free only up to ₹7.5 lakh a year. Anything above is taxed as a perquisite, along with the returns earned on it.

In the new regime it's one of the few deductions left: up to 14% of basic + DA comes off your taxable salary. The money is locked until 60, so it suits long-term savings rather than money you'll need soon. Not every employer offers it, so ask HR.

Up to ₹25,000 for yourself, your spouse and children (₹50,000 if you are 60 or older), plus up to ₹25,000 for your parents (₹50,000 if either is 60 or older). The most is ₹1 lakh. Preventive check-ups of up to ₹5,000 fit inside these limits, not on top of them. Old regime only.

Yes. For a senior citizen with no health cover, medical expenses you pay (other than in cash) count in place of the premium, within the same ₹50,000 limit. Enter them in the parents' amount and keep the bills.

Premiums paid in cash don't qualify; only check-ups may be paid in cash. If you pay for a multi-year policy upfront, you claim it in equal parts over the years it covers, each within that year's limit. Group cover your employer pays for doesn't count, but a top-up deducted from your salary does.

No. Interest paid before construction finishes is claimed in five equal parts, starting in the year it's completed, within the ₹2 lakh self-occupied limit. If construction isn't finished within 5 years of the end of the year you took the loan, the limit drops to ₹30,000.

Each person who is both a co-owner and a co-borrower, and pays their share of the EMI, can claim up to ₹2 lakh of interest and up to ₹1.5 lakh of principal under 80C separately. Claims follow the share each of you actually pays, so together you can’t claim more than the interest paid.

Yes, up to two homes can be treated as self-occupied, but the ₹2 lakh interest limit is for both together, not each. A third home is treated as let out, so a notional rent is taxed even if it is empty.

Interest on a home you live in isn't deductible in the new regime, and neither is the principal under 80C. If a large home loan is your main deduction, compare both regimes: interest plus principal is often what makes the old regime cheaper.

Yes, in the old regime, if your loan qualifies. 80EE (section 130 of the 2025 Act) adds up to ₹50,000 for a loan of ₹35 lakh or less, sanctioned between 1 April 2016 and 31 March 2017, on a house worth ₹50 lakh or less. 80EEA (section 131) adds up to ₹1.5 lakh for a loan sanctioned between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2022, on a house with a stamp duty value of ₹45 lakh or less. For both, you must not have owned another house on the sanction date, and the loan must come from a bank or housing finance company to buy (not build) the house. Only interest above the ₹2 lakh self-occupied limit counts, and you can claim it every year until the loan is repaid. Neither is available in the new regime.

No. 80EEA covers only loans sanctioned between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2022, and 80EE only those sanctioned in FY 2016-17. A newer loan gets just the regular ₹2 lakh interest deduction in the old regime.

Start with the rent, subtract the municipal tax you paid, then a flat 30% for repairs, then the full home-loan interest (no ₹2 lakh cap for a let-out house). What remains is added to your income at slab rates, in both regimes.

In the old regime, up to ₹2 lakh of the loss comes off your salary and other income; the rest carries forward for 8 years, but only against future house-property income. In the new regime the loss can't reduce other income and can't be carried forward, so it simply lapses.

Yes. It's a flat 30% of the rent after municipal tax, with no bills needed. The flip side is that actual repair, maintenance or society charges can't be deducted separately.

Interest on a loan for higher education for yourself, your spouse, your children, or a student you are the legal guardian of, taken from a bank or approved institution. There's no upper limit, but only for 8 years starting with the year you begin repaying. Old regime only.

No. Only the interest is deductible. Unlike a home loan, the principal doesn't count under 80C. A loan from a relative or a friend doesn't qualify either.

Funds like the PM National Relief Fund, PM CARES and the National Defence Fund are deductible in full. Most registered charities get 50%, and that 50% is further limited to 10% of your adjusted total income. The receipt says which one applies.

Cash donations above ₹2,000 aren't deductible; pay by bank transfer, UPI or cheque. The charity reports your donation to the tax department and gives you a certificate (Form 10BE), and your claim is matched against it. Donations aren't deductible in the new regime.

80U is for your own disability; 80DD is for a dependent family member with a disability whom you support. Both are fixed amounts, whatever you spent: ₹75,000, or ₹1.25 lakh for a severe disability (80% or more). You need a certificate from a medical authority. Old regime only.

Yes, if you have a disability yourself and also support a dependent with a disability. But the same person can't be counted twice: if your dependent claims 80U on their own income, you can't claim 80DD for them.

Partly, in the old regime. Below 60, 80TTA takes off up to ₹10,000 of savings-account interest, but not FD or RD interest. At 60 and above, 80TTB takes off up to ₹50,000 of all bank and post-office deposit interest, FDs included. Both are now section 153. The new regime allows neither.

Yes. FD interest is added to your income and taxed at your slab rate, every year as it accrues, even if you haven't received it yet. The bank's 10% TDS is only an advance: claim it as a credit, and pay the rest if you're in a higher slab.

Anything taxed at your slab rate that isn’t salary: FD and RD interest, freelance or consulting fees, family pension, or interest on an income-tax refund. Leave out tax-free income such as PPF interest, and enter share and mutual-fund gains in the capital gains section instead.