Home Loan Tax Benefit - How To Save Income Tax On Your Home Loan?

Acquiring a home loan can provide opportunities to save on taxes, in accordance with the regulations of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The latest financial budget included provisions that further enhanced these benefits.

During the budget speech, the Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, proposed an extension on the deadline for additional deductions on interest payments for home loans, following the previous extension until 31 March 2022. This extension applies to all home loans that have been sanctioned before 31 March 2022.

While obtaining a housing loan can be costly, it is also possible to benefit from several tax deductions that can save money each year. It is important to understand how to maximize these benefits.

Home Loan Tax Benefit Summary:

Deduction for interest paid on housing loan under Section 24

A home loan must be taken for the purchase or construction of a house to claim a tax deduction. If it is taken for the construction of a house, then it must be completed within five years from the end of the financial year in which the loan was taken.

The interest paid on the home loan EMI for the year can be claimed as a deduction from your total income up to a maximum of Rs 2 lakh under Section 24. 

From the assessment year 2018-19 onwards, the maximum deduction for interest paid on self-occupied house property is Rs 2 lakh.

For let out property, there is no upper limit for claiming tax exemption on interest, which means that you can claim deduction on the entire interest paid on your home loan. 

In case the construction exceeds the stipulated time, i.e. 5 years, you can claim deductions on interest of home loan only up to Rs 30,000 for the financial year.

However, the overall loss can be claimed under the head ‘Income from House Property’ against any other head of income up to to Rs 2 lakh only. This deduction can be claimed from the year in which the construction of the house is completed.

Deduction on interest paid towards home loan during the pre-construction period

Say you bought an under-construction property and have not moved in yet but you are paying the EMIs. In this case, your eligibility to claim interest on the home loan as a deduction begins only upon completion of construction or immediately if you buy a fully constructed property. 

So, does this mean you would not enjoy any tax benefits on the interest paid during the period falling between the borrowing of loan and completion of construction? No.

Let’s understand why. 

The Income Tax Act allows to claim a deduction of such interest also, called the pre-construction interest. A deduction in five equal instalments starting from the year the property is acquired or construction is completed is allowed, over and above the deduction you are otherwise eligible to claim from your house property income. However, the maximum eligibility remains capped at Rs 2 lakh.

For example, you have availed a home loan for construction and pay interest of Rs 10,000 a month. Construction of the house was completed in 2019 after two years. Hence, you can start claiming the pre-construction interest of Rs 2.4 lakh (approx) paid by you only after the construction gets completed in five equal instalments starting from 2019. Maximum interest deduction under Section 24(b) is capped to Rs 2 lakh (including current year interest + pre-construction interest). 

However, if your home loan is eligible for deduction under Section 80EEA, you can claim an additional deduction of Rs 1.5 lakh. We have discussed Section 80EEA later in this article.

Deduction on principal repayment under Section 80C

The principal paid on the home loan EMI for the year is allowed as a deduction under Section 80C. The maximum amount that can be claimed is up to Rs 1.5 lakh.

But to claim this deduction, the house property should not be sold within five years of possession. Otherwise, the deduction claimed earlier will be added back to your income in the year of sale.

Deduction for stamp duty and registration charges under Section 80C

Besides claiming the deduction for principal repayment, a deduction for stamp duty and registration charges can also be claimed under Section 80C but within the overall limit of Rs 1.5 lakh. 

However, it can be claimed only in the year these expenses are incurred.

Additional deduction under Section 80EE

Additional deduction under Section 80EE is allowed to the home buyers for a maximum of up to Rs 50,000. To claim this deduction, the following conditions should be met:

• The amount of loan taken should be Rs 35 lakh or less, and the property’s value does not exceed Rs 50 lakh.
• The loan must have been sanctioned between 1st April 2016 to 31st March 2017.
• And on the date of loan sanction, the individual does not own any other house, i.e. first-time house owner.

Section 80EE was reintroduced but is valid for loans sanctioned till 31st March 2017 only.

Additional deduction under Section 80EEA

To promote the housing sector, Budget 2019 has introduced an additional deduction under Section 80EEA for homebuyers for a maximum of up to Rs 1.5 lakh. 

To claim this deduction, below mentioned conditions should be met:

• The stamp value of the property does not exceed Rs 45 lakh.
• The loan must have been sanctioned between 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2022 (extended from 31 March 2021)
• On the date of loan sanction, the individual does not own any other house, i.e. first time home buyer.
• The individual should not be eligible to claim deduction under Section 80EE if claiming deduction under this section.

Deduction for a joint home loan

If the loan is taken jointly, each loan holder can claim a deduction for home loan interest up to Rs 2 lakh each and principal repayment under Section 80C up to Rs 1.5 lakh each in their tax returns.

To claim this deduction, they should also be co-owners of the property taken on loan. So, a loan taken jointly with your family can help you claim a larger tax benefit.

Impact of new tax regime on Home Loan benefits

Home Loan benefits under the old tax regime remains the same as one can avail deductions without any restrictions, however the under new tax regime benefits are curtailed, let’s know what they are 

• Deduction under section 80C, 80EE, 80EEA for the payment towards principal component of the home loan, stamp duty, registration charges are not available
• Deduction under section 24b for the payment towards the interest component of the home loan is not available for self-occupied property.
• However, deduction under section 24b is available for let-out property. If net income from let out property results in loss, then such loss will be allowed to set off against profit from another house property but not allowed to set off against other heads of income like salary or other sources.