Union Budget 2021: Senior Citizens Exempted from Filing IT-Returns

NEW DELHI: Reading out the Union budget 2021-22, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman extended tax benefits to senior citizens above the age of 75.

The proposal states that senior citizens will no longer have to file I-T returns.

FM Sitharaman said, "In the 75th year of Independence of our country, we shall reduce the compliance burden on senior citizens. For senior citizens who only have a pension and interest income, I propose exemption of filing of income tax returns."

"We shall reduce the compliance burden for those 75 years and above. Senior citizens above 75 years of age with only interest income will not have to file income tax returns," the FM added.

Currently, the tax slab until now for senior citizen aged 60-80 years:

Up to Rs 300,000 - Nil

Rs 3,00,001 to 5,00,000 - 5 per cent

Rs 5,00,001 to 10,00,000 - ₹10,000 + 20 per cent of total income exceeding Rs 5,00,000

Above Rs 10,00,000 - Rs 1,10,000 + 30 per cent of total income exceeding Rs 10,00,000

A senior citizen is an individual resident between the age of 60 to 80 years. A super senior citizen is an individual resident who is above 80 years.

India Greying in Millions

According to estimates from the United Nations Population Division (UN 2011), the number of Indians aged 60 and above is projected to climb up to 19% per cent by 2050.

In absolute numbers, the senior population in India will encompass 323 million people by the middle of this century - a number greater than the total population of the United States in the year 2012.

The statistic also raises social, economic, and health-care challenges. 71% of this population will be village-bound, with the rest living in the cities.

The onus is on the government to create relevant policies for this section of society, and it could be argued that the changes made by the recent budget are the first step towards a better, elder-friendly India.

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