Showing posts with label Income Tax. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Income Tax. Show all posts

All you wanted to know about Mutual fund ELSS

   There are so many tax saving investment options; how Mutual fund ELSS Schemes stand out from all other options?

   A Mutual Fund ELSS is similar to diversified equity funds. That means the fund manager can invest in shares of various companies across various industries. The difference is ELSS has got the added tax benefit, something a diversified equity fund does not offer.

   ELSS is part of the Section 80C instruments which are cumulatively eligible for a deduction from income up to Rs.1 Lakh. This gives the tax payers benefits from 10 per cent to 30 per cent (excluding the educational cess) based on their current tax slab.

   The other tax saving investments like NSC, PPF will give only 8% return p.a whereas the Mutual Fund ELSS has got the potential to deliver more than 12% return p.a. Also the lock-in period in Mutual Fund ELSS is 3 years and with NSC it is 6 yrs lock-in and with PPF it is 15 years. Among the various tax saving investment option, Mutual fund ELSS has got the least lock-in period.

   Ulips are also one of the tax saving investment options. But now everyone has realized that Ulips has got heavy front loaded charges. Moreover smart investors want to separate their insurance from their investments. They no longer see insurance as an investment; they see insurance as a protection plan. So the smart investors go only for pure term insurance and reject ulips.

  This is how Mutual Fund ELSS stands out of the crowd.

   Before deciding to go for Mutual fund ELSS, here are some points to ponder over. First check your overall portfolio. Does it need more equity exposure? If yes then you can go for ELSS; if no then you can go for PPF or NSC.

   Second thing is to keep in mind, the equity investments are for long term, say 5 years or more. Though the lock-in period in ELSS is 3 years it is better to invest with a time horizon of 5 yrs or more.

   Also investors need to keep in mind, SIP is the best form of investing in mutual funds and ELSS is not an exception. So doing an SIP in ELSS is a good strategy to be followed.

   The poor performing ELSS has given around 10% annualized return in the last 5 years whereas the best performing ELSS has delivered around 25% annualized return in the last 5 years. So investors need to be careful in choosing the right ELSS scheme. Past performance, risk adjusted return, consistency are a few parameters to be evaluated in selecting a best performing ELSS scheme. Investors also can approach financial advisors for selecting the right scheme.

   There are two groups of ELSS investors. Majority of investors belong to the first group. They will wake up late to these tax saving investments. For salaried individuals, it is typical that they will be informed by their accounts department somewhere around end of January to provide proof of tax saving investment immediately or else extra tax will be deducted from their February salary. At the neck of the moment, the choice ends up being guided by convenience alone. They tend to think about tax first and investments later. As long as something saves tax, its real benefits and features as an investment are paid less attention to. That means the investments will be chosen more for convenience than for suitability.

   There is another group of investors. Though this group is a very small group, it is a very smart group. They will not rush for tax saving scheme at the last minute. They will plan in advance. That means they will have more time to choose the right product. They will save tax as well as choose a good investment option. They will also check whether this particular tax saving scheme will suit their overall portfolio or not; will this tax saving investment is going to fit into their comprehensive financial plan. That means they will consciously choose an investment which saves tax as well as helps them in achieving their financial goals like children’s higher education, buying a house, retirement plans.

   So…now just check up which group you are in.

The author is Ramalingam K, an MBA (Finance) and Certified Financial Planner. He is the Founder and Director of Holistic Investment Planners (www.holisticinvestment.in) a firm that offers Financial Planning and Wealth Management. He can be reached at ramalingam@holisticinvestment.in.

Eight simple way to plan your Tax

   Eight Simple Ways to Plan your Taxes. You have got only a few more months to complete this financial year. Very soon you will get a call from your company to submit the proofs for tax saving investments. So why don’t you spend some time on organising your tax plan?

   1) Proper Allocation of Annual compensation

   Restructuring your salary with some additional components can reduce your tax liability. This restructuring doesn’t require any additional cash outflow. The following components can be efficiently used to reduce your income tax liability.

    Transport allowance to the extend of Rs.800 is exempt

    Medical expenses which are reimbursed by the employer are exempt to the tune of Rs.15000

    Food coupons like sodexo or ticket restaurant are exempt from tax up to Rs.5000

    Individuals who are all living in a rented accommodation can include House Rent Allowance ( HRA ) as a part of their salary

    Leave Travel Allowance (LTA) can be part of your salary as this can be claimed twice in a block of 4 years.

2) Effective Utilization of Tax Exemption

   As far as possible utilize the maximum exemptions available under section 80 C, 80 CCF and 80 D. The maximum exemption available under section 80 C is Rs. 100000.

   Under this section Rs.100000 investment or contribution can be made in PPF, NSC, Life insurance premium, 5 year FD with banks and Post offices, Mutual Fund ELSS, Principal Repayment of housing loan, and the tuition fees paid for children’s education.

   Under Section 80 CCF, you can invest up to Rs.20000 in infrastructure bonds.

   Under Sec 80 D, the premium paid towards the mediclaim policies are exempt. The maximum limit of exemption is Rs.15000 and for senior citizens the limit is Rs.20000 and for covering senior citizen parents there is an additional exemption to the extend of Rs.15000.

