New Tax Regime Slabs 2026-27: Tax on Every Salary, Worked Out

Under the new tax regime for Tax Year 2026-27 (FY 2026-27), income up to ₹4 lakh is tax-free, the next ₹4 lakh is taxed at 5%, and the rate rises by 5 points every ₹4 lakh until it reaches 30% above ₹24 lakh. Salaried people also get a ₹75,000 standard deduction and a rebate of up to ₹60,000, so a salary of up to ₹12.75 lakh pays no tax at all. A ₹15 lakh salary pays ₹97,500, ₹20 lakh pays ₹1,92,400 and ₹30 lakh pays ₹4,75,800, cess included.

Every figure in this guide comes from the same code that runs our income tax calculator, so you can enter your own salary and check each step. The slabs are unchanged from FY 2025-26; only the law's name and section numbers moved, as explained in what Tax Year 2026-27 means.

New tax regime slabs for Tax Year 2026-27

The slabs apply to taxable income, that is, after the standard deduction and any other deduction the new regime allows. They are the same for every age: there is no higher exemption for senior citizens in the new regime.

On top of the slab tax you pay 4% health and education cess, and a surcharge if taxable income is above ₹50 lakh. The new regime is the default: if you do nothing, your employer and the tax department use it.

Step by step: tax on a ₹15 lakh salary

Here is the full working for a gross salary of ₹15 lakh, a resident below 60 with no other income.

1. Standard deduction. ₹15,00,000 − ₹75,000 = taxable income of ₹14,25,000.
2. First ₹4 lakh at nil: ₹0.
3. ₹4 lakh to ₹8 lakh at 5%: 5% of ₹4,00,000 = ₹20,000.
4. ₹8 lakh to ₹12 lakh at 10%: 10% of ₹4,00,000 = ₹40,000.
5. ₹12 lakh to ₹14.25 lakh at 15%: 15% of ₹2,25,000 = ₹33,750.
6. Slab tax: ₹20,000 + ₹40,000 + ₹33,750 = ₹93,750.
7. Rebate: none, because taxable income is above ₹12 lakh and the tax (₹93,750) is far below the income above ₹12 lakh (₹2,25,000), so marginal relief does not apply either.
8. Cess: 4% of ₹93,750 = ₹3,750.
9. Total tax: ₹97,500, or ₹8,125 a month, an effective rate of 6.5% of gross salary.

The same salary in the old regime with no deductions other than the ₹50,000 standard deduction would cost ₹2,57,400. Whether your actual deductions close that gap is the subject of our old vs new regime break-even table.

Why a ₹12.75 lakh salary is tax-free

Take ₹12,75,000 of salary. After the ₹75,000 standard deduction, taxable income is exactly ₹12,00,000. Slab tax on that is ₹20,000 + ₹40,000 = ₹60,000. The rebate (old section 87A, now section 156 of the Income-tax Act, 2025) cancels tax of up to ₹60,000 when taxable income is ₹12 lakh or less. Tax after rebate is nil, so there is no cess either.

Two conditions are easy to miss. The rebate is only for resident individuals. And it does not cover income taxed at special rates, such as capital gains on shares or equity mutual funds, which are taxed separately even if your total income is under ₹12 lakh.

Marginal relief just above ₹12 lakh

Without a safety net, earning one rupee more than ₹12 lakh of taxable income would cost you the whole ₹60,000 rebate. The law prevents that: if taxable income is above ₹12 lakh, the tax (before cess) cannot be more than the amount by which income exceeds ₹12 lakh. This is marginal relief.

Take a salary of ₹12,85,000:

1. Taxable income: ₹12,85,000 − ₹75,000 = ₹12,10,000.
2. Slab tax: ₹60,000 + 15% of ₹10,000 = ₹61,500.
3. Income above ₹12 lakh: ₹10,000. Tax cannot exceed this, so relief of ₹51,500 brings it down to ₹10,000.
4. Cess at 4%: ₹400. Total tax: ₹10,400.

Notice what that means. Because cess is added after the relief, someone on ₹12.85 lakh keeps ₹12,74,600 after tax, which is ₹400 less than someone on ₹12.75 lakh. If a raise or bonus takes you only slightly over the line, it is worth checking the numbers with the salary hike calculator and the tax calculator together.

Relief runs out at a taxable income of about ₹12,70,588 (a salary of about ₹13,45,588), where the slab tax and the excess over ₹12 lakh become equal. From there on, normal slab tax applies.

Total tax at common salaries

This table is for a salaried resident below 60 in the new regime, with only the ₹75,000 standard deduction and no other income. "Per month" is the annual tax divided by 12, roughly what your employer deducts as TDS if your salary is steady.

