ELSS Tax-Saving Calculator (Section 80C, SIP Growth, Lock-in & LTCG)

How it works

80C deduction = min(₹1,50,000 − other 80C, ELSS invested) · tax saved = tax(income) − tax(income − deduction), old-regime slabs + 4% cess · SIP FV = P × [((1+i)ⁿ − 1) ÷ i] × (1+i), i = monthly rate · LTCG = (gains − ₹1,25,000) × 12.5% × 1.04 · effective return = IRR of (monthly SIP − tax saved ÷ 12) outflows and the post-tax value at the end

An equity-linked savings scheme is an ordinary diversified equity fund with two twists: what you put in counts toward the ₹1.5 lakh Section 80C deduction under the old tax regime, and each instalment is locked for three years — the shortest lock-in of any 80C option. Its value therefore depends on your regime and slab: for a 30% taxpayer under the old regime the deduction is worth almost a third of the investment up front, which lifts the effective return well above the fund's own; under the new regime it is simply an equity fund. On the way out, gains are taxed as long-term equity gains above the annual exemption, which rewards redeeming in tranches.

Worked example

A ₹12,500 monthly SIP (₹1.5 lakh a year) with ₹60,000 of 80C already used gets a ₹90,000 deduction, saving about ₹28,000 a year for a 30%-slab taxpayer under the old regime. Over 10 years at 12% the ₹15 lakh invested grows to about ₹28 lakh; redeeming all at once would owe roughly ₹1.5 lakh of LTCG, leaving ₹26.5 lakh — a post-tax money-weighted return near 11%, or about 15% once the ₹2.8 lakh of tax saved is counted, against about ₹22.3 lakh in PPF and ₹20 lakh in a tax-saver FD.

Frequently asked questions