Every term is defined twice: once the way a filing would put it, and once the way somebody would explain it to you across a table. The second one is usually the one that sticks.
Showing 4 terms
India’s default income tax structure, with wider slabs, a larger standard deduction and almost no other deductions.
The fixed thali. Cheaper for most salaried people who do not have a home loan, and it needs no paperwork.
India’s original income tax structure, with narrower slabs and a long list of deductions.
The à la carte option. Worth it once you claim roughly ₹4.5–6 lakh of deductions — usually a home loan or a big metro HRA.
A deduction of up to ₹50,000 on deposit interest for senior citizens, under the old tax regime.
Five times the ₹10,000 everyone else gets under 80TTA — and one of the remaining reasons a retired person may still prefer the old regime.
Comparing two returns only after accounting for the certainty, the tax treatment and the horizon attached to each.
Put both after tax and the gap is usually far narrower than the headline version suggests. Which tax regime you are on moves the hurdle by points, not decimals.