As the new financial year FY2025-26 begins today - April 1, 2025 - we will shed light on all changes there have been with respect to online payments, income tax slabs, GST rates, bank balance, LPG cylinder prices, TDS, tolls, credit cards, among others.

With these changes, a float, citizens, and taxpayers must stay abreast of the new income tax rules, revamped credit card charges, changes made in the unified payments interface (UPI), and changes made in the personal finance realm.

UPI Payments

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has newly announced guidelines from April 1 in order to enhance the security of UPI payments:

• If it’s an inactive number, no payments will be allowed.

• Public and private sector banks and third-party UPI providers will have to phase out inactive numbers that are linked to UPI due to security reasons.

• If anybody wants to keep their mobile number, which is linked to UPI, valid, one has to approach their respective bank to update their details by April 1, 2025.

Income Tax Slabs

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced new updated income tax slabs under the new regime which will come into effect from April 1, 2025.

For instance, individuals who are earning up to INR 12 lakh a year will not need to pay income tax under the revised income tax slabs. 

For salaried individuals, a standard deduction of INR 75,000 will be applied; effectively making INR 12.75 lakh salary tax-free under the new tax regime.

Adding to this, over tax slab rates have also been revamped under the new tax regime, wherein, the basic exemption limit has been increased from INR 3 lakh to INR 5 lakh.

Increase in the TDS Relief

In her Budget speech, Nirmala Sitharaman announced an increase in the limit for tax deducted at source (TDS) from INR 5,000 to INR 10,000. This will enable investors in equities and mutual funds to keep more in hand while TDS is cut only once the annual dividend income exceeds INR 10,000.

Credit Cards

For customers who are using credit cards, rules have been updated for many products. The users should check with their respective banks for specific details. 

Here we have laid out some credit cards being affected by changes:

There have been changes in reward points structures for SBI Card with SimplyCLICK and Air India SBI Platinum Credit Card. Furthermore, there has been a revision of Vistara Credit Card benefits for Axis Bank due to the airline's merger with Air India.

Minimum Bank Balance

Public sector lenders which include SBI, Canara Bank, and Punjab National Bank to name a few are updating their minimum balance requirements from April 1.  Furthermore, the new minimum balance will be determined by the market divided with respect to rural, semi-urban, and urban areas. With this change, the customers who are unable to maintain a minimum balance will be penalized.

Unified Pension Scheme Updates

The Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) will come into effect from April 1, which was previously launched in August 2024 so as to replace the old pension scheme (OPS).  This shift will affect about 23 lakh central government employees with at least 25 years of service.

As per the new rules, staff with at least 25 years of service will be eligible for a pension equivalent to 50 percent of their last 12 months' average basic salary.

Changes in Goods and Services Tax Rules

The GST portal will have a required mandatory multi-factor authentication (MFA) to ensure better security in place for taxpayers. Adding to this, E-Way Bills (EWBs) can only be generated for base documents that don’t exceed 180 days.

National Highway Tolls Increase

The toll price for national highways PAN India is set to increase aby bout 3 percent as follows:

• Lucknow: There will be a hike of INR 5 per trip to INR 10 for light vehicles, and INR 25 for heavy vehicles passing through Lucknow, respectively.

• Delhi-Meerut Expressway, Eastern Peripheral Expressway, and NH-9: An increase from INR 5 to INR 170, the one-way toll for cars and jeeps traveling from Sarai Kale Khan to Meerut. Furthermore, light commercial vehicles and buses will have to pay INR 27,5,and trucks to pay INR 580, respectively.

• NH-9's Chhijarsi toll plaza: Toll to increase to INR 175 for cars. And for light commercial vehicles, it would be INR 280. While for buses and trucks, it would be INR 590.

• Ghaziabad to Meerut toll will increase by INR 5 to INR 75.

• Delhi-Jaipur highway's Kherki Daula toll plaza: Toll for cars and jeeps will remain unchanged, while monthly pass for larger vehicles will be up by INR 20 to INR 950. Furthermore, commercial cars and jeeps will pay 85 one-way, with a monthly pass up from INR 20 to INR 1255.

LPG Gas Revised Rates

The prices for 19 kg commercial LGP gas have been reduced by INR 41 and will come into effect from the first of April, 2025. The prices of commercial LPG cylinders were reduced by INR 7, earlier on February 1. 

Check the new rates in your city:

• Bengaluru: INR 1,836

• Chennai: INR 1,921

• Hyderabad: INR 1,985

• Kolkata: INR 1,868

• New Delhi: INR 1,762

• Mumbai: INR 1,713