FKFinkoin
← All articles
Tax5 min read

STCG vs LTCG on equity in India

Holding clocks start on dates that changed across Finance Acts — track your grandfathering.

Listed equity and equity-oriented funds historically enjoyed zero long-term capital gains tax until reforms introduced a taxed regime beyond specific holding periods. Short-term gains face higher rates tuned to discourage churn.

Grandfathering clauses protected notional gains up to cut-off dates — your broker statement may be wrong; download trade logs from AMCs and reconcile purchase NAVs for shares migrated between demats.

Loss harvesting matters: set off rules pair STCL against STCG before carrying forward balances across years within statutory limits.

International equity feeder funds may be treated as debt funds for tax — do not assume Indian equity rules apply by headline category name alone.

Day-traders mixing business income and capital gains may face scrutiny; structure activity intentionally with CA guidance if scale grows.

Related articles

More in Tax