FY 2026-27

Tax-saving checklist for salaried Indians

FY 2026-27 is 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. You file that income in AY 2027-28. The new regime is the default. Section 80C, Section 80D, and the extra ₹50,000 under Section 80CCD(1B) are old regime only. Employer NPS under Section 80CCD(2) works in both. The table has 13 dated rows. How CTC becomes take-home is on the salaried guide.

Official sources

Threshold limits (page labelled AY 2026-27). Section 80C, with 80CCC and 80CCD(1), stops at ₹1,50,000. Section 80CCD(1B) is another ₹50,000 outside that cap. Section 80CCD(2) is 14% of salary for a government employer and for income taxed under Section 115BAC(1A), and 10% for other employers. Section 80D is ₹25,000, or ₹50,000 if the person is a senior citizen, for self and family, and the same again for parents. Standard deduction is ₹50,000 in the normal regime and ₹75,000 under Section 115BAC.
Section 115BAC (1961 Act text as hosted). Chapter VI-A deductions are dropped, other than Section 80CCD(2), Section 80CCH(2), and Section 80JJAA.
Employee benefits (page labelled AY 2026-27). Standard deduction: ₹50,000, or ₹75,000 in the new regime. Employer PF, NPS, and superannuation above ₹7,50,000 is a taxable perquisite.
Limitation periods (department PDF). Section 211: 15%, 45%, 75%, and 100% by 15 June, 15 September, 15 December, and 15 March.
Form 16 and Form 16A. The employer issues Form 16 by 15 June of the next financial year. Rule 31 has the same date.
Form 26AS and the Annual Information Statement.
How to link Aadhaar on the e-filing portal. The portal itself is incometax.gov.in.
Income-tax Act, 2025 (CBDT hub), for the Act text that applies when you file.

Dates through the year

The 13 rows run in date order. Advance tax is cumulative: 15% by 15 June 2026, 45% by 15 September, 75% by 15 December, and 100% by 15 March 2027. Those percentages are Section 211. Section 208 is the liability to pay advance tax. The October AIS check is before the December instalment. Form 16 follows on 15 June 2027. If PAN is still not linked to Aadhaar, that due date was 30 June 2023. The same four advance-tax dates are on the tax calendar.

Month	Action Item	Section	Deadline
Apr-May	Choose regime (Old vs New) via employer declaration	115BAC	Before first payroll
Apr-May	Submit investment proof for 80C/80D/NPS to employer	80C, 80D, 80CCD	Employer deadline (usually Jun)
15 Jun	1st advance tax instalment (at least 15% of estimated tax)	211	15 June 2026
Jul-Aug	Verify TDS deducted matches offer letter terms	192	Monthly
15 Sep	2nd advance tax instalment (at least 45% of estimated tax)	211	15 September 2026
Oct-Nov	Review Form 26AS / AIS for TDS credit accuracy	-	Before 15 December 2026
15 Dec	3rd advance tax instalment (at least 75% of estimated tax)	211	15 December 2026
Jan-Feb	Link PAN-Aadhaar if not already linked	-	Due date was 30 June 2023
15 Mar	4th advance tax instalment (at least 100% of estimated tax)	211	15 March 2027
31 Mar	Use the 80C limit (₹1.5 lakh)	80C	31 March 2027
31 Mar	Pay remaining health insurance premium for 80D	80D	31 March 2027
15 Jun 2027	Receive Form 16 from employer	203	By 15 June 2027
Jul (FY+1)	Reconcile Form 16 with 26AS/AIS and file ITR	139(1)	31 July 2027

Section 80C

Section 80C is a ₹1.5 lakh deduction, and only in the old regime. On the threshold table, Section 80CCC and Section 80CCD(1) share that same ₹1,50,000. The new regime does not allow it. These ten payments can sit in the cap.

