Govt doubles tax exemption limit to Rs 500,000

If an individual invests in the specified tax saving schemes of the government, the effective tax-free income limit will be Rs 650,000 a year.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

In a major relief to the middle-class, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday proposed to double the threshold tax exemption limit to Rs 500,000 and increased the standard deduction to Rs 50,000 from Rs 40,000.

The proposal will benefit 3 crore middle-class tax payers, Goyal said while unveiling the Budget proposals for 2019-20.

Doubling the threshold exemption limit will increase the burden on the exchequer by Rs 18,500 crore.

If an individual invests in the specified tax saving schemes of the government, the effective tax-free income limit will be Rs 650,000 a year, while it may go further up with additional avenues like NPS, medical insurance and home loan interest payment.

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