Two things stand out. First, the effective rate stays low for a long way: even at ₹30 lakh you pay under 16% of your salary as tax, because the first ₹4 lakh is free and the next ₹8 lakh is taxed at only 5% and 10%. Second, the ₹75 lakh row includes a 10% surcharge, explained below. Tax is only part of what comes off your CTC; PF and professional tax also reduce take-home, which the in-hand salary calculator and our guide to in-hand salary from ₹10 to ₹40 LPA cover.

Deductions the new regime still allows

The new regime removes most deductions, but not all. These are the ones a salaried person or pensioner can still use in Tax Year 2026-27:

• Standard deduction of ₹75,000 on salary or pension (₹50,000 in the old regime).
• Your employer's NPS contribution, up to 14% of basic + DA, for every kind of employer (old section 80CCD(2), now section 124). In the old regime a private employer's limit is 10%.
• Family pension deduction of one-third of the family pension or ₹25,000, whichever is less, for a family member receiving pension after an employee's death.
• Agniveer Corpus Fund contributions, for those enrolled under the Agnipath scheme.
• Home-loan interest on a let-out property, against the rent from that property. Any loss from it cannot be set off against your salary.

Not allowed in the new regime: 80C (PPF, ELSS, life insurance, EPF), 80D health insurance, your own extra ₹50,000 NPS deduction, HRA exemption, professional tax, and interest on a home loan for the house you live in.

Example: employer NPS can wipe out the tax

Suppose your salary is ₹13.5 lakh and your basic is ₹5.4 lakh. With no NPS, tax is ₹74,100. If your employer restructures the same ₹13.5 lakh so that ₹75,600 (14% of basic) goes into your NPS account, deductions become ₹75,000 + ₹75,600 = ₹1,50,600, taxable income falls to ₹11,99,400, and the rebate covers it. Tax: ₹0.

At ₹15 lakh with a ₹6 lakh basic, an employer NPS contribution of ₹84,000 brings tax down from ₹97,500 to ₹84,396, a saving of ₹13,104. The trade-off is that NPS money is locked in until 60, and only part of it can be taken as a lump sum; see NPS withdrawal rules for 2026 and project the corpus with the NPS calculator.

Surcharge for incomes above ₹50 lakh

Surcharge is a tax on your tax. In the new regime it is 10% when taxable income is above ₹50 lakh, 15% above ₹1 crore and 25% above ₹2 crore; the old regime's top 37% rate does not apply in the new regime. Cess is then charged on tax plus surcharge.

At a ₹75 lakh salary, taxable income is ₹74,25,000. Slab tax is ₹18,07,500, the 10% surcharge adds ₹1,80,750, and cess of ₹79,530 brings the total to ₹20,67,780.

Marginal relief applies at each threshold too. At ₹51 lakh of salary (taxable ₹50,25,000), slab tax is ₹10,87,500. A full 10% surcharge would be ₹1,08,750, but relief limits it to ₹17,500, so that tax plus surcharge (₹11,05,000) is no more than the tax at exactly ₹50 lakh (₹10,80,000) plus the ₹25,000 of extra income. Total tax with cess: ₹11,49,200.

What these numbers leave out

• Not salaried? Freelancers and business owners get no standard deduction, so ₹15 lakh of income is taxed on the full amount: ₹1,09,200 in the new regime.
• Capital gains on shares and funds are taxed at their own rates and are not in these tables.
• Bonuses are part of your salary for the year you receive them, so a Diwali or performance bonus can push you past ₹12.75 lakh.

This guide is general information based on the rules as of October 2026, not tax advice for your situation.

Frequently asked questions

Is income up to ₹12 lakh tax-free in the new regime?

Taxable income up to ₹12 lakh is tax-free for residents because of the ₹60,000 rebate. For a salaried person that means a gross salary up to ₹12.75 lakh, thanks to the ₹75,000 standard deduction. Capital gains taxed at special rates are not covered.

What is the standard deduction in the new tax regime?

₹75,000 a year for salaried employees and pensioners. It is applied automatically; you do not need any proof or investment.

How much tax is payable on a ₹13 lakh salary?

₹26,000 in the new regime. Taxable income is ₹12,25,000; slab tax is ₹63,750, marginal relief cuts it to ₹25,000 (the excess over ₹12 lakh), and 4% cess adds ₹1,000.

Are the new regime slabs different for senior citizens?

No. The new regime uses the same slabs for every age, so a 65-year-old pensioner with ₹15 lakh of pension pays the same ₹97,500 as a younger employee. Only the old regime has higher exemption limits for those aged 60 and above.

Can I claim 80C or 80D in the new regime?

No. Investments under 80C and health insurance under 80D only reduce tax in the old regime. In the new regime the main extra deduction for employees is the employer's NPS contribution.

Sources: Income-tax Act, 2025 (sections 19, 93, 124, 125, 156 and 202); Income Tax e-filing portal guidance on deductions in the new regime; Finance Act, 2026. Rates as of October 2026.