I-T dept to consider March 31 for senior citizen eligibility

While considering the higher exemption limit of tax liability for senior and very senior citizens, a person will be considered to have attained a particular age on March 31 if his or her birthdate is a day later on April 1, the CBDT today said.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) issued a clarification on the issue, relying on a Supreme Court ruling of 1986, as it directed all its Assessing Officers (AOs) to henceforth "ascertain the age while computing tax liability of a taxpayer falling in individual category, being an Indian resident" by the new ruling.
"The CBDT...Hereby clarifies that a person born on April 1 would be considered to have attained a particular age on March 31, the day preceding the anniversary of his birthday. In particular, the question of attainment of age of eligibility of being considered a senior/very senior citizen would therefore be decided on the basis of above criteria," it said.

The Board said the apex court, while giving the said ruling, had observed that "while counting the age of the person, whole of the day should be reckoned and it start from 12 O' clock in the midnight and he attains the specified age on the preceding, the anniversary of his birthday."
The I-T department, for tax returns filing purposes, considers 60 years of age for a person to be considered senior citizen and 80 years for very senior citizen.
While no income tax is to be paid by senior citizens up to annual income of Rs 3 lakh the same limit for very senior citizens is Rs 5 lakh.