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HRA Calculator

Enter what you earn and what you pay in rent. The calculator works out how much of your house rent allowance is tax free, and shows all three conditions so you can see which one decided it.

Work Out the Exemption

Basic pay only, no allowances.

Only DA that counts for retirement benefits. Often zero.

The HRA line on your payslip, for the year.

What you actually paid the landlord.

Where you rent, not where the office is. It sets the third condition at 50% or 40%.

What HRA Is, and What the Exemption Does

House rent allowance is the part of your pay your employer gives you towards rent. It is on your payslip whether you rent or not.

It is already in your salary

HRA is a line on the payslip, not something you claim back later. The exemption changes how much tax you pay on it.

You have to actually pay rent

Living in your own home, or in accommodation your employer provides rent free, means there is nothing to exempt.

The old regime only

The exemption is not available under the new tax regime. If you have opted into it, HRA is fully taxable whatever your rent is.

Section 10(13A)

How the Exemption Is Worked Out

Three amounts are compared and the smallest one is the exemption. That is the whole rule, and it is why two people on the same salary can get very different answers.

  1. 1

    The HRA you actually received

    You cannot exempt more allowance than you were paid.

  2. 2

    Rent paid, minus 10% of basic plus DA

    The first 10% of your salary is treated as rent you would have paid anyway, so only what you spend above that counts.

  3. 3

    50% of basic plus DA in a metro, 40% anywhere else

    A ceiling set against your salary, so a very high rent cannot make the whole allowance tax free.

The smallest of the three is the exemption

Which Cities Count as Metro

The third condition is 50% of basic plus DA in a metro and 40% everywhere else, so the city can be worth a lot.

50%

From FY 2026-27, eight cities

  • Delhi
  • Mumbai
  • Kolkata
  • Chennai
  • Bengaluru
  • Hyderabad
  • Pune
  • Ahmedabad

Rule 279 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026 added Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Ahmedabad to the four that already qualified.

50%

FY 2025-26 and earlier, four

  • Delhi
  • Mumbai
  • Kolkata
  • Chennai

If you are filing for an earlier year, only Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai take 50%. Everywhere else is 40%.

It is the city you rent in that matters, not where your employer is registered or where you go to the office.

Who Can Claim It

Salaried employees who receive HRA and pay rent for the home they live in.

You can claim

  • You are salaried and HRA is part of your pay
  • You pay rent for the home you live in
  • You are on the old tax regime
  • You can show what you paid

You cannot claim

  • You live in a home you own
  • Your employer houses you rent free
  • You have opted into the new tax regime
  • You receive no HRA at all

What to keep

  • Rent receipts

    For the whole year. This is the basic proof that the rent was paid.

  • The landlord's PAN

    Required once the rent goes over ₹1,00,000 a year.

  • Form 124

    The declaration you give your employer. It replaced Form 12BB from 1 April 2026, and it is where the relationship goes if you rent from family.

  • A rent agreement

    Not compulsory under ₹1,00,000 a year, but worth having if anyone ever asks.

What Goes Into the Sum

Five figures decide the answer. Getting any of them wrong changes it.

  1. 1 Basic salary The fixed part of your pay. Not bonus, not overtime, not any other allowance.
  2. 2 Dearness allowance Only the part that counts towards retirement benefits. Many private employers pay none at all.
  3. 3 Your city Metro or not, which sets the third condition at 50% or 40%.
  4. 4 HRA received The allowance on your payslip for the year. It is the ceiling on any exemption.
  5. 5 Rent paid What went to the landlord. Only what you can show, and only for the home you live in.

Frequently
Asked Questions

The questions people ask most often about house rent allowance.

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Three amounts are compared and the smallest is exempt: the HRA you actually received, the rent you paid above 10% of basic plus DA, and 50% of basic plus DA if you rent in a metro city or 40% if you do not. Whatever is left of the allowance after that is taxed with the rest of your salary.

From FY 2026-27 there are eight: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Ahmedabad. Rule 279 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026 added the last four. For FY 2025-26 and earlier only the first four qualify, so a return for an earlier year uses the shorter list. Everywhere else is 40%.

No. The exemption under Section 10(13A) is available only under the old regime. If you have opted into the new one, the whole allowance is taxable however much rent you pay.

Yes, if the arrangement is real. There should be a rent agreement and receipts, the rent should move through a bank rather than in cash, and your parent has to declare it as income on their own return. If it comes to more than ₹1,00,000 a year you also have to state the relationship on Form 124.

Yes, in the situation where both are genuine. Renting in the city you work in while owning a home elsewhere lets you claim the HRA exemption on the rent and the home loan interest and principal separately. Renting and owning in the same city invites questions, so keep the reason clear.

Rent receipts for the year, and the landlord's PAN once the rent passes ₹1,00,000 a year. The declaration itself goes to your employer on Form 124, which replaced Form 12BB from 1 April 2026. A rent agreement is not compulsory below ₹1,00,000 a year but is worth keeping.

Then there is nothing to exempt under Section 10(13A), because the exemption applies to an allowance you were paid. Section 80GG is the separate relief for people who pay rent and get no HRA, and it works on different limits.

Give them to your employer with Form 124 and the exemption is applied through the year, so less tax comes off each month. Miss that and you can still claim it when you file your return, but you will have paid the tax first and be waiting on a refund.

Payroll That Handles HRA for You

Niyuk works the exemption out for every employee, applies it through the year and keeps the declarations and receipts against the record.

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