Finance Buddy

  Tax saving options 2023:  Mutual Fund and stock market investors have big expectations from Union Budget 2023. As the current year is coming to an end, let’s have a look at some tax-saving options available for mutual fund and share market investors and what they can expect from the Budget 2023. What to expect from Budget 2023? Experts suggest that the government can take several steps for the betterment of the mutual fund industry and investors and to deepen the equity market via mutual funds. For instance, Bangar says there are specific schemes for income tax deduction purposes such as ELSS. “Instead of this, we can make it very simple. It would be better and simple to make all equity-based mutual fund investments eligible for a tax deduction. Also, there should not be any lock-in restriction.” Similarly, the Budget should include provisions to create an environment in which ULIPs and Mutual Fund schemes can compete on an equal footing. For this, the tax treatment of capit...

  Leave Travel Allowance/Concession is a tax-free component of salary given to the employees so that their travelling cost is taken care of. Here’s how you can claim this amount in your income tax returns Leave Travel Allowance/Concession (LTA/LTC) is given as part of the salary component by one’s employer to reimburse the actual cost of travel incurred by the employee on travel journeys undertaken by him/her and family during leave. This monetary assistance allows an employee to take privilege or earned leave and go on vacation with family members. Mihir Tanna, associate director, SK Patodia and Associates, a Mumbai-based CA firm, says that the tax benefit of exemption can be availed in respect of two journeys in specified blocks of four calendar years (current block is calendar year 2022-2025). If the bills are not submitted as soon as the travel is done, tax will be deducted on the said portion. The current LTA/LTC block is already running (2022-2025), so if you have been accumu...

You need to pay advance tax if your total tax liability for the respective assessment year is more than Rs 10,000. But it needs to be paid in four quarterly instalments. Should you miss paying one instalment, you will have to pay a penalty along with the due tax on your next instalment December 15 was the deadline for payment of 75 per cent of the total Advance Tax for the financial year 2022-23. Advance tax is merely income tax paid in advance (as per specified instalments) instead of lump sum payment at the year end. The liability to pay advance tax arises if one has a yearly tax liability of more than Rs 10,000. Advance tax is required to be paid in four quarterly instalments, and in specified percentage. But now that the deadline for submitting advance tax is over, one will also have to pay interest under Section 234C of the Income -tax Act, 1961. It specifies that the taxpayer, who is in default, is liable to pay interest at 1 per cent per month or part of the month for the pe...