Income Tax Deductions for Persons with Disabilities ( 2019 Update )

Deductions in respect of expenditure on persons or dependents with disability

DEDUCTION OF TAX AT SOURCE- INCOME-TAX DEDUCTION FROM SALARIES UNDER SECTION 192 OF THE INCOME-TAX ACT, 1961
DURING THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2018-19
CIRCULAR NO 01 /2019

Overview

• 1. 80DD Section – Dependent who is a person with disability – Rs. 75000; Dependent who is a severe with disability – Rs. 1,25,000;
• 2. 80U Section – Deductions in respect of a person with disability – Rs. 75,000; Deductions in respect of a severe with disability – Rs. 1,25,000
• Section 10(14) – Rule 2BB – Rule 2BB has been amended and the exemption in respect of transport allowance for financial year 2018-19 shall be available upto Rs. 3200 per month only to the person who is blind or orthopedically handicapped with disabilities of lower extremities, to meet the his expenditure for the purpose of commuting between the place of the residence and the place of his duties.
• sum received under a Life Insurance Policy [Sec 10(10D)] – any sum received under an insurance policy issued on or after 1.4.2013 in cases of persons with disability or person with severe disability as per Sec 80U or suffering from disease or ailment as specified in Sec 80DDB, in respect of which the premium payable for any of the years during the term of the policy exceeds 15 percent of the actual capital sum assured
• Section 80C – Policy issued on or after 1 April 2013 * – In cases of persons with disability or person with severe disability as per Sec 80 U or suffering from disease or ailment as specified in rules made under Sec 80DDB — 15% of the actual capital sum assured

Section 80DD – Deductions in respect of maintenance including medical treatment of a dependent who is a person with disability

Under section 80DD, where an employee, who is a resident in India, has, during the previous year-

• (a) incurred any expenditure for the medical treatment (including nursing), training and rehabilitation of a dependant, being a person with disability; or
• (b) paid or deposited any amount under a scheme framed in this behalf by the Life Insurance Corporation or any other insurer or the Administrator or the specified company subject to the conditions specified in this regard and approved by the Board in this behalf for the maintenance of a dependant, being a person with disability, the employee shall be allowed a deduction of a sum of Rs 75,000/- from his gross total income of that year.

However, where such dependant is a person with severe disability, an amount Rs 1,25,000/- shall be allowed as deduction subject to the specified conditions.

The deduction under (b) above shall be allowed only if the following conditions are fulfilled:-

(i) the scheme referred to in (b) above provides for payment of annuity or lump sum amount for the benefit of a dependant, being a person with disability, in the event of the death of the individual in whose name subscription to the scheme has been made;

(ii) the employee nominates either the dependant, being a person with disability, or any other person or a trust to receive the payment on his behalf, for the benefit of the dependant, being a person with disability.

However, if the dependant, being a person with disability, predeceases the employee, an amount equal to the amount paid or deposited under sub-para(b) above shall be deemed to be the income of the employee of the previous year in which such amount is received by the employee and shall accordingly be chargeable to tax as the income of that previous year.

Section 80U – Deductions in respect of a person with disability

Under section 80U, in computing the total income of an individual, being a resident, who, at any time during the previous year, is certified by the medical authority to be a person with disability, there shall be allowed a deduction of a sum of Rs 75,000/-. However, where such individual is a person with severe disability, a higher deduction of Rs 1,25,000/- shall be allowable.

DDOs should note that 80DD deduction is in case of the dependent of the employee whereas 80U deduction is in case of the employee himself. However, under both the sections, the employee shall furnish to the DDO the following:

1.  A copy of the certificate issued by the medical authority as defined in Rule 11A(1) in the prescribed form as per Rule 11A(2) of the Rules. The DDO has to allow deduction only after seeing that the Certificate furnished is from the Medical Authority defined in this Rule and the same is in the form as mentioned therein.
2. Further in cases where the condition of disability is temporary and requires reassessment of its extent after a period stipulated in the aforesaid certificate, no deduction under this section shall be allowed for any subsequent period unless a new certificate is obtained from the medical authority as in 1 above and furnished before the DDO.

For the purposes of sections 80DD and 80 U some of the terms defined are as under:-
(a) ―Administrator means the Administrator as referred to in clause (a) of section 2 of the Unit Trust of India (Transfer of Undertaking and Repeal) Act, 2002 ;
(b) ―dependant means—

(i) in the case of an individual, the spouse, children, parents, brothers and sisters of the individual or any of them;

(ii) in the case of a Hindu undivided family, a member of the Hindu undivided family, dependant wholly or mainly on such individual or Hindu undivided family for his support and maintenance, and who has not claimed any deduction under section 80U in computing his total income for the assessment year relating to the previous year;

(c) ―disability shall have the meaning assigned to it in clause (i) of section 2 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 and includes ―autism, ―cerebral palsy and ―multiple disability referred to in clauses (a), (c) and (h) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999;

(d) ―Life Insurance Corporation shall have the same meaning as in clause (iii) of subsection (8) of section 88;

(e) ―medical authority means the medical authority as referred to in clause (p) of section 2 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 or such other medical authority as may, by notification, be specified by the Central Government for certifying ―autism, ―cerebral palsy, ―multiple disabilities, ―person with disability‖ and ―severe disability‖ referred to in clauses (a), (c), (h), (j) and (o) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999;

(f) ―person with disability‖ means a person as referred to in clause (t) of section 2 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 or clause (j) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999;

(g) ―person with severe disability means—

(i) a person with eighty per cent or more of one or more disabilities, as referred to in sub-section (4) of section 56 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995;
or
(ii) a person with severe disability referred to in clause (o) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999;

(h) ―specified company‖ means a company as referred to in clause (h) of section 2 of the Unit Trust of India (Transfer of Undertaking and Repeal) Act, 2002.

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