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One of the significant proposals in this year's Union Budget is that residents will have to file the tax return where they hold any foreign asset (including financial interest in any entity) or are signing authority in any account located outside India even though they do not have taxable income to report. Although the Budget is yet to be passed by the Parliament, but the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has recently amended Rule 12 of the Income-Tax Rules, 1962 and released the new income-tax return forms to capture the relevant details for the financial year 2011-12 in line with the above proposed amendment. Filing of tax return in electronic mode has also been made mandatory where the total income exceeds . 10 lakh.

What Are These New Forms ?

Various forms and to whom they apply:

• ITR – 1 (SAHAJ): Salaries; House Property (where the individual does not own more than one house property); Income from Other Sources (except winnings from lottery or income from race horses)

• ITR – 2: Other than income from business and profession

• ITR – 3: Partners in firms and not carrying out business or profession as a proprietorship concern

• ITR – 4: Proprietary business or profession

• ITR – 44S(SUGAM): Business and profession and opted for being taxed under presumptive basis of taxation under sections 44AD and 44AE

Who Is Impacted?

• Expatriate employees and their accompanying family members who come into India generally qualify to be resident but not ordinarily residents (RNORs) for the first 2 to 3 years. Such individuals may have to provide details of their overseas investments and bank details even though their overseas income may not be taxable in India. Accompanying family may not even have taxable income in India, yet they may have filing obligation now.

• Another category of individuals who may get impacted are those employees who are resident of India and are the signing authorities as representative of a company in any account outside India. It is not clear whether such employees can exclude to report particulars of all such accounts/investments.

• Individuals who are residents and have assets (including financial interest in any entity) located outside India or signing authority in any account located outside India, will no longer be able to use Forms ITR-1 (SAHAJ) or ITR – 4S (SUGAM).

• Such individuals are also mandatorily required to file their returns electronically, even though their total income does not exceed . 10 lakh.

Challenges And The Way Forward

Expatriate employees and their accompanying family members with RNOR status are the ones hit hard by these changes. RNORs do not pay tax on their global income and obtaining overseas bank/investments details in their return may not be relevant. Reporting of bank accounts/investments details by employees who are merely representatives and not having any real financial interest in those investments may also not be relevant. But changes in forms seem to be sweeping and even the definition of any other assets is not provided and taxpayers are left to make their own judgment in this regard.

It is interesting to note that the returns forms have three categories under residency: Resident, Non Resident and RNOR. If one strictly goes by the form, the details are required to be given by residents and not by the RNORs. But CBDT needs to clarify as under the Income Tax Act, 1961, the term resident includes RNOR.

It would be helpful if CBDT comes out with a clarification sooner rather than later on the above aspects to give breather to the affected individuals. Think of the old saying: Prevention is better than cure. Until clarifications are provided, it is better for everyone to get organised and start compiling the details keeping in view the fact that the due date of filing the return, i.e. July 31, is approaching fast. It is also relevant to maintain full documentation and trail of investments as the next logical question would be to explain such investments or income from such investments, when questioned by the tax authorities. It is important to note that the Budget also has a proposal where the taxman can go back up to last 16 years to investigate where income in relation to any such asset located outside India has escaped assessment.

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Best Performing Mutual Funds

Largecap Funds:

DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund

ICICI Prudential Focused Blue Chip Fund

Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund

Large and Midcap Funds

ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan

HDFC Top 200 Fund

UTI Dividend Yield Fund

Mid and SmallCap Funds

Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund

DSP BlackRock Small & Midcap Fund

Sundaram Select Midcap

IDFC Premier Equity Fund

Small and MicroCap Funds

DSP BlackRock MicroCap Fund

Sector Funds

Reliance Banking Fund

Reliance Banking Fund

Gold Mutual Funds

Relaince Gold Savings Fund

ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

HDFC Gold Fund

How to get TDS refund?

Posted: 24 Apr 2012 03:54 AM PDT

If your tax liability is nil, but the bank has levied TDS on the interest earned on your fixed deposit then you can claim refund by filing your income tax return. Customers can take their TDS certificates (Form 16A) from banks and also check the amount deposited to the Income Tax Depart-ment based on their PAN number on the Income Tax website under certificate AS26. Based on the same, customers can apply to get the refund from the IT department.

