Tax Benefits under NPS
The National Pension System (NPS) offers multiple tax advantages that help subscribers reduce their taxable income while building a robust retirement corpus. These benefits are available to individuals under both Old and New Tax Regimes, subject to specific conditions.
- Tax Deductions for Individual Subscribers
Section 80CCD(1) – Deduction up to ₹1.5 lakh (including other eligible investments under Section 80C)
Section 80CCD(1B) – Additional deduction of ₹50,000 exclusively for NPS contributions
Note: Deductions under Sections 80C and 80CCD(1B) are available only under the Old Tax Regime.
- Tax Benefits on Employer Contributions (Section 80CCD(2))
Corporate Sector:
- Employer contribution up to 10% of Basic Salary + DA (Old Regime)
- Employer contribution up to 14% of Basic Salary + DA (New Regime)
These contributions are fully deductible from the employee’s taxable income.
Government Sector:
- Government contribution up to 14% of Basic Salary + DA is deductible under Section 80CCD(2)
Important: The deduction limit for employer contributions under Section 80CCD(2) is ₹7.5 lakh per financial year.
- Tax Benefits on Withdrawals and Exit
- Partial Withdrawals
- Up to 25% of self-contributions for predefined emergencies (like education, marriage, medical needs) are fully tax-exempt
- Premature Exit
- On exiting NPS before retirement, 20% of the accumulated corpus can be withdrawn tax-free, while 80% must be used to purchase an annuity.
- Maturity / Superannuation
- On retirement, up to 60% of the total corpus can be withdrawn completely tax-free
- Remaining 40% must be invested in an annuity, which provides a lifelong pension
- Annuity Investment
- The investment in an annuity from NPS corpus is exempt from GST
- However, pension income received thereafter is taxable as per applicable income tax slab
- Partial Withdrawals
NPS not only helps build your retirement corpus—it also enables you to save taxes every step of the way. Whether you're self-employed, salaried, or a corporate employee, NPS offers one of the most tax-efficient investment avenues available today.