{"id":330772,"date":"2021-02-01T09:33:29","date_gmt":"2021-02-01T09:33:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tehelka.com\/?p=330772"},"modified":"2021-02-01T09:33:29","modified_gmt":"2021-02-01T09:33:29","slug":"union-budget-2021-pensioners-above-75-years-exempted-from-filing-tax-return","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/union-budget-2021-pensioners-above-75-years-exempted-from-filing-tax-return\/","title":{"rendered":"Union Budget 2021: Pensioners above 75 years exempted from filing tax return"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"While presenting the Union Budget 2021-22 in Parliament on Monday the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman announced relief to senior citizens in filing income tax returns.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She also announced steps to attract foreign investment into infrastructure, relief to affordable housing and rental housing, tax incentives to IFSC, relief to small charitable trusts, and steps for incentivizing Start-ups in the country.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sitharaman, in her Budget speech, said that post-pandemic, a new world order seems to be emerging and India will have a leading role therein.\u00a0 She said in this scenario, our tax system has to be transparent, efficient and should promote investment and employment in the country.\u00a0 The Minister said that at the same time, it should put minimum burden on our tax payers.\u00a0 She said that a series of reforms had been introduced by the Government for the benefit of tax payers and the economy, including slashing of corporate tax rate, abolition of dividend distribution tax, and increasing of rebate for small taxpayers.\u00a0 In the year 2020, the income tax return filers saw a dramatic increase to 6.48 crore from 3.31 crore in 2014.<\/span><\/p>\n

RELIEF TO SENIOR CITIZENS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

In the 75<\/span>th<\/span> year of independence, the Budget seeks to reduce compliance burden on senior citizens who are 75 years of age and above.\u00a0 Such senior citizens having only pension and interest income, will be exempted from filing their income tax return.\u00a0 The paying Bank will deduct the necessary tax on their income.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

RELAXATION TO NRIs, RELIEF FOR DIVIDEND<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The Budget proposes to notify rules for removing the hardship of Non-Resident Indians returning to India, on the issue of their accrued incomes in their foreign retirement account. It proposes to make dividend payment to REIT\/InvIT exempt from TDS.\u00a0 For Foreign Portfolio Investors, the Budget proposes deduction of tax on dividend income at lower treaty rate.\u00a0 The Budget provides that advanced tax liability on dividend income shall arise only after the declaration or payment of dividend.\u00a0 The Minister said that this was being done as the amount of dividend income cannot be estimated correctly by the shareholders for paying advance tax.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

AFFORDABLE HOUSING\/ RENTAL HOUSING<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The Finance Minister proposed to extend the eligibility period for claim of additional deduction for interest of Rs. 1.5 lakh on loan taken for purchase of an affordable house to 31<\/span>st<\/span> March, 2022.\u00a0 In order to increase the supply of affordable houses, she also announced an extension of eligibility period for claiming tax holiday for affordable housing projects by one more year to 31<\/span>st<\/span> March, 2022.\u00a0 For promoting supply of affordable rental housing for the migrant workers, the Minister announced a new tax exemption for the notified affordable rental housing projects.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

TAX BENEFITS FOR START- UPS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

In order to incentivize start ups in the country, Sitharaman announced extension in the eligibility for claiming tax holiday for startups by one more year till 31<\/span>st<\/span> March, 2022.\u00a0 In order to incentivize funding of start-ups, she proposed extending the Capital Gains exemption for investment in start ups by one more year till 31<\/span>st<\/span> March, 2022.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

TIMELY DEPOSIT OF EMPLOYEES\u2019 CONTRIBUTION TO LABOUR WELFARE FUNDS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The Finance Minister said that delay in deposit of the contribution of employees towards various welfare funds results in permanent loss of interest\/income for the employees.\u00a0 In order to ensure timely deposit of employee\u2019s contribution to these funds by the employers, she announced that late deposit of employee\u2019s contribution shall never be allowed as deduction to the employer.<\/span><\/p>\n

REDUCTION IN TIME FOR REOPENING INCOME TAX PROCEEDINGS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

In order to reduce compliance burden, the Budget provides reduction in the time-limit for reopening of income tax proceedings to three years from the present six years.\u00a0 In serious tax evasion cases, where there is evidence of concealment of income of Rs. 50 lakh or more in a year, the assessment can be reopened upto 10 years but only after the approval of the Principal Chief Commissioner.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

DISPUTE RESOLUTION COMMITTEE & NATIONAL FACELESS INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL CENTRE<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Stating the resolve of the Government to reduce litigation in the taxation system, the Finance Minister said that the Direct Tax \u2018Vivad se Vishwas\u2019 Scheme announced by the Government has been received well.\u00a0 Until 30<\/span>th<\/span> January, 2021, over one lakh ten thousand tax payers have opted to settle tax dispute of over Rs. 85 thousand crores under the Scheme.\u00a0 To further reduce litigation of small tax payers, Sitharaman proposed to constitute a Dispute Resolution Committee.\u00a0 Anyone with a taxable income upto Rs. 50 lakh and disputed income upto Rs. 10 lakh, shall be eligible to approach the Committee which will be faceless to ensure efficiency, transparency and accountability.\u00a0 She also announced the setting up of the National Faceless Income Tax Appellate Tribunal Centre.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

TAX AUDIT LIMIT HIKED FOR DIGITAL TRANSACTIONS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

To incentivize digital transactions and to reduce the compliance burden of the person who is carrying almost all of their transactions digitally, the Budget proposes to increase the limit for tax audit for persons who are undertaking 95 per cent of their transaction digitally from Rs. 5 Crore to Rs. 10 Crore.<\/span><\/p>\n

INCENTIVES FOR FOREIGN INVESTMENTS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

To attract foreign investment into the infrastructure sector, the Budget proposes to relax certain conditions relating to prohibition on private funding, restriction on commercial activities and direct investment in infrastructure.\u00a0 In order to allow funding of infrastructure by issuing zero coupon bonds, the Budget proposes to make notified infrastructure debt funds eligible to raise funds by issuing tax efficient zero coupon bonds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

TAX INCENTIVE TO IFSC<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

In order to promote International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) in GIFT City, the Budget proposes more tax incentives which include tax holiday for Capital gains from incomes of aircraft leasing companies, tax exemption for aircraft lease rentals paid to foreign lessors, tax incentives for relocating foreign funds in the IFSC and to allow tax exemption to the investment division of foreign banks located in IFSC.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While presenting the Union Budget 2021-22 in Parliament on Monday the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman announced relief to senior citizens in filing income tax returns.\u00a0 She also announced steps to attract foreign investment into infrastructure, relief to affordable housing and rental housing, tax incentives to IFSC, relief to small charitable […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":330773,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[167,36],"tags":[13884,4753],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330772"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=330772"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330772\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":330774,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330772\/revisions\/330774"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/330773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=330772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=330772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tehelka.com\/rest-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=330772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}