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Reliance Money ties up with World Gold Council

Best Performing Mutual Funds

Largecap Funds:

DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund

ICICI Prudential Focused Blue Chip Fund

Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund

Large and Midcap Funds

ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan

HDFC Top 200 Fund

UTI Dividend Yield Fund

Mid and SmallCap Funds

Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund

DSP BlackRock Small & Midcap Fund

Sundaram Select Midcap

IDFC Premier Equity Fund

Small and MicroCap Funds

DSP BlackRock MicroCap Fund

Sector Funds

Reliance Banking Fund

Reliance Banking Fund

Gold Mutual Funds

Relaince Gold Savings Fund

ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

HDFC Gold Fund

Posted: 24 Apr 2012 02:53 AM PDT

The World Gold Council in partnership with India Post and Reliance Money will provide a special discount of 6 per cent to buyers of gold coins on Akshaya Tritiya on April 24.

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Health Insurance - Things You should Know

Best Performing Mutual Funds

Largecap Funds:

DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund

ICICI Prudential Focused Blue Chip Fund

Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund

Large and Midcap Funds

ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan

HDFC Top 200 Fund

UTI Dividend Yield Fund

Mid and SmallCap Funds

Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund

DSP BlackRock Small & Midcap Fund

Sundaram Select Midcap

IDFC Premier Equity Fund

Small and MicroCap Funds

DSP BlackRock MicroCap Fund

Sector Funds

Reliance Banking Fund

Reliance Banking Fund

Gold Mutual Funds

Relaince Gold Savings Fund

ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

HDFC Gold Fund

Posted: 24 Apr 2012 01:44 AM PDT

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When taking health insurance, what we have noticed is that most people don't actually do any sort of structured research. Luckily, that's what we're here for. This article will go into the salient features of a mediclaim policy that you need to know, address types of mediclaim policies (individual and floater), and also run a brief comparison between mediclaim policies from some popular insurers - all in easy-to-read FAQ format.

Let's get started.

1. What is a Mediclaim policy?

A Mediclaim policy is a health insurance policy which covers all medical treatment expenses up to the sum assured in case you are hospitalized due to an illness / accident.

Mediclaim policies are issued for a period of one year and are renewed annually.

2. What are Pre - Hospitalization Expenses?

These are expenses you incur before you are hospitalized. They can include doctor's consultation fees, medical tests, medication, and related expenditures. Mediclaim policies generally cover 30 days expenses immediately before you have to be hospitalized.

3. What are Post - Hospitalization Expenses?

These are expenses you incur once you are discharged from hospital. They can include things such as doctor's consultation fees, medication, further tests (checkups), and even physiotherapy. The medical expenses you incur in the 60 days immediately after you are discharged from the hospital are usually covered by your mediclaim.

4. What is the Tax Benefit of taking mediclaim?

While this is not a reason for taking mediclaim, it does help that you also get a tax benefit on your health insurance. The premium paid for these policies are deductible under section 80 D of Income Tax Act up to a maximum limit of Rs. 15,000 and Rs. 20,000 in case the person insured is a senior citizen. In case an individual pays health insurance premium for his or her dependent parents then an additional deduction up to a maximum limit of Rs.15,000 is allowed and in case parents are senior citizen then Rs. 20,000 is allowed. To know more about various tax deductions you can avail

So if you are paying for yourself and your senior citizen parents, you can claim a maximum of Rs. 35,000 p.a. under Section 80D.

5. What is Cumulative Bonus / No Claim Bonus?

In short, it is the insurer's way of rewarding you for paying a premium and not making any claim. Generally Mediclaim policies provide an additional cover of 5% of Sum Assured in the subsequent renewal of the policy in case there is no claim in the current policy year. This increase in sum assured of 5% every year is restricted to a maximum of 50% of the initial Sum Assured for most policies. If there is a claim in the policy then this additional cover is decreased by 10% on the next renewal. These percentages can vary depending on the insurer and the policy you choose.

6. What are the types of mediclaim policies available?

Mediclaim policies are of two types:

a. Individual Mediclaim Policy

Individual policy covers only one single person under one policy. The premium in this type of policy is calculated according to the age of the person to be covered under the policy. Under this policy, if the sum assured is Rs. 5 Lakhs then the person insured can claim up to the maximum limit of Rs. 5 Lakhs.

b. Family Floater Mediclaim Policy

Family floater policy covers the entire family i.e. self, spouse and the dependent children under one single policy. The premium under this type of policy is calculated according to the member with the highest age in the family. Under this policy, if the sum assured is Rs. 5 Lakhs then any one person individually or the entire family jointly can claim up to the maximum limit of Rs. 5 Lakhs.