Instrument	Lock-in	Returns	Best For
PPF	15 years	~7.1% tax-free	Long-term savings, sovereign guarantee
ELSS	3 years	Market-linked	Equity exposure, shortest lock-in in 80C
EPF (employee + VPF)	Until retirement	~8.25%	Forced savings, employer match
LIC Premium	Policy term	Low (2-3%)	Only if already paying; avoid new ULIPs for 80C
NSC	5 years	~7.7%	Fixed income, government-backed
5-Year FD	5 years	~7-7.5%	Bank FD with tax-saving lock-in
SSY (Sukanya Samriddhi)	21 years	~8.2%	Girl child, long-term wealth building
SCSS (Senior Citizen)	5 years	~8.2%	Age 60+, quarterly payout
Tuition Fees	None	N/A	Max 2 children, full-time education only
ULIP	5 years	Market-linked	ELSS has the shorter lock-in. Keep a ULIP only if the policy already exists.

Order inside the ₹1.5 lakh

Employee EPF comes first, and the employer also contributes. Then PPF (government-backed, and the return in the table is tax-free). Then ELSS if you want equity. The ₹1.5 lakh cap is shared. Anything you do not use by 31 March 2027 does not carry forward.

Section 80D health insurance

Section 80D is a deduction for health insurance premiums you pay for yourself, your family, and your parents. It sits outside Section 80C. It is old regime only. The preventive check-up of ₹5,000 sits inside the ₹25,000 or ₹50,000 limit.

Category	Limit	Notes
Self + Family (under 60)	₹25,000	Includes preventive health check-up
Self + Family (60 or older)	₹50,000	Higher limit for senior citizens
Parents (under 60)	₹25,000	Separate from self, so it adds to the deduction
Parents (60 or older)	₹50,000	Higher limit for senior citizen parents
Preventive Health Check-up	₹5,000	Within the ₹25,000 or ₹50,000 limit, not additional

Largest 80D total on this table: ₹25,000 (you are under 60) + ₹50,000 (parents are 60 or older) = ₹75,000 a year. If you are also 60 or older: ₹50,000 + ₹50,000 = ₹1,00,000 a year.

Employer cover is not your 80D

A group policy the employer pays does not count. Only a premium you pay yourself goes into Section 80D. If you want this deduction, you need a policy in your own name, or your parents' policy if you pay that premium.

Home loan

For a house you live in, Section 24(b), principal under Section 80C, Section 80EE, and Section 80EEA are old regime only. A loan you take in FY 2026-27 misses both extra-interest windows below. The Section 24(b) page and the house property guide go further on joint loans and pre-construction interest.

home Section 24(b): interest

Interest on a self-occupied house: up to ₹2,00,000 a year. For a let-out house: no upper limit on this page, but the loss you can set off is capped at ₹2 lakh. In the new regime you cannot set a house-property loss off against salary. Interest on a let-out house can still be deducted against that house's rent.

Construction must finish within 5 years from the end of the financial year in which you borrowed. If it does not, the cap on this page drops to ₹30,000.

savings Section 80C: principal

Principal repayment sits inside the ₹1.5 lakh Section 80C cap. Stamp duty and registration paid in the year count in that same cap.

If you sell within 5 years of possession, the principal deduction is reversed.

add_home Section 80EE: extra interest

An extra ₹50,000 of interest for a first-time buyer. The loan had to be sanctioned in FY 2016-17. Loan up to ₹35 lakh. Property value up to ₹50 lakh.

add_home Section 80EEA: affordable housing

An extra ₹1,50,000 of interest. The loan had to be sanctioned between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2022. Stamp duty value up to ₹45 lakh. First-time buyer.

You cannot claim Section 80EE and Section 80EEA on the same loan. Use the one you qualify for.

Add only the sections you actually have

With Section 80EE: ₹2,00,000 + ₹1,50,000 + ₹50,000 = ₹4,00,000. Thirty percent of ₹4,00,000 is ₹1,20,000, before cess. With Section 80EEA instead: ₹2,00,000 + ₹1,50,000 + ₹1,50,000 = ₹5,00,000, and 30% of that is ₹1,50,000. A loan sanctioned now gets neither extra section, so the two amounts left on this page are the ₹2,00,000 interest cap and principal inside ₹1.5 lakh.

NPS

Your own extra NPS payment and your employer's NPS payment are different sections. Your own payment under Section 80CCD(1) already sits inside the ₹1.5 lakh Section 80C cap. The two cards are the amounts outside that.

person 80CCD(1B): your extra ₹50,000

₹50,000

Outside the ₹1.5 lakh Section 80C cap. Old regime only. Section 115BAC does not keep it.

business 80CCD(2): employer contribution

14%

Of salary. Central or state government: 14% in both regimes. Private employer: 14% if the income is taxed under Section 115BAC(1A), and 10% otherwise. Allowed in both regimes.

