Personal Finance Desk

With annual income reaching Rs 25 lakh, taxpayers need to assess how freelance or other income is taxed, while keeping records of invoices, expenses and TDS.

Assuming an annualised return of 12% for a mutual fund SIP, the Rs 10,000 monthly investment over five years would grow to around Rs 8.17 lakh.

Depending on the card issuer’s policy, foreclosure charges, taxes and other applicable fees can be added to the amount due at the time of closure.

With that much money, you may think that it is safe to keep it in the bank, but inflation can gradually erase its value without you realising.

Dividend TDS is not necessarily the final tax liability. The 10% deducted can be claimed as credit, with excess refunded or additional tax payable based on total income.

It is recommended to periodically review your portfolio to ensure that its returns are aligned with your expectations.

A Rs 25,000 monthly SIP can grow into a larger long-term corpus when contributions rise annually, with a 10% step-up helping investors put more money to work.

If you already have a strong SIP portfolio, direct stock investments may be beneficial. 

Long-term financial planning cannot stop at building a corpus. It has to account for what that corpus will actually be able to buy, years down the line.

For someone aged 35, if they have been able to save Rs 50 lakh, reaching the next milestone may be closer than it appears.

A fixed CTC leaves limited room for an increase in statutory costs without affecting other parts of the pay package. The revised EPF ceiling therefore has consequences for both the employee and employer contributions.

Taking two home loans is not prohibited, but the tax benefits depend on whether you choose the Old Tax Regime or the default New Tax Regime, as well as the occupancy status of the properties.

The EPFO wage ceiling has been raised to Rs 25,000 from Rs 15,000, increasing monthly PF contributions and potentially boosting retirement savings through compounding.

Credit card balances do not work in quite the same way as conventional loans, where interest is generally linked to the amount that remains outstanding.

An SIP calculator can offer a useful snapshot of how regular investing and the power of compounding may build wealth over the years.

A Rs 10,000 monthly SIP with a 10% annual step-up can grow to around Rs 11.71 crore over 32 years at an assumed 12% annual return.

Employees whose mandatory contribution was previously restricted to Rs 1,800 could see another Rs 1,200 deducted from their pay each month.

A monthly minimum basic pension of Rs 9,000 could increase to Rs 34,470 with a 3.83 fitment factor, while a 4.0 multiplier would take it to Rs 36,000.

For those leaving employment or moving to a new job, knowing when and how to use Form 10C can be important for accessing pension-related benefits or obtaining a scheme certificate.

The decision is expected to bring more than 51 lakh additional employees within the ambit of mandatory EPFO coverage, significantly expanding access to provident fund savings and pension protection under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS).