A-rated health plans for you

If you settle for a plan your agent sells or are happy knowing that you have bought the cheapest one, there is a bit of unlearning and a lot of learning in store for you

Term of the day: What is FRBM Act?

• The rules set targets for the phased reduction of the fiscal deficit to acceptable levels

Register property release deed with the sub-registrar of assurances

• The heirship certificate of the deceased for the purposes of the estate will bear the name of his wife, son and daughter

EPF account holders can now update exit date online after changing jobs

• You are no longer dependent on your ex-employer to update the exit date on the EPFO portal
• It is important for provident fund subscribers to keep their EPF account updated

A three-point guide to sticking by your financial resolutions this year

Take one step at a time and stay motivated to ensure you are able to stick to your financial resolution

When is an economy in recession and what is stagflation?

• A recession may be the outcome of tight monetary and fiscal policies aimed at controlling inflation
• Stagflation is another fear that comes up when inflation is high in a period of slow economic growth

ICICI Bank introduces new way of ATM cash withdrawal

• ICICI Bank's cardless cash withdrawal facility is safe and secure
• The bank customers can now withdraw cash from any ICICI Bank ATM without a debit card 24X7

How much return are your assets yielding?

• Too much equity may expose you to undue risk, while being too conservative and investing only in, say, FDs can mean that you are not able to build the corpus that you need
• One must also keep in mind the volatility risk of the asset class, liquidity, lock-in rules and taxation

Sebi to firms: Can’t advise, distribute to same client

Sebi consultation paper proposes client segregation, new rules for financial advisers

NRI whose income isn’t fully taxable can file Form 13 for low TDS certificate

• If the payee qualifies as an NRI during the relevant financial year, the payer is required to deduct TDS at a specified rate on the taxable income of the payee
• It is advisable to document the gift through a gift deed. The taxability of receipt of gift in the US may need to be analyzed separately

Change your mindset towards money to have a financially meaningful 2020

Strike a balance between expenses and savings, and spend time on your money life

Don’t stop saving to pay off home loan

You need to check the cash flows or assess if you can provide for the EMI in addition to your monthly savings.

Online money transfer through UPI: How to protect yourself from frauds

• UPI allows users to transfer money instant from one bank account to another on a real-time basis
• UPI has grown faster than other mode of digital payment in India

Noida girl fights for ₹1.5 lakh stolen from debit, credit cards sans OTP

• When using debit cards abroad, you may not receive an OTP for online transactions up to a certain amount
• All a hacker needs is the card number and CVV

Should you invest in NPS just to get additional tax benefit?

Should you restrict yourself to investing only ₹50,000 to avail of the exclusive deduction or invest more than what offers you a tax benefit under any Section? Ashwini Kumar Sharma asks experts if NPS is an attractive retirement tool

Don’t borrow to invest in tax-saving products

• If you didn’t have the financial discipline to put aside some money all year long for saving tax, it is unlikely that you’ll have it now to pay the loan EMIs
• You may liquidate an FD meant for your retirement, if that goal is far for you, and redeploy the money in ELSS

Things to keep in mind before buying these 4 popular products to save tax

Look at your goal, risk profile and horizon before making tax-saving investments

Look at the break-up of your home loan EMI carefully to maximize deduction

• Under Section 80C, you can claim a deduction of up to ₹1.5 lakh on repayment of the principal component
• If you sell your house within 5-year from the purchase or date of possession, the deduction claimed on principal repayment in the previous years will get revoked

A guide to strategies for tax-saving investments across three life stages

• Your tax-saving investments should be in sync with your financial plan. We tell you what to keep in mind and what to watch out for when investing
• Since you need regular income after retirement, avoid investing in illiquid instruments at this stage