The deduction stops at that percentage of salary. Employer PF, NPS, and superannuation together are a taxable perquisite above ₹7.5 lakh.

What you can add up

In the old regime, ₹1.5 lakh under Section 80C plus ₹50,000 under Section 80CCD(1B) is ₹2 lakh from your own payments. Employer NPS under Section 80CCD(2) is on top of that, and it is the piece that also works in the new regime. Ask the employer to put NPS in the CTC if it is not there.

Employer NPS under Section 80CCD(2)

Form 16 and AIS

Form 16 is the TDS certificate from your employer. The department page says you should have it by 15 June 2027. AIS is the tax department's list of transactions on your PAN. Compare Form 16 with Form 26AS and the AIS before you file. A gap is a common reason a return is picked for a check. Which form to file is on the ITR guide.

Form 16

✓ Salary lines against the offer. CTC will not equal the gross-salary line. Employer PF and gratuity are in CTC and are not cash salary.
✓ TDS deducted matches monthly payslips
✓ HRA exemption claimed matches rent receipts. The metro rule is on the HRA page.
✓ 80C and 80D deductions match the proofs you gave the employer
✓ Standard deduction: ₹75,000 in the new regime, ₹50,000 in the old regime

AIS

✓ Salary credits agree with Form 26AS
✓ Bank interest, dividends, and capital gains are reported
✓ TDS credits for salary, bank, and broker
✓ High-value transactions flagged correctly
✗ Any income in AIS that is not in the return

A ₹3 lakh gap is visible

If AIS shows income of ₹15 lakh and the return declares ₹12 lakh, the ₹3 lakh difference is already on the file. Reconcile AIS before you file. If a line in AIS is wrong, raise a correction on the e-filing portal.

PAN-Aadhaar

PAN-Aadhaar linking is mandatory if you had to get Aadhaar. The general due date was 30 June 2023. It was not 31 March 2027. An unlinked PAN stays inoperative until you link it. TDS then follows Section 206AA: the highest of the prescribed rate, the rate in force, or 20%. That higher rate applies where the normal rate is below 20%. It is not a flat 20% on every payment.

If PAN is inoperative

✗ PAN becomes inoperative
✗ Section 206AA raises TDS where the normal rate is below 20%
✗ e-filing may refuse the return until PAN is operative
✗ Refunds are not issued while PAN is inoperative
✗ Transactions that need a working PAN, such as property and mutual funds, can be blocked

How to link

1. Open the e-filing portal
2. Go to Profile, then Aadhaar linking
3. Enter PAN and Aadhaar
4. Pay the ₹1,000 fee if you are linking after the deadline
5. Check the status after 48 hours

Check the status on the e-filing portal. The department's steps are on How to link Aadhaar. If the form asks for the Section 234H fee, it is ₹1,000. What an inoperative PAN blocks is on the PAN-Aadhaar page.

Updated return

Section 139(8A) lets you file an updated return within 24 months from the end of the assessment year if you left income out. You cannot use it to report a lower income. For FY 2026-27 the tax calendar puts the end of that window at 31 March 2030. The extra tax on that page is 25% of the additional tax in the first 12 months and 50% in the next 12 months.

An updated return cannot lower the income

It is for income you did not report. You cannot use it to reduce income, claim a deduction you forgot, or switch regime. If the return you already filed shows more income than you had, file a revised return under Section 139(5) by 31 December of the assessment year. For this year that is 31 December 2027, unless a CBDT circular moves the date.

Updated return can add

✓ Income from a source you forgot to report
✓ Interest from a bank account you left out
✓ Capital gains from a transaction you missed
✓ Rent you did not declare

Updated return cannot

✗ Reduce income you already declared
✗ Switch between the old and new regime
✗ Claim a deduction you forgot in the original return
✗ Correct income you over-reported

The fee bands and the form chart are on the ITR guide. Return forms are on the department's ITR page.

Run both regimes

The income tax calculator compares tax and take-home under the old and new regimes.

Income tax calculator