Health is wealth (and tax savings)
Section 80D lets you deduct health insurance premiums under the Old Tax Regime. The key point beginners miss: 80D is completely separate from the ₹1.5 lakh 80C basket. It is its own deduction, so it stacks on top of 80C.
The limit depends on age: younger people get ₹25,000, senior citizens (60+) get ₹50,000.
The 80D limits at a glance
Section 80D: ₹25,000 for self/family if below 60, ₹50,000 if a senior citizen is involved (Source: Section 80D, Income Tax Act).
| Situation | Self + family | Parents | Max total |
|---|---|---|---|
| You and parents below 60 | ₹25,000 | ₹25,000 | ₹50,000 |
| You below 60, parents 60+ | ₹25,000 | ₹50,000 | ₹75,000 |
| You and parents all 60+ | ₹50,000 | ₹50,000 | ₹1,00,000 |
Reading the table
- "Self + family" means you, your spouse, and dependent children.
- "Parents" is a separate bucket you add on top — and it does not matter whether your parents are dependent on you.
- The senior-citizen rate of ₹50,000 kicks in the moment the insured person is 60 or older.
Two rules that trip people up
- Payment mode: premiums must be paid digitally, by cheque, or bank transfer. Cash is not allowed for insurance premiums.
- Preventive check-up sub-limit: within the limits above, up to ₹5,000 can be for a preventive health check-up — and this specific ₹5,000 may be paid in cash. It is a sub-limit, not an extra amount.
What you should do
- List who is insured and their ages.
- Apply ₹25,000 or ₹50,000 to each bucket (self/family and parents) based on the oldest insured person in it.
- Make sure every premium was paid digitally, then claim under the 80D schedule.
Common mistake
Adding the ₹5,000 check-up on top of the cap. It lives inside the ₹25,000 or ₹50,000 limit. A ₹24,000 premium plus ₹5,000 check-up still caps at ₹25,000, not ₹29,000.
How LastMinute ITR helps
Working out which bucket your parents fall into is fiddly. LastMinute ITR takes the premium amounts and ages and calculates your exact 80D figure, shows it in your deductions summary, and checks whether the old regime pays off. You then file and e-verify on incometax.gov.in.