Section 54 of Income Tax Act
Exemption under section 54 can be claimed in respect of capital gains arising on transfer of capital asset, being long-term residential house property. To claim an exemption under section 54, another house should be purchased within a period of one year before or two years after the date of transfer of the house.
Exemption under Section 54 of Income Tax Act
A person wanted to shift his residence due to certain reason, hence, he sold his old house and from the sale proceeds, he purchased another house. In this case, the objective of the seller was not to earn income by the sale of the old house but to acquire another suitable house. If in this case the seller was liable to pay income tax on capital gains arising on sale of old house, then it would be a hardship on him.
Section 54 gives relief from such a hardship. Section 54 gives relief to a taxpayer who sells his residential house and from the sale proceeds, he acquires another residential house. The detailed provisions in this regard are discussed in this part.
Basic conditions for Section 54 of Income Tax Act
The following conditions should be satisfied to claim the benefit of section 54.
- The benefit of section 54 is available only to an individual or HUF.
- The asset transferred should be a long-term capital asset, being a residential house property.
- Within a period of one year before or two years after the date of transfer of old house, the taxpayer should acquire another residential house or should construct a residential house within a period of three years from the date of transfer of the old house. In case of compulsory acquisition the period of acquisition or construction will be determined from the date of receipt of compensation.
Download Section 54 of the Income Tax Act in PDF format online from the link given below.