What Budget means for taxpayers: 10 points

Income Tax news: Nirmala Sitharaman said the government will undertake a comprehensive review of the Income Tax Act.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced a major relief for the subscribers of the new income tax regime. In her Budget speech, the minister also said the government will undertake a comprehensive review of the Income Tax Act.

Here are 10 points on Nirmala Sitharaman's tax announcements.

1. Nirmala Sitharaman said the government will release standard operating procedures for TDS defaults and simplify and rationalise the compounding of such offences.
2. "A comprehensive review of the customs duty structure over the next 6 months. TDS rate on e-commerce to be reduced to 0.1%. I propose that two tax exemption regimes for charities merge into one. I propose to decriminalize TDS delay up to the filing of tax date," she said.
3. She said more than two-thirds of individuals opted for the new income tax regime.
4. Nirmala Sitharaman announced the government has increased the income tax standard deduction for those who opted for the new regime. "For those opting for the new tax regime, the standard deduction for salaried employees to be increased from ₹50,000 to ₹75,000," she said.
5. The finance minister revised the tax slabs for those who opted for the new regime. “Under the new tax regime, tax rate structure to be revised as follows - ₹0- ₹3 lakh -Nil; ₹3-7 lakh -5%; ₹7-10 lakh-10%; ₹10-12 lakh-15%; 12-15 lakh- 20% and above ₹15 lakh-30%," she announced.
6. Nirmala Sitharaman said salaried employees under the new tax regime will save up to ₹17,500 annually in taxes due to changes proposed in the Budget.
7. Nirmala Sitharaman said the deduction on family pension for pensioners will be enhanced from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000. In total, 4 crore salaried individuals and pensioners stand to benefit from the changes.
8. She said the government has raised the deduction limit to 14 per cent from 10 per cent for the employer's contribution to NPS. It has also withdrawn the equalisation levy of 2 per cent.
9. She said the monetary limit for filing tax appeals will be increased to ₹60 lakhs for ITAT, ₹2 crore for high courts and ₹5 crore for the Supreme Court.
10. She also announced the government's decision to abolish the Angel tax. "Corporate tax rate to be reduced on foreign companies from 40 to 35 per cent," she added.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents the Union Budget 2024-25 in the Lok Sabha. (PTI)