4. Deductions, Exemptions, and Tax Credits
Most tax systems allow for deductions, exemptions, and tax credits to reduce taxable income or final tax liability. These provisions provide a vehicle through which people save taxes by exploiting certain conditions. Among the most common ones are as follows:
• Section 80C Deductions: Provident Funds, life insurance, and other schemes provide investment facilities that are eligible to be deducted up to a certain limit under the Indian tax structure.
• House Loan Interest: It is house loan interest which is fully deductible to its full amount extent.
• General Payday Expenses: Salaried employees' general expenditure for which a standard deduction would always cover all such expenses.
• Health Insurance Premiums: Even health insurance premium can be deducted for oneself and family.
Deductions reduce the income tax directly and when tax credits are available, they decrease the final tax liability.
5. Filing Taxes
Each has to file his income tax returns every year if the income has surpassed a prescri andeeded amount. Here's the process of returning taxes by adopting an overall procedure:
• Gathering Documents: All the required documents – Form 16, investment proofs, bank statement(s), etc., along with any other proof of income.
• Calculation of Total Income: Total incomes of all sources
• Deductions and Taxable Income: Deduction of all allowable allowances from the computed total income to arrive at taxable income
• Calculation of Tax Liability: Using slab rates determine the amount of tax payable
• Filing of Return: Income tax return is submitted online or physical mode, present in each state.
• Verification: Most states require that the tax return should either be verified electronically or on paper.
Charge of penalty and interest are charged in case of failure of return filing before the due date or if there exist some sources of income which have to be reported.