7. Can you briefly compare some key insurer's mediclaim policies?

Definitely. Below is the comparison between features of Mediclaim policies provided by different insurance companies:

COMPANY	ENTRY AGE	RENEWAL UP TO AGE	PRE-EXISTING DISEASES COVERED FROM	NO CLAIM BONUS	CASHLESS FACILITY AVAILABLE	FAMILY DISCOUNT
NEW INDIA	18 - 60	Lifetime	5^th year	5% of SA	Yes	10%
UNITED	1 - 60	Lifetime	5^th year	5% Discount every year (max 25%)	Yes	5%
ORIENTAL	18 - 45	Lifetime	5^th year	-	Yes	-
BAJAJ	1 - 65	80	5^th year	-	Yes	10%
NATIONAL	18 - 59	80	5^th year	5% of SA every year (max 50%)	Yes	-

The policy you choose will depend on the cover you require, the features you feel will be most beneficial to you, and of course

8. What is a Top Up plan?

Earlier, most insurance companies limited their mediclaim to Rs. 5 lakhs. This is no longer the case, there are many insurance companies which allow even more than Rs. 10 lakhs of health insurance cover. However, this was not always the case. And also, some of the companies that allow higher cover might not be your first choice of insurer. So earlier, if you wanted more than Rs. 5 lakhs cover, your best option was to go for a Top Up Plan.

Top Ups provide you additional coverage at a low cost. Top up plan covers medical treatment cost over and above the actual Mediclaim policy and thus increase the total sum assured. Top up plan can be taken for an individual as well as for the entire family. However top up plans are available only if the sum assured taken in the Mediclaim policy is between Rs. 3 to Rs. 5 Lakhs.

For example:

Our favourite fictional character, Mr. Shah has taken a Mediclaim policy for a sum assured of Rs. 3 Lakhs and a top up plan for Rs. 7 Lakhs, so his total sum assured is Rs. 10 Lakhs. If a claim arises for a sum of Rs. 8 Lakhs then the first 3 Lakhs has to be borne by the Mediclaim insurance company and next Rs. 5 Lakhs is to be paid by the company from which top up plan has been taken.

Remember that the Insurance Company from which the top up plan has been taken will not be responsible for claims arising up to the sum of Rs. 3 Lakhs.

Top up insurance plans are targeted by insurance companies to those customers who already have Mediclaim insurance policies but find their cover to be low and hence these customers want to add additional cover. Now, if you are also thinking that your Mediclaim policy is not sufficient to cover your expenses in case of hospitalization and the present insurer is not ready to increase the cover, then a top up policy from another insurer is the solution for you.

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Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund – Fund manager change

Some of the Top performing Mutual Funds are

HDFC Top 200 Fund

ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan

DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund

Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund

Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund

IDFC Premier Equity Fund

SBI Magnum Contra Fund

Sundaram Select Midcap

UTI Dividend Yield Fund

Posted: 24 Apr 2012 12:29 AM PDT

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund has announced a change in the fund management responsibilities of Birla Sun Life Medium Term & Birla Sun Life Savings Fund, with effect from April 17, 2012.

Birla Sun Life Medium Term Plan
Now, this fund will be solely managed by Maneesh Dangi. Kaustubh Gupta will cease to be the fund manager of this fund.

Birla Sun Life Savings Fund
Kaustubh Gupta will solely manage this fund now. Maneesh Dangi will cease to be the fund manager of this fund.

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Age barrier for health policies may go

Some of the Top performing Mutual Funds are

HDFC Top 200 Fund

ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan

DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund

Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund

Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund

IDFC Premier Equity Fund

SBI Magnum Contra Fund

Sundaram Select Midcap

UTI Dividend Yield Fund

Posted: 23 Apr 2012 11:11 PM PDT

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) is looking to do away with the age limit for purchasing insurance policies. Even as the proposal is still at a nascent stage, the regulator is in the process of clearing products targeted at senior citizens.

By allowing policyholders to renew policies at any age, Irda has already taken the first step to make health policies 'age free'. It had recently made it mandatory for policies to have a "life long" renewal clause. This means once a health insurance policy is issued, insurers would be obliged to continue renewing such policies during the policyholder's lifetime. However, the entry age barrier remains.

Meanwhile, some general insurance companies have already started applying for an 'age-free' policy. For instance, Apollo Munich Insurance applied for such a policy a few months back and is awaiting approval.

L&T Insurance, on the other hand, has an interesting variant which permits lifetime renewal but mandates a co payer after the age of 70. Even ICICI Lombard is looking at a lifetime renewal policy.

