CA Online

  Buying property from an NRI? Worried about obtaining TAN? Not anymore.To relax the compliance burden, the Budget has proposed that resident individuals and HUFs need not have a Tax Deduction and Collection Account Number (TAN) if they are purchasing a property from a non-resident Indian (NRI). The amendment will take effect from Oct 1, 2026. Under the proposed framework, resident individuals or HUFs can report the tax deducted at source (TDS) by quoting PAN, as is done when the transactions are between two residents. Presently, if a person buys an immovable property from a resident seller, the person is not required to obtain TAN to deduct tax at source. However, where the seller of the immovable property is a non-resident, the buyer is required to obtain TAN to deduct tax at source. Ameet Patel, partner at Manohar Chowdhry & Associates, said this used to be a detailed process. “At present, if a resident were to purchase an immovable property from an NRI, there is no separate...

  FOR TAXPAYERS FOR TAXPAYERS GAINS | Time limit to revise I-T returns can be extended by3 months to March 31 with a small fee TCS on overseas package tours, foreign education and medical treatment cut to 2% 6 ‑ month window to reveal undisclosed foreign assets/income subject to limits and additional tax payment Minimum alternate tax snipped to 14% Decriminalisation, rationalisation of penalty framework under I-T Act Some small taxpayers can apply for online issuance of lower/nil taxdeduction certificate on their income PAINS | No accumulation of MAT credit from April 1. Accumulated credit to be set off only under new tax regime Tax exemption for disability pension only to those services retirees who had to prematurely quit due to the disability FOR INVESTORS GAINS | Persons resident outside India can invest in listed Indian equity through portfolio investment scheme, individual limitraised from 5% to 10%, overall cap from 10% to 24% No need to obtain TAN for TDS if buyingproperty ...

  Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Wednesday asked the Reserve Bank staff to persist with regulatory calibrations and sharpen supervision in the new year.In his annual message to staffers, Malhotra said customer centricity and financial inclusion "must remain at the heart” of the central bank's work. “We must persist with strengthening the monetary policy framework, sharpening supervision, calibrating regulation, deepening financial markets, and improving payments and currency management,” Malhotra said in the message.The RBI staff must sharpen their knowledge, enhance their analytical capabilities, embrace technology, and continuously make improvements in processes, he added.Malhotra, a career bureaucrat who recently completed a year at the helm of the RBI, told the staff that their responsibilities will continue to expand in the new year, which will be marked by a rapidly evolving economic and financial landscape shaped by technological change, geoeconomic shifts, and rising publ...

  India's robust growth numbers for the September quarter are raising questions about the need for lower rates even as record-low inflation gives the central bank ample room to resume reductions later this week, analysts said.India's economy expanded at a sharper-than-expected clip of 8.2 per cent in the July-September quarter, prompting analysts to raise their full-year growth estimates to above 7 per cent.That means the world's fifth-largest economy is expanding at a pace close to its estimated potential growth of 6.5 per cent-7 per cent. Potential growth is the rate an economy can expand without sparking inflation.India's retail inflation, however, which slowed to a record-low 0.25 per cent in October, is expected to remain benign for months."The December RBI policy will be set against a backdrop of resilient growth and ultra-low inflation. The stellar growth numbers reaffirm our view of a pause," said Gaura Sen Gupta, chief economist at IDFC First Bank....

  The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) expects microfinance lenders ’ boards to review their spreads against the cost of funds and operating efficiency, said Swaminathan J , Deputy Governor, RBI. He also urged them to question outliers to ensure pricing remains reasonable and reflects actual costs, risk, and efficiency improvements so that no lender takes undue advantage of a borrower’s circumstances.Speaking at a MFIN event in Mumbai on November 14, Swaminathan said, “The Reserve Bank expects lenders to use the room provided by the 2022 framework in a way that strengthens borrower welfare and long-term portfolio quality.”The 2022 reset of the microfinance framework removed pricing caps and aligned rules across all regulated lenders. Swaminathan noted that lighter regulation is possible only if industry standards remain high. “Flexibility and accountability travel together,” he said.  He stressed that lenders must properly assess borrowers’ incomes, seasonal variations, and exist...

The government’s move to make retail health insurance GST-free has done more than just cut costs, it has changed the way Indians buy health cover. New data from Policybazaar shows a sharp rise in demand for bigger covers and comprehensive protection. What’s changed after the 0 per cent GST exemption The average sum insured has jumped 38 per cent, from Rs 13 lakh to Rs 18 lakh. Nearly half of all new buyers (45 per cent) now opt for policies in the Rs 15–25 lakh range. Only 18 per cent are sticking with smaller covers below Rs 10 lakh. Millennials and mid-aged consumers are driving this shift, showing growing awareness of health and financial risks. Seniors and smaller cities step up The surge isn’t just among younger policyholders or metro buyers: Older customers (61-75 years and above) have shown an 11.5 per cent rise in buying high-value covers Tier-II cities are catching up, those choosing Rs 15-25 lakh plans rose from 44.1 per cent to 48.6 per cent Meanwhile, small-cover plans drop...

The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is set to announce the decision of its October meeting today. While a rate cut remains unlikely, the committee may revise the inflation forecast in today's meeting. Here are five key things you should know before the RBI's October MPC meet begins: 1. August 2025 MPC: A snapshot During its August meeting, the MPC retained the repo rate at 5.5 per cent after slashing it by 100 basis points (bps) in three consecutive cuts since February. One basis point is a hundredth of a percentage point. The rate cuts brought down the repo rate from 6.5 per cent in February. The repo rate is the interest rate at which the RBI lends money to commercial banks.The central bank also revised its Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation projections downward due to softer food prices and easing global commodity costs. In its August MPC meeting, RBI maintained its stance as 'neutral.' The stance was shifted from '...