Filing your taxes might get on your nerves. Well, let’s call that a stereotype, cause this article is going to run through all the details which you will require to file your taxes as a housewife.
Now the questions like should I pay my taxes even if I’m not earning? If yes, then how much? If not, what are the other criteria for which I will have to pay my taxes? And so on.
For the first part, let’s consider the most frequently asked question as to should you pay your taxes if you are a housewife?
The answer is, NO in general
But the exemptions are there, if you are not entitled to any of the returns which include mutual funds, shares, rental property income, fixed deposits, or any other source of income, you will not have to pay taxes of any form to the government.
But before proceeding further, here are some things you will also have to keep in mind, firstly, income proceeded from the husband to the wife is not treated as a taxable amount and secondly, if your husband invests a certain amount in your name, he will have to bear the interests upon his income, i.e. the deposit, and you are not liable to pay taxes on it.
Now, addressing the second question. What if the amount comes in the form of a gift? Let’s clear the above criteria first.
If the amount received is in the form of a gift or any kind of gesture apart from an earning, this will not be included under the taxable bandwagon. However, if the amount exceeds a sum of 50,000/- or greater, the amount will be subjected to taxation under the total income obtained.
The next area of concern is, is there a difference in the amount paid as tax for men and women?
- Everyone is entitled to pay the same tax. The parameters depend on the income and not on who pays it.
If there are earnings such as from tuitions, home cooking businesses, SME’s, and so on, these currencies also come under the tax payable zone irrespective of who runs the business. If any income is more than the limit of exemption laid by the government, this is treated as the taxable amount.
Another point to be remembered is that if your income is below the taxable slab annually, and you fall into the category which is below the age of 60, you will be exempted from paying taxes.
Even if you are not entitled to pay up taxes, you can still file the ITR voluntarily as the filing of ITR does not in any manner mean that you have to pay taxes as taxes are to be paid only if the tax slab limits are exceeded.
But the most important thing to remember is that you will have to prove through documentation among the things you have not paid taxes for. For instance, during your loan application, you will be asked to portray the financial bills such as income tax returns. During this, a no income status would come in handy.
Not only this, even during visa applications, you will be asked for income proof stacked up from the previous years. The former would serve as a document. Other things to keep in mind are, health insurance does not fall under the bandwagon of taxable commodities.
The above-mentioned points are some of the frequently asked questions as well as the most important pointers to remember while filing your taxes as a housewife. File your taxes before the deadline dates to attract levies and other gestures.
Email your concerns at info@taxreturnwala.com