Other insurance companies are expected to follow suit or add necessary clauses in their existing portfolio of products. At present, the entry age for most existing health insurance plans is capped at 65 years.

When contacted, Irda chairman J Hari Narayan said there had been discussions about removing the entry age gap. "However, there are no concrete plans as of now," he said.

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Invest in Tax Saving Mutual Funds ( ELSS Mutual Funds ) to upto Rs 1 lakh and Save tax under Section 80C.

Invest Tax Saving Mutual Funds Online

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Applications

These links can be used to Purchase Mutual Funds Online that are regular also (Investment, non-tax saving)

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms from all AMCs

These Application Forms can be used for buying regular mutual funds also

Some of the best Tax Saving Mutual Funds available ( ELSS Mutual Funds )

HDFC TaxSaver

ICICI Prudential Tax Plan

DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund

Birla Sun Life Tax Relief '96

Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund

IDFC Tax Advantage (ELSS) Fund

SBI Magnum Tax Gain Scheme 1993

Sundaram Tax Saver

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Application form for Tax Saving Infrastructure Bond and more information

Tata AIG Life Maha Guarantee

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Posted: 23 Apr 2012 10:44 PM PDT

The Maha Guarantee scheme from Tata AIG is an endowment policy that guarantees a fixed percentage of returns along with the sum assured at the time of maturity. The guaranteed returns are bifurcated as guaranteed additions (2.5-5% of the basic sum assured) accumulated each year and guaranteed maturity addition (10-50% of the basic sum assured) added to the maturity amount at the end of the policy term.

Unique Feature

In the unfortunate event of death of the policyholder, the nominee is entitled to receive double the amount of insurance cover plus vested guaranteed additions. This feature is not unique to this scheme, but definitely is a selling point.

For Existing Customers

Stay invested as premature withdrawal /surrender of policy will result in loss of certain percentage of premiums already paid. The reason to stay invested is the death benefit of twice the amount of insurance cover available to the nominee.

For Those Looking to Invest

The scheme is recommended for those seeking an attractive insurance cover for their nominee. The double-death benefit is indeed an impressive feature. However, those looking for investment gains can easily give it a skip and rather invest in a Public Provident Fund or a simple bank term deposit for better returns.

The double-death cover feature is impressive, but the kind of returns generated on maturity disappoint on the investment aspect of the scheme. Investors can instead buy a pure term plan like Tata AIG Life Raksha for insurance cover and earn returns through investments in equity mutual funds, bank deposits, PPF etc.

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Invest in Tax Saving Mutual Funds ( ELSS Mutual Funds ) to upto Rs 1 lakh and Save tax under Section 80C.

Invest Tax Saving Mutual Funds Online

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Applications

These links can be used to Purchase Mutual Funds Online that are regular also (Investment, non-tax saving)

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms from all AMCs

These Application Forms can be used for buying regular mutual funds also

Some of the best Tax Saving Mutual Funds available ( ELSS Mutual Funds )

HDFC TaxSaver

ICICI Prudential Tax Plan

DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund

Birla Sun Life Tax Relief '96

Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund

IDFC Tax Advantage (ELSS) Fund

SBI Magnum Tax Gain Scheme 1993

Sundaram Tax Saver

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Application form for Tax Saving Infrastructure Bond and more information

Is It Possible To Predict Delisting Stocks?

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Posted: 23 Apr 2012 09:38 PM PDT

Delisting shares from the stock exchanges is a unique decision in a company's life. And it is almost impossible to forecast. These decisions depend greatly on the owners and management and their way of thinking. At least, one can't predict the timing of a delisting offer.

Here we have put together a group of companies with certain common parameters that make them more likely to opt for delisting than others. These are MNC associates with parent companies operating overseas. Secondly, and most importantly, the promoters hold more than 80% in the Indian arms. Thirdly, they don't need to raise capital in India. Or, in other words, being listed in India doesn't serve them much purpose.

With market regulator Sebi or the Securities and Exchange Board of India mandating that all listed companies have to increase public shareholding to a minimum 25% by June 2013, these companies have to take a conscious call sooner or later on whether to reduce promoter holding or go for delisting.

Why MNCs Are More Likely To Delist

Compared to domestic companies MNC associates in India are more likely to choose to delist when faced with the dilemma of whether to dilute promoter stake to meet local regulations or delist. Most of these companies were listed in India not due to a need to raise capital, but more to meet the then prevailing FDI norms. For such companies complying with the cumbersome and time consuming rules and regulations of Sebi and the stock exchanges makes little sense. Be it fund raising or M&As, any major decision takes substantial time for a listed company compared to an unlisted one. Finally, the current depressed market conditions offer an ideal opportunity to delist.

