incometax
Rajaram Krishnamurthy
Senior Citizen Aged 60 to 80
or Above Must Know These
New Tax Rules: Started From
April 2026
Senior Citizen Eligibility
SeniorCitizen Super Senior Citizen
60 to 79years 80 years or above
ITR Filing Exemptions For Senior Citizens
For FY 2026-27 seniors with income below these thresholds are not required to file Income Tax Returns (ITR):
Regime Age group Exemption threshold
New Regime All seniors (Above 60years) Up to ₹4 lakh
Old Regime 60 to 79 years Up to ₹3 lakh
Old Regime 80 years or above Up to ₹5 lakh
ITR filing becomes mandatory only if:
Deposit in savings account: ₹50 lakh or More
Deposit in current account: ₹1 crore or More
Business turnover: ₹60 lakh or above
Professional Income: Exceeding ₹10 lakh.
Total TDS + TCS + Combined: ₹25,000 or ₹50,000
Foreign travel expense: Exceeding ₹2 lakh
Electricity bill: Above ₹1 lakh.
Zero Tax with Rebate 87A or 156
Only the eligible residents can claim a full rebate if the total tax
liability is within:
New Regime Limit Old Regime Limit
₹12 Lakh ₹5 Lakh
Max rebate₹60,000 Max rebate ₹12,500
Note: No tax for salaried and pensioner income upto ₹12,75,000 (i.e., standard deduction ₹75,000) under new tax regime and ₹5,50,000 (i.e., standard deduction ₹12,500)
under old tax regime.
Marginal Relief
Here, marginal relief is to protect you from a sudden jump in tax when your income slightly above the rebate limit.
Without marginal relief: If income is up to ₹12,00,000 then Tax is ₹0
But if income slightly above say ₹12,01,000, then Tax becomes ₹60,150
This means - a huge jump for just ₹1,000 extra income.
With marginal relief, the government reduces your tax so that you never lose more in tax than what you gained in extra income.
Formula:
Marginal Relief = Tax calculated - Excess Income
No Advance Tax Payment
If you are a resident individual with age 60 years or above and do not have any income from business or profession are generally exempt from paying advance tax
Exception: if a senior citizen earns income from a business or profession and their total tax liability is more than ₹10,000 in a financial year, they are required to pay advance tax like any other taxpayer.
ITR Exemption for Age 75+
Seniors with age 75+ years must be residents and have only pension and interest income from specified banks (same bank for both; no post office, rent, business, capital gains, shares, multiple banks, or other income) are exempt from ITR filing.
Ayushman Health Benefits for 70+
Seniors with age 70 years or above gets free health insurance under Ayushman Bharat. ₹5 lakh free treatment every year per family per year. Cashless treatment for almost all major illness such as - heart surgery, cancer, kidney issues, stroke, joint replacement.
This scheme also covers hospital bills, ICU, medicines, doctor fees at empaneled government or private hospitals without paying any insurance premium. Only requires Aadhaar verification.
Zero Tax on Two Self-Occupied Properties
You can now treat up to 2 houses as self-occupied under section 21(7), even if you don’t live there.
But: If you have own more than 2 houses, the extra one will be treated as rented (deemed rent) = taxable.
TDS on Rent
No 2% TDS on rent to seniors if monthly payment is less than ₹50,000 and annually up to ₹6 lakh.
TDS Limits on Bank or Post Office Interest
No TDS on interest up to ₹100,000 per bank wise.
New Way to Avoid TDS on Interest using Form 121
Form 121 replaces the old 15G/15H forms into a single unified submission. Eligible residents with zero tax liability can submit this Form 121 to banks or post offices to prevent TDS deduction on interest income.
Extended ITR filing and Revision Deadlines
Category Old deadline New deadline
Business/Profession(NonAudit Case) 31 July 31 August
Partners of Non-Audit Firms 31 July 31 August
Revise Return 9 months from the financial year i.e., 31stDecember12 months from the financial year i.e., 31st Marchwith applicable fee ₹1,000 or₹5,000
Updated Return Allowed AfterReassessment Notice Starting from 1st April 2026, taxpayers can file an updated return even after receiving a reassessment notice, which was not allowed earlier. This gives a chance to voluntarily declare missed income and pay tax with additional charges, helping reduce penalties and disputes. However, it comes at a higher cost and the reassessment process does not automatically close.No PAN Requirement for TDS onNRI Property PurchasesFrom 1st October 2026, no TAN is required if you are buying immovable property from Non-Resident seller. Now, you can deduct TDS directly on transfer of immovable property u/s 393(2)without applying for TAN.
K Rajaram IRS 3426
Rajaram Krishnamurthy
Thanks for the timely input. Mani