From tax saving investments to SBI's discounted home loan rates — Key deadlines ending on March 31

March 31, 2024 is significant from a personal finance point of view as there are some important tasks to be completed by this date. From tax-saving investments to compliance with regulatory requirements, missing these deadlines could result in penalties and other undesirable consequences.

The deadline for filing updated income tax return (ITR) for financial year 2020-21 is March 31, 2024. This provision, introduced by the Finance Act of 2022, allows taxpayers who missed filing their return for the said financial year or failed to report any income to file an updated ITR or ITR-U.

To file an updated return, taxpayers must use the ITR forms notified for the respective assessment year along with the newly introduced form ITR-U.

Electronic filing is mandatory, with options for using Digital Signature Certificates (DSC) or Electronic Verification Code (EVC), depending on the taxpayer's category.

Income tax planning is one of the important measures for financial planning as the main objective is to reduce tax liability and save more.

The deadline of March 31, 2024 marks the end of financial year FY23-24 and it is the opportune moment to engage in tax-saving investments that can translate into more disposable income.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has set March 31, 2024, as the deadline for fulfilling the Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements for FASTag users.

Failure to comply with this requirement may lead to disruptions in using FASTag services.

The State Bank of India (SBI) is offering campaign interest rates on home loans until March 31, 2024.

Introduced on January 1, these discounted rates in some cases is as high as 65 to 75 basis points.

The discount applies to various types of home loans, including those for non-salaried individuals, NRIs, and senior citizens.