
Zero tax beyond ₹12 lakh salary: How to stretch it to ₹15 lakh
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.NEW DELHI: Earning ₹12 lakh and paying zero tax is no longer the ceiling under the new regime. With the right salary structure and employer-backed benefits, even professionals earning ₹15 lakh, or more, can reduce their taxable income to zero.That shift marks a break from the old regime, where tax planning revolved around deductions such as house rent allowance (HRA), leave travel allowance (LTA), home loan interest and Section 80C investments.
The new regime strips most of these away, but compensates with lower rates and a narrower, more efficient set of benefits that can deliver equal or better outcomes.Foremost, the new labour codes are quietly reshaping salary structures in a way that lowers taxable income for most employees. By mandating that basic pay plus eligible allowances account for at least 50% of total CTC, they push up components such as gratuity and employer contributions to the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF).In the new tax regime—where most exemptions that earlier qualified as ‘wages’ have been removed—this shift naturally results in a higher basic component.
As a result, linked contributions such as EPF (12% of basic), gratuity, and National Pension Scheme (up to 14% of basic) rise in tandem.Since these contributions are deductible from taxable income, they reduce the overall tax burden without requiring any active investment decisions from the employee.Take a ₹14 lakh CTC, with 50% allocated to basic pay ( ₹7 lakh). Gratuity of about ₹33,670 (4.81% of basic) is exempt from tax.
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