For returns being filed in 2026 (Assessment Year 2026-27, Financial Year 2025-26), Section 80D of the Income-tax Act, 1961 still governs. The Income-tax Act, 2025 (effective 1 April 2026) renumbers this as Section 126, but the substance, limits, and rules remain identical for Tax Year 2026-27 onwards. This page explains the position as it applies to AY 2026-27 filings (made in 2026).

Section 80D sits in Chapter VI-A. Under the New Tax Regime (s.115BAC / 115BAC(1A)), the Chapter VI-A menu is mostly off the table — 80C, 80D, 80G, 80TTA, etc. drop out. The only salaried moves that survive in New Regime are employer NPS (80CCD(2)) and your own 80CCD(1B) top-up.

That makes 80D a pure Old Regime lever. Every rupee of 80D only saves tax if you explicitly opt into the Old Regime for that year. Cross-check the regime math before claiming it — our comparator treats 80D as an Old-Regime-only input.

Section 80D provides two independent buckets: Self + Family and Parents. Each bucket has a base limit of ₹25,000, which increases to ₹50,000 if the individuals covered are senior citizens (60+ years). Within each bucket, you can claim either:

• Health insurance premiums paid (including GST), OR
• Actual medical expenditure (if the person is a senior citizen with no active health insurance policy)

Important: The preventive check-up allowance of ₹5,000 is included within these limits — it is not an additional amount on top.

Notes on the table above:

• Medical expenditure rule: If claiming medical expenditure (instead of insurance premium), the person must be a senior citizen (≥ 60 years) with no active health insurance policy. The limit is ₹50,000 for that person's bucket, shared with any insurance premium paid for them.
• Family definition: For the Self + Family bucket, "family" means spouse and dependent children only. Parents-in-law are not covered under Section 80D.
• Parents dependency: No dependency requirement exists for claiming medical expenditure or insurance premium for parents — they need not be financially dependent on you.
• CGHS and notified schemes: Contributions to the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) or other Central Government notified health schemes qualify as "medical insurance" under the premium limit.
• Premium includes GST: The insurance premium amount you pay (for limit calculation) includes any GST charged on the policy.
• Senior citizen: A resident individual who is 60 years or more at any time during the previous year (financial year for which income is being assessed).
• Multi-year policies: For lump-sum payments covering multiple years, the deduction is allowed on a pro-rata basis under Section 80D(4A) for the relevant financial year.
• HUF eligibility: Hindu Undivided Families (HUF) are also eligible to claim Section 80D deductions, with separate limits applying to the HUF as a distinct tax entity.

Up to ₹5,000 a year on preventive health check-ups (full-body screening, blood tests, imaging) for yourself, spouse, children, or parents is deductible — but it counts towards the bucket limit (as shown in the table above), not over and above it.

The ₹5,000 preventive health check-up ceiling sits within the Section 80D bucket limits (s. 80D(2A)). It is not an additional deduction on top of the ₹25,000 / ₹50,000 bucket limits — treat the bucket amounts as the hard ceiling.

If a parent is a senior citizen (60+) and has no active health insurance policy, Section 80D(d) lets you deduct actual medical expenditure — doctor visits, diagnostics, hospitalisation, medicines — up to that senior-citizen parent's bucket limit (₹50,000). This medical expenditure limit is shared with any health insurance premium paid for that parent.

No insurance + parent is not a senior citizen? Section 80D has no medical-expenditure shortcut for them — buy a policy. Retain every bill, prescription, and a letter from the treating doctor stating the parent is uninsurable if asked.

Cash kills 80D claims. Match the payment method to the expense type:

Rahul (age 34, FY 2025-26) is on the Old Regime and pays: (1) ₹21,000 family health insurance via UPI, (2) ₹4,500 preventive check-up (cash, within the ₹5,000 check-up allowance), (3) ₹48,000 father's insurance via bank — father is 62, so he's a senior citizen.