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GlossaryThirty words you'll meet in a notice, a salary slip, a GST return or a bank loan file — explained without the jargon. Where a number changes by year, the linked calculator carries the current figure.
How a year, an income and a tax bill are defined.
The year in which the income of the previous financial year is assessed and taxed. Income earned in FY 2025-26 is assessed in AY 2026-27 — so the return you file in 2026 is for AY 2026-27.
The 1 April – 31 March period in which you actually earn the income (also called the "previous year" in the Act). Every figure on a return belongs to one financial year.
The sum of income under all five heads — salary, house property, business or profession, capital gains and other sources — before Chapter VI-A deductions are subtracted.
Gross total income minus the deductions you are eligible for. This is the figure the slab rates are applied to — sometimes called taxable income.
A flat deduction from salary or pension that needs no proof or bills. The regime calculator applies the current figure for each regime automatically.
A rebate that brings tax down to nil for taxpayers with total income up to a threshold. It is the reason a moderate income can have zero tax under the new regime — see the live limit in the regime calculator.
Two ways to compute income tax. The new regime (the default) has lower rates but almost no deductions; the old regime has higher rates but lets you claim 80C, 80D, HRA, home-loan interest and more. Compare them side by side →
An additional charge on income tax for higher incomes, applied in slabs above ₹50 lakh of total income. It is calculated on the tax, not the income, and is subject to marginal relief.
A 4% charge levied on the total of income tax plus surcharge, funding health and education programmes. It applies under both regimes.
A cap that stops a small rise in income from triggering a disproportionately large rise in tax — at the rebate threshold and at each surcharge threshold. It limits the extra tax to roughly the extra income.
What you can subtract, and how the tax is collected through the year.
The deductions that reduce taxable income under the old regime — 80C (investments, up to ₹1.5 lakh), 80D (health insurance), 80CCD(1B) (extra NPS), 80TTA (savings interest) and others. Mostly unavailable under the new regime.
Tax paid in instalments during the year (not in one lump at filing) when your liability after TDS is ₹10,000 or more. Work out your instalment dates and amounts →
Interest at 1% per month for paying advance tax short (234B) or late within the year (234C). The advance-tax calculator estimates both.
Tax withheld by the payer (employer, tenant, buyer, bank) and deposited against your PAN, which you later adjust against your final tax. Check rent/property TDS →
Tax collected by a seller on certain transactions (foreign remittances, tour packages, some goods) and credited to your PAN — the mirror image of TDS.
The statements and returns that tie it all together.
TDS certificates. Form 16 is the salary TDS certificate from an employer; Form 16A covers TDS on non-salary payments such as rent, interest or professional fees.
A consolidated tax statement on the income-tax portal showing TDS/TCS credited, advance tax and self-assessment tax paid, and certain high-value transactions — your record of tax already paid.
A wider statement than 26AS, showing reported income, interest, dividends, securities and property transactions. Reconcile it before filing; if something is wrong, give feedback rather than ignore it. More on AIS mismatches →
ITR is the income-tax return form you file each year (ITR-1 to ITR-7 by taxpayer type). ITR-U is an updated return that lets you fix or file a missed return within an extended window, usually with additional tax.
Tax on profit from selling an asset — shares, mutual funds, property.
Property of any kind held by a taxpayer — shares, mutual funds, land, building, gold, etc. — excluding stock-in-trade and personal effects. Selling one can create a capital gain or loss.
Gain on an asset sold within its short-term holding period (e.g. 12 months for listed shares, 24 months for property). The applicable rate depends on the asset — see the capital-gains calculator.
Gain on an asset held beyond its long-term threshold. Listed equity and property have their own long-term rates and exemptions, several of which changed in Budget 2024. Estimate the tax →
Adjusting an asset's purchase cost for inflation using the notified Cost Inflation Index, so only the real gain is taxed. For property bought before 23 July 2024, the law allows a choice between the indexed and the new flat-rate computation.
Exemptions that reduce capital-gains tax if you reinvest — in a residential house (54, 54F) or in specified bonds (54EC), within the section's time limit and subject to its caps.
The vocabulary of indirect tax.
The 15-character GST identification number issued on registration, built from your state code and PAN. It appears on every tax invoice you raise.
Credit for the GST you paid on business purchases, set off against the GST you collect on sales — so tax is effectively paid only on the value you add.
A declaration that lets exporters supply goods or services without charging IGST (zero-rated), instead of paying tax and claiming a refund. More for freelancers and exporters →
Cases where the recipient, not the supplier, pays the GST directly to the government — for example certain imported services or notified supplies.
What a banker reads first in a loan file.
Cash available for debt service divided by the interest plus principal due — how comfortably a business can repay a loan from its cash flows. Lenders usually want at least 1.25–1.5. Calculate it →
The working-capital limit a bank will fund under the Tandon Committee method; the gap above it is the promoter's own margin. Work out the limit →
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