Calculate your exact House Rent Allowance (HRA) tax exemption under the old tax regime
The HRA exemption calculator computes the tax-free portion of your House Rent Allowance under Section 10(13A) of the Income Tax Act. HRA exemption is available only under the old tax regime and only if you actually pay rent.
HRA exemption is the minimum of these three amounts:
Only four cities qualify as "metro" for HRA: Mumbai, Delhi (NCR), Kolkata, and Chennai. All other cities — including Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur — are non-metro. This affects condition 3: metro employees get 50% of basic salary, non-metro employees get 40%.
If your annual rent is below ₹1 lakh (₹8,333/month), you do not need rent receipts — a self-declaration is enough. For annual rent of ₹1 lakh or more, rent receipts and the landlord's PAN are mandatory.
Yes — you can pay rent to your parents if they own the house and claim HRA exemption. A proper rent agreement must be signed and rent should be transferred via bank. Your parents must show this rent income in their tax return.
If your employer does not provide HRA but you pay rent, you can still claim deduction under Section 80GG (up to ₹60,000 per year or 25% of total income), subject to conditions. This is the alternative for self-employed individuals and those without HRA.