Income Tax in a Jiffy

We have just finished with the panic and stress related to taxes–paying taxes, figuring out rebates, watching closely for changes in income tax rules and provisions in the budget. Here’s an application, I-Kar that promises to make these tasks simpler.

The software comes in two versions–for chartered accountants and individuals. The only difference is that the former has modules for calculation of taxes for corporates as well, while the latter has provisions to calculate only income tax for individuals. You can use this to calculate income tax for all the
assessees in your family. We looked at the one for chartered accountants.

You can refer to details about various deductions under Section 80 and rebates under Section 88, prepare and view reports that have to be filed with your tax returns. There is an option to go to specialized features like calculating reverse tax, advance tax, or set off and carry forward losses.

You can access the Rebates under Section 88 to figure out your investment option

The first time you use the software, you have to fill in the details of the individual or company in the Static Details area. An ID for the user will automatically be generated after this. After filling in details in predetermined fields, it will calculate your tax liability and generate reports like the Saral form, which have to be filed to the Income tax department as part of your tax returns. While calculating the tax, the software takes into account all the various rebates and deductions like special tax relief for women. It thus saves you from the hassle of remembering various rebates and deductions.

You can use the software for tax planning as well–once you feed in your income details, and get an estimate of how much tax you’ll have to pay, you can access the Rebates under Section 88 to figure out your investment options..

The software will be upgraded as tax rules and regulations change. You will be able to manually edit this and the company will provide upgrades as well. 

Overall, this a useful software to make tax calculation less of a hassle.

Price: Rs 299 for individuals; Rs 5,000 for chartered accountants. 

Contact:  Brainswave Technologies, Pune.
Tel: 020-6812110/9972
E-mail: info@brainswave.com 

Pragya Madan in Mumbai