Here’s how sending your child to school can help you save on taxes

• Legal guardians and parents can directly benefit from their child’s educational expenses.
  
• Under section 80C of the Income Tax Act,1961, tuition fee is counted in the tax benefits that can be availed within an upper limit of ₹ 1.5 lacs per annum.
  
• Other educational expenses like development tax, examination fee, coaching fee and professional courses do not qualify for tax rebate.

As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman gears to announce the union budget next month, Indians are looking forward to revised income tax slabs and estimates. However, there’s a lot to look back at what can be saved from the current taxable income.

Legal guardians and parents can directly benefit from their child’s educational expenses. Under section 80C of the Income Tax Act,1961, tuition fee is counted in the tax benefits that can be availed within an upper limit of ₹ 1.5 lakhs per annum. However, this also includes other investments like life insurance and provident funds.

Tuition fee is the amount paid to the institution at the time of admission into a full-time programme — including play school and kindergarten. The tax benefits are applicable to both government and private institutions. This means, for a person paying 30% of his salary as tax and also pays nearly ₹80,000 as school fee can save upto ₹25,000 on his taxable income.

While tution fee falls into the ambit of the income tax guidelines, other educational expenses like development tax, examination fee, coaching fee and professional courses do not qualify for the rebate.

The guidelines are applicable for upto two children. This includes cases of adoption as well. Parents who pay the school fee can claim tax benefits. Both parents can claim tax individually for the amount they have paid as fee.

However, deductions cannot be claimed for educational expenses on foreign universities.

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