This is not to say MNCs are the only delisting candidates. In fact, over a period of time a number of unexpected Indian companies such as Nirma and Binani Cements have gone ahead with delisting processes. In a number of cases, acquisition by a foreign player has proved a prelude to delisting. For example, Sparsh BPO. However, MNCs are the more predictable candidates.

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Invest in Tax Saving Mutual Funds ( ELSS Mutual Funds ) to upto Rs 1 lakh and Save tax under Section 80C.

Invest Tax Saving Mutual Funds Online

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Applications

These links can be used to Purchase Mutual Funds Online that are regular also (Investment, non-tax saving)

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms from all AMCs

These Application Forms can be used for buying regular mutual funds also

Some of the best Tax Saving Mutual Funds available ( ELSS Mutual Funds )

HDFC TaxSaver

ICICI Prudential Tax Plan

DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund

Birla Sun Life Tax Relief '96

Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund

IDFC Tax Advantage (ELSS) Fund

SBI Magnum Tax Gain Scheme 1993

Sundaram Tax Saver

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Application form for Tax Saving Infrastructure Bond and more information

Submit filled up application Collection canter near you

PPF has tax exemption

Posted: 23 Apr 2012 07:41 PM PDT

TAX planning should ideally not be an obvious year-end phenomenon, but a well thought out exercise carried out throughout the year. With many types of tax-saving instruments available to individuals, the amount of investment which would be allowed for deduction from the taxable income is limited under the Income Tax Act,1961 (the Act) and, hence, one needs to plan intelligently.

One very popular example of a tax-saving instrument is the public provident fund (PPF). The PPF scheme is governed by The Public Provident Fund Act, 1968. PPF is outside the tax net throughout its life cycle, that is, it is exempt at each stage of investment (subject to the prescribed limits), accumulation and withdrawal.

Who can open a PPF account: As per the PPF scheme, any individual can subscribe to PPF . An individual can also subscribe to PPF on behalf of a minor if he or she is the guardian (father and mother). It has further been clarified that in the case of a minor child, either father or mother can open a PPF account on the child's behalf but not both. While the guardian individual can contribute separately to wards the PPF account of the minor, the total deduction that can be claimed by him under Section 80C is limited up to Rs 1,00,000.

A PPF account may be opened in a post office or any other bank specified in this regard.

It is important to note that non-resident Indians (NRIs) are not eligible to open a PPF account. However, if the PPF account was opened by such NRI while he was resident in India, then he may continue to subscribe to the PPF account till its maturity on a non repatriation basis.

Limit of subscription: The minimum amount that can be deposited by an individual in his PPF account every year is Rs 500, whereas, the maximum amount that can be deposited in a financial year (FY) is Rs 1,00,000, with effect from April 1 (Rs 70,000 was the earlier limit). The deposits can be made into the PPF account either in a lump sum or in flexible instalments. The amount and the number of instalments can vary, provided the instalments do not exceed 12 in one FY.

The amount deposited in the PPF account is allowed as a deduction from the total taxable income under Section 80C of the Act, subject to an overall limit of Rs 1,00,000 per FY.

Interest on the PPF account balance: The interest rate on the amount in the PPF account is decided by the government each year. The interest rate for the present financial year 2012-13 is 8.8 per cent. The interest earned on the PPF account is not liable to tax.

Tenure of PPF account: PPF can be closed at any time after the expiry of 15 years from the date on which it was opened. The whole amount in this account can be withdrawn at the time of closure which is tax exempt. There is also an option available to the individual to get his PPF account extended after the expiry of 15 years, each time for a block of five years.

Early withdrawal and loan facility: There is a lock-in period of five years in a PPF account, and an individual can withdraw money only at the end of the fifth year up to specified limits and subject to conditions.

An individual can also avail the facility of loan from third to the sixth financial year against the amount in his PPF account, subject to certain ceiling limits. Therefore, if a person invests in PPF during FY 2009–10, then he may avail the loan facility from the FY 2011–12 (which will be the third FY of subscription to the PPF scheme) up to FY 2014–15 (which will be the sixth FY of subscription to the scheme).

Since the investment made in PPF, the interest earned thereon and withdrawal are all tax-exempt, the net return from PPF is high, making it an attractive tax-saving instrument.

It is important to understand what tax slabs apply to you so that a better tax planning is done.

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