Section 80C bundles life insurance premiums (with caps tied to sum assured), ELSS, PPF, principal repayment on home loans, tuition fees, and a few other instruments under a consolidated annual limit. Once you hit the ceiling, additional ELSS or insurance premium does not earn extra deduction.
Section 80D covers health insurance for self, family, and parents with age-based sub-limits. Missing 80D while maxing ELSS is a common mismatch — medical inflation makes this deduction both financial and emotional insurance.
NPS offers an additional employer contribution benefit for salaried taxpayers under specific sections, and individuals can claim extra contributions subject to caps that differ for central-government schemes versus voluntary tiers. Verify the exact subsection each April after the Finance Act passes.
Donations under 80G, EV loan interest under 80EEB (when applicable), and education loan interest under 80E each have narrow eligibility. Build a one-page cheat sheet of sections you genuinely qualify for instead of discovering them in March.
If alternate minimum tax regimes apply to you, some deductions behave differently or not at all — another reason to model final tax payable instead of chasing every headline break.
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