Chartered Accountant
1996 Points
Joined April 2013
Yes if the property is in joint name then proportionate tax benfit is available-
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Buying properties jointly with one’s spouse is very common. The wife’s name is added as a precautionary or safety measure, that is, in order to retain ownership or smooth transfer of ownership in the case of any eventuality like the husband's death. But, in such cases the property purchase may or may not be shared between the spouses. Typically, the husband funds the property purchase while wife is just a co-owner.
As a result, it is assumed that the beneficial owner is the husband and all liabilities and rights — legal and / or tax-related — should ideally be the husband’s. But, this may not always be the case.
Recently, Kapil Kumar (named changed) claimed exemption (under Section 54F) for capital gains he earned from sale of a plot of land by buying another residential property. The twist was that though all payments for purchase of the piece of land were made by Kumar, the house was purchased jointly by Kumar and his wife.
As a result, the Assessing Officer (AO), allowed Kumar to claim only 50 per cent of the exemption. Reason: The wife was a joint owner and hence had a share in the tax exemption