All Income Tax Deductions

That is the common misreading. People add up ₹1,50,000 under 80C, ₹50,000 under 80CCD(1B) and ₹25,000 under 80D. They think they are saving tax. Then they find the employer used the new regime all year. The deductions are real. Your right to them is not.

The full deduction table for FY 2026-27

Figures for financial year 2026-27, assessment year 2027-28, as of 17 August 2026. Source: incometax.gov.in.

How do you read this table without making the usual mistake?

Three rules. First, a limit is a ceiling, not a gift. You deduct what you actually spent or invested, up to that cap. Second, several sections overlap. The same rupee cannot be counted twice. Third, the regime column decides the rest.

The overlap trap is worth spelling out. Your own NPS money can go under 80C or under 80CCD(1B). The ₹50,000 under 80CCD(1B) is extra only if your 80C is already full. Say your EPF alone uses up ₹1,50,000. Then 80CCD(1B) adds ₹50,000 of real room. If not, you are just moving money between two buckets.

Which deductions survive in the new regime?

Only two that matter for a salaried taxpayer. The standard deduction of ₹75,000. And the employer’s NPS payment under 80CCD(2), allowed up to 14% of salary. All else in the table above is old regime only.

So 80CCD(2) is the most valuable row most people ignore. Your employer pays it, not you. It costs you nothing if your salary structure already has it. If it does not, ask payroll to add an NPS part. That is a live saving in the default regime. Nothing else on this page can say that.

The new regime also carries a rebate of ₹60,000 under section 87A. That makes income up to ₹12,00,000 tax-free in effect. For a salaried person it is ₹12,75,000, after the standard deduction. The rebate now does the work the deductions used to do.

When is the old regime still worth choosing?

When your real deductions are large. The usual mix is a home loan, rent, a full 80C, and health cover for two generations. Take someone paying ₹2,00,000 of home loan interest under 24(b). Add ₹1,50,000 under 80C and ₹75,000 under 80D. That is already ₹4,25,000.

Now take someone with no home loan and little insurance, whose EPF does not fill 80C. They will rarely beat the new regime. Do not choose on principle. Run both. Our old versus new regime calculator and the guide on choosing between the regimes do the comparison properly.

What are the caveats on individual sections?

80D has a structure inside the number. The ₹1,00,000 shown is the maximum. You reach it only when both you and your parents are senior citizens. For a typical family it is ₹25,000 for self, spouse and children. Add ₹25,000 for parents, or ₹50,000 if the parents are senior citizens. Health check-ups sit inside these caps.

80G is not a flat deduction. Gifts qualify at 50% or 100%. Some carry a further cap tied to your adjusted gross total income. Cash gifts above ₹2,000 do not qualify at all. Keep the receipt and the charity’s registration number.

80E has no money cap, but it has a time limit. You may claim education loan interest for eight assessment years. The clock starts the year you begin repaying. It ends earlier if the interest is fully repaid. Only interest counts, never principal.

80TTA and 80TTB cannot both be used. A senior citizen claims 80TTB. That covers interest from fixed deposits as well as savings accounts, so it is far wider. See section 80C and section 80D for the detail on the two largest ones.