Budget 2017: Here is what the common man gets

1) Tax relief

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley slashed the tax rate of individuals earning between Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh to 5% from the current 10% in this budget. It translates into an additional benefit of Rs 12,500 for taxpayers even beyond Rs 5 lakh.

The combined effect of both these measures will mean that there would be zero tax liability for people getting income upto Rs 3 lakh per annum and the tax liability will only be Rs 2,500 for people with income between Rs 3 to Rs 3.5 lakh.    

If the limit of Rs 1.5 lakh under Section 80C for investment is used fully, the tax would be zero for people with income of Rs 4.5 lakh.

2) Service charges on IRCTC e-tickets withdrawn

Service charges on e-tickets booked through IRCTC will be withdrawn. As of now, Rs. 40 on every ticket booked in air-conditioned classes and a service charge of Rs. 20 on every ticket booked in sleeper class is levied by the IRCTC when a ticket is booked through its website.

3) Goods and Services

Cheaper

> Booking railway tickets online
> RO membrane elements for household usage
> LNG
> Solar tempered glass used in solar panels
> Fuel cell based power generating systems
> Wind operated energy generator
> Vegetable tanning extracts used in making leather products
> POS machines card and fingerprint readers
> Group insurance for Defence services.

Dearer

> Cigarettes, pan masala, cigar, cheroots, bidis, chewing tobacco
> LED lamp components
> Cashew nuts (roasted and salted)
> Aluminum ores and concentrates
> Polymer coated MS tapes used in manufacturing of optical fibres
> Silver coins and medallions
> Printed circuit board used in making mobile phones

4) Simplification of I-T filing

Finance Minister also said that a simple one-page form to be filed as income tax return for the category of individuals having taxable income of upto Rs 5 lakh other than business income.  

Also, a person, who falls in this category and files income tax -return for the first time, would not be subjected to any scrutiny in the first year unless there is specific information available with the department regarding his high-value transaction.  

5) Tax relief on capital gains in real estate

The holding period for Capital gains on the sale of immovable property - land and building - to qualify as long-term capital gains is proposed to be reduced to 2 years from 3 years.