You may not be receiving the Section 87A tax rebate because your taxable income exceeds the threshold, you are not a resident individual, or you have special-rate income like capital gains. The rebate is available only if your total income is under ₹5 lakh (old regime) or ₹12 lakh (new regime, for FY 25-26).
The primary objective of this rebate is to reduce the tax burden for low and middle-income earners. It effectively allows eligible taxpayers to pay zero income tax if their net taxable income falls within the specified limit. Only resident individuals are entitled to claim the rebate under Section 87A.
Rebate is a tax reduction available to resident individuals when they earn income within 10% tax slab. Under the new regime, a rebate of Rs.60,000 is allowed for an income up to Rs. 12 lakhs. Under the old regime, a rebate of Rs. 12,500 is allowed for an income up to Rs. 5 lakhs.
If you did not receive a payment
Other reasons why you may not have received a payment or it is delayed: You were not a CCPC at all times during the 2023 or 2024 tax year. Your 2023 corporation income tax return was filed after July 15, 2024. Your 2024 corporation income tax return was filed after July 15, 2025.
Common Mistakes to Avoid with Section 87A
The maximum rebate has been increased to ₹60,000 for resident individuals with taxable income up to ₹12,00,000. Due to the standard deduction of ₹75,000 for salaried individuals, the effective no-tax threshold is ₹12,75,000 for salary earners.
If you're eligible — and either didn't receive the full amount of the third Economic Impact Payment or if you think you qualify for a Recovery Rebate Credit that is more than the amount of the third Economic Impact Payment you received — you'll need to file a 2021 tax return to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit even if ...
Tax rebate eligibility
Generally, federal rebates are based on your tax return information on file with the IRS. Typically, rebates are limited by your income and family size. For example, a taxpayer with adjusted gross income (AGI) at or over a certain amount may be ineligible for a rebate.
Generally, if you were a U.S. citizen or U.S. resident alien in 2021, you were not a dependent of another taxpayer, and you either have a valid SSN or claim a dependent who has a valid SSN or ATIN, you are eligible to claim the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit.
Only the resident individuals are legible to avail rebate as per this section. Senior citizens above the age of 60 years and below the age of 80 can avail rebate u/s 87A. ISuper senior citizens above the age of 80 years do not hold eligibility to claim rebates u/s 87A.
Form 10-IEA is a declaration made by the return filers for choosing the 'Opting Out of New Tax Regime'. An Individual, HUF, AOP (not being co-operative societies), BOI or Artificial Juridical Person with business or professional income must submit Form 10-IEA if they wish to pay income tax as per the old tax regime.
For example, if a taxpayer has a gross salary of ₹5 lakh, after applying the standard deduction of ₹50,000, the taxable income is reduced to ₹4.5 lakh. This means the individual can claim a full ₹12,500 rebate under Section 87A, making their final tax payable zero.
New tax regime: “The ITR utility does not allow automatic 87A rebate when the total income exceeds Rs 7 lakh includes special rate income like STCG under Section 111A or LTCG under Section 112A. The rebate can only be claimed if the slab-rate income alone is within the Rs 7 lakh limit.
One of the common reasons why a claim for refund may be disallowed is because it was not filed in a timely manner.
It's better to itemize if your total eligible expenses (mortgage interest, state/local taxes up to a limit, charitable donations, medical costs) exceed the Standard Deduction amount for your filing status; otherwise, taking the Standard Deduction is simpler and saves more money. You must choose one method, and the goal is always to reduce your taxable income the most, so compare the totals and pick the larger figure.
The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC or EIC) is one of the largest credits available, worth up to more than $8,000 for tax year 2025 for a family of five. It is specifically for low- to moderate-income earners.
A low tax return often means you paid less tax upfront (through withholding) than you actually owed, or you received fewer credits/deductions, but it could also be due to a tax refund offset, where the IRS keeps part or all of your refund for unpaid debts like child support or student loans. Common reasons include higher income without W-4 adjustments, changes in dependents (like a child aging out of credits), math errors, or changes in tax laws.
Things that can delay a refund:
The return has errors, is incomplete or is affected by identity theft or fraud. The return needs a correction to the child tax credit or recovery rebate credit amount.
No, the IRS is not currently sending out new $1400 stimulus checks in 2026, but they did wrap up sending out final automatic payments for unclaimed 2021 Recovery Rebate Credits in late 2024/early 2025, with the deadline to claim these missed payments passing on April 15, 2025; new checks would require new Congressional action, and any texts about current stimulus payments are scams, say FOX 5 DC, CNBC, and IRS.gov.
Am I eligible? The IRS has defined "qualified taxpayers" as those who filed a 2021 tax return but left the data field for the Recovery Rebate Credit blank, or filled out $0 when the individual was eligible to receive the credit.
An individual who is resident in India and whose total income does not exceed Rs. 5,00,000 is entitled to claim rebate under section 87A. Rebate under section 87A is available in the form of deduction from the tax liability.
Section 87A provides eligible taxpayers with a full income tax rebate if their total income is below Rs 5 lakh under the old tax regime.
Tax rebates are different from tax refunds, as they are issued at any time during the year and are not related to deductions and credits claimed on a return. Some governments provide incentives in the form of rebates for the purchase of hybrid cars that reduce gasoline consumption.