How are gains from farm land sale taxed?
I am a 30-year-old software engineer working in Kochi and have recently received ₹10 lakh from the sale of a share of agricultural property. Is this amount taxable? Also, if I was to purchase a house with the proceeds, can it be set off for income tax purposes? —Name withheld on request Taxability on the sale of agricultural land will depend on the status/location of the land that has been sold. Agricultural land in a rural area is not considered a capital asset and therefore gain on sale of the same is not subject to income tax.
On the other hand, the gain on a sale of urban agricultural land is subject to income tax under the head ‘capital gains’. If the holding period of the urban land is under three years, the capital gains will be categorized as short-term. If it is more than three years, the capital gains will be categorized as long-term.
Short-term capital gains are taxable at applicable tax rates and no exemption is available against the same. Long-term capital gains are taxable at 20%. Further, an exemption under section 54F of the income tax Act is available on the long-term capital gains earned from selling a capital asset other than a house property.
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