India's New Tax Act
India’s new Income Tax Act goes live April 1, 2026 — it consolidates to a single ‘tax year’, changes ITR deadlines, raises Securities Transaction Tax and removes many longstanding deductions such as 80C (effective today). (newkerala.com) (businesstoday.in) It also tightens HRA claims, requiring detailed rent proofs and landlord details — a direct hit to property‑linked tax planning for salaried taxpayers and housing non‑profits. (financialexpress.com) (blog.saginfotech.com)
Form 124 replaces the old Form 12BB for HRA claims and requires taxpayers to disclose the landlord’s PAN and relationship when annual rent paid to any landlord exceeds ₹1,00,000. (patronaccounting.com)) The list of cities eligible for the higher 50% metro HRA calculation has been expanded from four to eight — adding Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Ahmedabad to Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai. (livemint.com)) The Finance Bill and accompanying rule changes have not simply “abolished” Section 80C — most 80C instruments have been renumbered and consolidated into Clause/Section 123 and Schedule XV, preserving familiar eligible instruments while reorganising how deductions appear in the statute. (indiafilings.com)) STT on equity derivatives has been raised with futures taxed at 0.05% (up from 0.02%) and options taxed at 0.15% on premium/exercised options (up from 0.10%/0.125%), increases the government says target speculative F&O activity. (cleartax.in)) The government has set new filing calendars: salaried/non‑audit individual ITRs remain due 31 July, non‑audit business ITRs (ITR‑3/4) move to 31 August, and audit cases continue to be due 31 October under the revised rules and updated ITR forms. (cleartax.in)) CBDT guidance clarifies the transition: returns for the financial year ending 31 March 2026 will continue to be governed by the old Act even if filed after 1 April 2026, so taxpayers will not need to file duplicate returns under both laws. (caclubindia.com)) The time window to file a revised return has been extended from nine months to twelve months (effectively to 31 March of the Tax Year) under Budget amendments, with the government signalling a small fee/penalty mechanism for late revisions. (taxguru.in))
