Taxability of Allowances
- House Rent Allowance
- Leave Travel Allowance
- Allowances exempt u/s 10(14)
- Allowances exempt u/s 10(14)(ii)
Allowance is defined as a fixed quantity of money or other substance given regularly in addition to salary for meeting specific requirements of the employees.
House Rent Allowance:
Provided that the expenditure on rent is actually incurred, exemption is available upto the least of the following :- HRA received.
- Rent paid less 10% of salary.
- 40% of Salary (50% in case of Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi) Salary here means Basic Pay + Dearness Allowance, if dearness allowance is provided by the terms of employment.
Leave Travel Allowance:
The exemption is available for the amount actually incurred on performance of travel on leave to any place in India by the shortest route to that place. This is subject to a maximum of the air economy fare or AC lst Class fare (if journey is performed by mode other than air) by such route, provided that the exemption shall be available only in respect of two journeys performed in a block of 4 calendar years.
Certain other allowances given by the employer to the employee are exempt u/s 10(14) subject to actual expenses incurred:
- Allowance granted to meet cost of travel on tour or transfer.
- Allowance granted on tour or journey in connection with transfer to meet the daily charges incurred by the employee.
- Allowance granted to meet conveyance expenses incurred in performance of duty, provided no free conveyance is provided.
- Allowance granted to meet expense incurred on a helper engaged for performance of official duty.
- Academic, research or training allowance granted in educational or research institutions.
- Allowance granted to meet expenditure on purchase/maintenance of uniform.
Following allowances are exempt under section 10(14)(ii), subject to the limits stated there-against:
i. Special Compensatory Allowance or High Altitude Allowance or Uncongenial Climate Allowance or Snow bound Area Allowance or Avalanche Allowance:
Rs. 800/- common for various areas of North East, Hilly areas of U.P., H.P. and J & K (for specific details about the areas eligible for the allowance, please refer to the section 10(14) if I T Rules 1962) and Rs. 7000/- per month for Siachen area of J & K and Rs. 300/- common for all places at a height of 1000 mts or more other than the above places.
ii. Special Compensatory Allowance in the nature of Border Area Allowance or Remote Locality Allowance or Difficult Area Allowance or Disturbed Area Allowance:
Various amounts ranging from Rs. 200/- per month to Rs. 1300/- per month are exempt for various areas as specified in Rule 2BB.
iii. Special Compensatory (Tribal Area/Scheduled Area/Agency Area Allowance available in M.P., Tamil Nadu, U.P., Karnataka, Tripura, Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa:
Rs. 200/- per month.
iv. Any allowance granted to an employee working in any transport system to meet his personal expenditure during duty performed in the course of running of such transport from one place to another:
70% of such allowance upto a maximum of Rs. 6000/- per month.
v. Children Education allowance:
Rs. 100/- per month per child upto a maximum of 2 children.
vi. Allowance granted to meet Hostel Expenditure of children
Rs. 300/- per month per child upto a maximum of two children.
vii. Compensatory Field Area Allowance available in various areas of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur Nagaland, Sikkim, H.P., U.P. & J & K (for specific details about the areas eligible for the allowance, please refer to the section 10(14) if I T Rules 1962):
Rs. 2600/- per month.
viii. Compensatory Modified Field area Allowance available in specified areas of Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana, U.P., J&K, H.P. & North East (for specific details about the areas eligible for the allowance, please refer to the section 10(14) if I T Rules 1962):
Rs. 1000/- per month
ix. Counter Insurgency Allowance to members of Armed Forces:
Rs. 3900/- Per month
x. Transport Allowance granted to an employee to meet his expenditure for the purpose of commuting between the place of residence and place of duty:
Rs. 800/- per month
xi. Transport allowance granted to physically disabled (blind or orthopaedically handicapped with disability of lower extremities) employee for the purpose of commuting between place of duty and residence:
Rs. 1600/- per month.
xii. Underground Allowance granted to an employee working in under ground coal mines:
Rs. 800/- per month.
xiii. Special Allowance in the nature of High Altitude Allowance granted to member of the armed forces:
Rs. 1060 p.m. (for altitude of 9000-15000 ft.)
Rs. 1600/- p.m. (for altitudes above 15000 feet.)
xiv. Special allowance granted to members of armed forces in the Highly Active Field Area Allowance
Rs. 4200/- p.m.
xv. Special allowance granted to members of armed forces in the nature of island duty allowance:
Rs. 3,250/- in Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep Group of Islands. Note: An assessee claiming exemption under (vii), (viii) or (ix) shall not be entitled for exemption listed at (ii) above.
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