Understand the particulars of Form 12BB of income tax and submit it on time to reduce the tax outgo.
While filing your annual taxes, you need to calculate the Tax Deducted at Source or TDS. If you’re a salaried employee and have opted for the old tax regime, your employer requires you to fill and submit Form 12BB.
This form is used for declaring the investments you made in the financial year, so you can claim tax benefits on expenses or investments. Thus, by submitting this form, you can claim tax deductions under the old tax regime.
Since June 2016, the Income Tax Department has implemented a standardised format of Form 12BB. Here are the contents:
PAN number of the employee
Name and address of the employee
Details of Leave Travel Allowance (LTA) claimed
Details of House Rent Allowance (HRA) received
Declaration of the rent amount paid, if HRA is received
Declaration of investments made under various tax-saving schemes like the National Pension System (NPS), Public Provident Fund (PPF), Equity Linked Saving Scheme (ELSS), etc.
Declaration of the interest amount of a home loan, if any
Other deductions and exemptions, if applicable
Employers usually request you to submit the form at the beginning of the financial year. This helps them estimate the TDS calculations for the entire year.
Form 12BB needs to be submitted later, close to the end of the financial year. The specific due date is generally determined by your employer, and is usually around January or February of the following year.
The 12BB form serves various purposes, briefly outlined below:
On submitting the 12BB form, you can claim deductions on your net payable annual tax. This means your tax liability is reduced, helping you save money. Moreover, doing so can increase your take-home pay as well.
Some deductions you can claim using Form 12BB are house rent allowances and travel allowances, among others.
Form 12BB allows you to provide details of your yearly expenses as well as those investments that qualify for deductions. This helps in documenting and keeping track of your investments in one place.
Submitting Form 12BB ensures that your tax calculations are accurate. This is because all your deductions and expenses help in the easy computation of your tax, resulting in accurate calculations.
While filling Form 12BB, provide the following information and documents:
Your name, home address and Permanent Account Number (PAN)
Your employer’s name and address
The financial year of declaration
Details of exemptions and deductions you claim
HRA- total rent paid to the homeowner, home address and full name of the homeowner
LTA- information about the expenses incurred during travel
Information of investments
Interest paid on a home loan during the specific assessment year
Additional deductions and tax exemptions
Check out the Form 12BB download process here:
Visit the official website of the income tax department at https://incometaxindia.gov.in/pages/downloads/forms.aspx
Enter the form number on the tab towards the leftmost section of the page
Click on ‘Search’
For downloading the form in a fillable format, you are required to download a setup file first
You may also print a PDF version of the form if required
After downloading, you need to double-click on the extracted file to open the file opener on your device
After installing the file open, check the page and click on ‘12BB Form’ to download it
After the 12BB form is downloaded, click on it to open it
Here are the deductions that you can enjoy through Form 12BB:
You are required to provide information regarding the house rent allowance for claiming deductions on the same. This information includes:
Receipts of the rent
Name and address of the homeowner
PAN card of the homeowner if the annual rent exceeds ₹1 Lakh
Another deduction you can claim through Form 12BB is a leave travel allowance. This deduction depends on your salary package. You must note that you can claim deductions only for domestic travel twice within a span of 4 years.
You can also claim deductions on the interest paid on your home loan. This is according to Section 80C and Section 24(b). For claiming deductions, you need to provide the following information:
Interest certificate from the lender
The total interest that is payable to the home loan lender
Name and home address of the home loan lender
PAN/Aadhaar card of the home loan lender
You can get the benefit of tax deductions under Sections 80C, 80CCC, 80CCD, 80D and 80E. Here are some crucial details regarding these sections:
80C: Deductions on the premium payment of life insurance and other investments
80CCC: Deductions on the premium payment of annuity plans
80CCD: Deductions on contribution to NPS
80D: Deductions on the premium payment of medical insurance
80E: Deductions on interest payment of an educational loan
80G: Deductions on donations made towards specific organisations
To get the 12BB Form, visit the official website of the Indian Income Tax Department. You can search for it by entering the form number and clicking on the ‘PDF’ icon to view it in your browser. You can download it to your computer from there.
You are required to mandatorily fill the Form 12BB while planning your taxes to claim tax deductions and other benefits. The due date is at the end of the financial year, generally in January or February.
You are eligible to get tax deductions of up to ₹1.5 Lakhs, under the old tax regime. The eligibility for this amount is based on your investments and various other criteria.
You will not be eligible for tax deductions if you fail to submit Form 12BB within the due date. This will result in a higher tax liability.
No, it is not compulsory for every salaried individual to fill out Form 12BB. Only those who’ve opted for the old tax regime need to fill out Form 12BB. This form allows you to claim tax deductions on investments or expenses made during the financial year.
No, Form 16 and Form 12BB are not the same. Form 16 provides details of your salary, TDS, and other tax-related information. However, Form 12BB is a declaration for the investments and claims during the financial year that qualify for tax deductions.