Clear unveils Tax Planner tool to help users maximise their tax savings

By Leandra Monteiro

Clear, India’s FinTech SaaS firm, has introduced a Tax Planner tool for individual taxpayers. The user must input some basic information and can get the above report personalised to their profile.

A large number of taxpayers put off tax planning until the last minute, which is usually until the employer begins seeking proof for tax-saving investments. Leaving this decision to the last minute leads to taxpayers making choices that don’t align with their financial goals or are not optimal.

To use this tool, taxpayers have to provide basic information regarding their income, deductions, exemptions, etc. The tool then delivers various recommendations on saving taxes considering several sections of the Income Tax Act. These suggestions include tax-saving investments, salary exemptions, medical insurance, loans, tax harvesting, advance taxes, etc. Data with Clear has revealed that only 40% of taxpayers fully exhaust the INR 1.5 lakh tax deduction available under Section 80C (taxpayers with total income exceeding Rs 8 lakh).

The Tax Planner tool will give users detailed information on ELSS, PPF, NPS, medical insurance, salary exemptions (LTA & HRA), purchasing an electric vehicle, home & education loans, and other tips on CTC optimisation, donations, and budgeting principles. These recommendations will be based on a user’s age, city, salary break-up, rental income, etc. Users will also receive Advance Tax payment information and tax harvesting recommendations.

Srivatsan Chari, co-founder, Clear, said, “This tool is the best possible way for people to get curated tax-saving recommendations, all of them in one place. By automating tax planning through this tool, taxpayers can win at optimising their taxes and also save money.”

“The Tax Planner offers 10+ customised recommendations to help you save taxes in an efficient manner. The recommendations include investment tips that’ll help generate inflation-defying wealth. You will also get a Tax-Vantage Score to understand how efficiently you are saving taxes as compared to your peers. This tool also offers an intelligent simulator that dynamically shows the implications of your investment adjustments on tax savings.”