§ 82
Chapter IV — Computation Of Total Income
Profit on sale of property used for residence
Income-tax Act, 2025
Business owners can claim exemption from capital gains tax when selling a residential property and purchasing a new one in India. The exemption applies if the new property is purchased within one year before or two years after the sale of the original property, or if the capital gains are used to construct a new residential house within three years. Key conditions include:
- the capital gains must be reinvested in a new residential property
- the new property's cost cannot exceed the capital gains amount
- the unutilised amount must be deposited in a specified bank before filing the return of income
📜 Official text of the section +
82. (1) Where an individual or Hindu undivided family—
( a) has long-term capital gains arising from the transfer of a capital asset,
being buildings or lands appurtenant thereto, and being a residential
house, the income of which is chargeable under the head “Income from
house property” (original asset); and
( b) has within one year before or two years after the date of such transfer
purchased, or has within three years after that date constructed, one
residential house in India (new asset),
then, instead of the capital gain being charged to income-tax as income of the tax
year in which the transfer took place, it shall be dealt with as follows:—
( i) if the capital gains exceeds the cost of the new asset, such excess shall
be charged under section 67, and for computing capital gains arising
from the transfer of the new asset within three years of its purchase or
construction, the cost shall be nil; or
( ii) if the capital gains is equal to or less than the cost of the new asset, no
capital gains shall be charged under section 67 and for computing capital
gains from the transfer of the new asset within three years of its purchase
or construction, the cost shall be reduced by the amount of the capital
gains.
(2) If the capital gains referred to in sub-section (1) is not used by the assessee to
purchase the new asset within one year before the date of transfer of the original
asset, or is not utilised for the purchase or construction of the new asset before
filing the return of income under section 263, then—
( a) the unutilised amount shall be deposited in a specified bank or institution
and utilised as per the scheme notified by the Central Government;
( b) such deposit shall be made before the filing of the return and not later
than the due date applicable in the case of the assessee for filing the
return of income under section 263(1); and
( c) the proof of deposit shall be submitted along with such return.
(3) For the purposes of sub-section (1), the amount, already utilised for purchasing
or constructing the new asset, together with the deposited amount under sub-sec-
tion (2) shall, subject to sub-section (7), be deemed to be the cost of the new asset.
(4) If the amount deposited under sub-section (2) is not fully utilised for purchasing
or constructing the new asset within the period specified in sub-section (1), then,—
( a) the unutilised amount shall be charged to tax under section 67 as the
income of the tax year in which the period of three years from the date
of the transfer of the original asset expires; and
( b) the assessee shall be entitled to withdraw such unutilised amount in
accordance with the scheme referred to in sub-section (2).
(5) If the capital gains under sub-section (1) does not exceed two crore rupees, the
assessee may, at his option, purchase or construct two residential houses in India,
and where such option has been exercised,—
( a) for the purposes of sub-section (1)( b), “one residential house in India”
shall be read as “two residential houses in India”; and
( b) for the purposes of sub-sections (1)( b) and (2), “new asset” shall mean
two residential houses in India.
(6) If during any tax year, the assessee has exercised the option mentioned in
sub-section (5), he shall not be entitled to exercise such option for the same tax
year or any other tax year.
(7) If the cost of new asset exceeds ten crore rupees, the amount exceeding ten crore
rupees shall not be taken into account for the purposes of sub-section (1).
(8) If the capital gains on the transfer of original asset exceeds ten crore rupees, the
amount exceeding ten crore rupees shall not be taken into account for the purposes
of sub-section (2).
Capital gains on transfer of land used for agricultural purposes not to be
charged in certain cases.
Plain-language summary — not the official text. Refer to the bare Act and confirm with a professional for your specific case.