3) Properly Structure your Housing Loan

   The Principal repayment of a housing loan is eligible for a deduction up to Rs.100000 u/s 80C. The interest paid on a housing loan is eligible for a deduction up to Rs.150000 u/s 24B. If the housing loan is for a sizeable amount, then it is possible that the principal repayment and interest may exceed the specified tax exemption limit. To utilise the maximum tax benefit, an individual can consider going for a joint home loan with his/her spouse or parent or sibling. This will make sure that both the co-owners can claim tax deductions in the proportion of their holding in the loan.

4) Tax Plan in Sync with Overall Financial Plan

   You should not do your tax plan in isolation. You need to do it in sync with your overall financial plan. So a tax plan is not only to just save taxes and also it should assist you in achieving your other financial goals like children’s higher education, buying a home or retirement.

5) Avoid Last Minute Rush

   In fact the right time to do the tax plan is the beginning of the financial year. If you postpone your tax planning even now and do it in the last minute, then you will not be able to choose the right investment. In the last minute rush, you will be forced to choose a scheme which gives the proof immediately. Is the investment sound and profitable? Is there any other better options? You will not be able to choose the best scheme and you may settle with a mediocre one.

6) Invest Some Quality Time

  Before investing your money, you need to invest your time. You need to take some quality time to understand the various tax saving options and compare their benefits and limitations.

7) Check for Future Commitments

   Some tax saving options like NSC or ELSS need only onetime investment. Some other tax saving options like PPF, Ulips need periodical investments year after year. You need to be careful in choosing a tax saving scheme where you need to commit for periodical future payments. You need to check on a few things like; do you need such a future commitment? Will you be able to meet the future commitments at ease? The law may change and you may not get any tax exemption for your future payments. Would you consider the scheme irrespective of tax benefit for the future payments?

8) Changed Your Job; Redo your Tax Plan

   Did you switch your job in the middle of the financial year? Then you need to redo your tax plan with consolidating the income from both the companies. It is advisable to inform the new company about the income during the particular financial year from the old company. So that your new company will deduct the right amount of TDS. Otherwise you may need to pay extra tax at the end of the financial year.

   Whenever you change your job, you need to have a sitting with your financial planner or tax advisor. So that the required changes in your tax plan can be done proactively.

   With proper tax planning you can reduce your tax liability; save more; invest better and become wealthier.

The author is Ramalingam K, an MBA (Finance) and Certified Financial Planner. He is the Founder and Director of Holistic Investment Planners (http://www.holisticinvestment.in/mutualfund-sip ) a firm that offers Financial Planning and Wealth Management. He can be reached at ramalingam@holisticinvestment.in.

Exemption Limit for Individual Taxpayers Raised to Rs. 2 Lakh.

Exemption Limit for Individual Taxpayers Raised to Rs. 2 Lakh
Upper Limit of 20 Per Cent Tax Slab Raised to Rs. 10 Lakh
Deduction up to Rs. 10,000 Proposed for Savings Bank Interest
Senior Citizens not Having Income from Business Exempted from Payment of Advance Tax

   The exemption limit for the general category of individual taxpayers has been enhanced to Rs. 2,00,000 from Rs. 1,80,000 in the General Budget 2012-13, presented by the Union Finance Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee in the LokSabha here today. This measure will provide tax relief uptoRs. 2,000 to every taxpayer in this category.
 
The Finance Minister, Shri Mukherjee introduced the DTC (Direct Taxes Code) rates for personal income tax, marking progress in the direction of movement towards DTC and GST (Goods and Services Tax).
 
            It has also been proposed to raise the upper limit of 20 per cent tax slab from Rs. 8 lakh to Rs. 10 lakh. The proposed personal income tax slabs are:

Income uptoRs. 2 lakh NIL
Income above Rs. 2 lakh and uptoRs. 5 lakh 10 per cent
Income above Rs. 5 lakh and upto Rs.10 lakh 20 per cent
Income above Rs. 10 lakh 30 per cent

   In another relief to the individual taxpayers, a deduction of uptoRs. 10,000 has been proposed for interest from savings bank accounts. This would help a large number of small taxpayers with salary incomes uptoRs. 5 lakh and interest from savings bank accounts uptoRs. 10,000 as they would not be required to file income tax returns.
 
            It has also been proposed to allow deduction of Rs. 5,000 for preventive health check up.
 
            For senior citizens not having income from business, it has been proposed to exempt them from payment of advance tax.

Source: PIB

CBDT exempts return-filing for salaried having total income upto Rs 5 lakh.

   CBDT exempts return-filing for salaried having total income upto Rs 5 lakh
NOTIFICATION NO 9/2012, Dated: February 17, 2012

   In exercise of the power conferred by sub-section (IC) of section 139 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961), the Central Government hereby exempts the following class of persons, subject to the conditions specified hereinafter, from the requirement of furnishing a return of income under sub-section (1) of section 139 for the assessment year 2012-13, namely:-

   1. Class of persons:- An Individual whose total income for the relevant assessment year does not exceed five lakh rupees and consists of only income chargeable to income-tax under the following head;-