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Leave Encashment Calculator — Tax Exemption FY 2025-26

Calculate your leave encashment tax under Section 10(10AA). Enter your service details to see the exact exempt and taxable amounts, compare government vs private sector treatment, and understand why encashment during service is fully taxable. Updated for FY 2025-26 with the ₹25 lakh limit.

years
Completed years of continuous service with the employer
days
Accumulated earned leave days at the time of retirement/resignation
Average of last 10 months basic pay + dearness allowance (excludes HRA, bonuses)
Government employees get full exemption; private sector has the 4-condition cap
Your applicable income tax slab rate for the financial year

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How to Use This Calculator

Leave Encashment Tax tab

Enter your years of service, earned leave balance (in days), monthly basic + DA, and employment type (private, government, or PSU). The calculator shows the gross encashment, all 4 exemption conditions under Section 10(10AA), the exempt amount, taxable amount, and tax payable at your selected slab rate.

Govt vs Private tab

Enter the same parameters to see a side-by-side comparison of how leave encashment is taxed for government employees (fully exempt) versus private sector employees (subject to the 4-condition cap). See the exact tax difference and understand which conditions limit your exemption.

During Service Warning tab

If you are encashing leave while still employed, enter the amount and your slab rate. This tab shows the full tax liability — because leave encashment during service has NO exemption under Section 10(10AA). It is fully taxable as salary income.

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The Formula

Leave encashment tax exemption under Section 10(10AA) is calculated as the minimum of four conditions for private sector employees:

Exempt Amount (Private Sector) = MINIMUM of:

1. Actual leave encashment received
= Leave balance (days) × Daily salary
where Daily salary = Monthly basic + DA ÷ 30

2. Statutory limit: ₹25,00,000
(increased from ₹3,00,000 by Finance Act 2023)

3. 10 months’ average salary
= 10 × Average monthly basic + DA (last 10 months)

4. Cash equivalent of unavailed earned leave
= MIN(leave balance, 30 × years of service) × Daily salary
(capped at 30 days per completed year of service)

Taxable Amount = Gross encashment − Exempt amount
Tax Payable = Taxable amount × Slab rate

Government Employees: Fully exempt, no conditions, no cap.

The exemption applies only on retirement, superannuation, resignation, or death. Leave encashment during service is fully taxable at slab rates with no exemption.

Example

Rajesh — Private sector IT manager, 20 years service, retiring with 240 days leave

Rajesh is 58, works at a private IT company in Pune, and is retiring with a monthly basic + DA of ₹60,000 and 240 days of accumulated earned leave.

Step 1: Calculate gross encashment

Leave balance240 days
Daily salary₹60,000 ÷ 30 = ₹2,000
Gross encashment240 × ₹2,000 = ₹4,80,000

Step 2: Apply the 4 exemption conditions

1. Actual encashment₹4,80,000
2. Statutory limit₹25,00,000
3. 10 months salary10 × ₹60,000 = ₹6,00,000
4. Unavailed leave equivalentMIN(240, 30×20=600) × ₹2,000 = ₹4,80,000

Step 3: Determine exempt and taxable amounts

Exempt (minimum of 4)₹4,80,000
Taxable amount₹4,80,000 − ₹4,80,000 = ₹0
Tax payable₹0 (fully exempt)

Rajesh’s entire leave encashment of ₹4,80,000 is tax-free because the actual amount is the lowest of the 4 conditions. Had he been a government employee, the result would be identical — but without any of the 4-condition checks.

FAQ

For private sector employees, the maximum tax-free limit is ₹25,00,000 (₹25 lakh) under Section 10(10AA). This limit was increased from ₹3,00,000 by the Finance Act 2023, effective from FY 2023-24. This is the aggregate limit across all employers during your career. For government employees, there is no monetary ceiling — leave encashment is fully exempt. This ₹25 lakh limit remains unchanged for FY 2025-26 (no modifications in Budget 2024 or Budget 2025).
Government employees (Central, State, local authority) receive leave encashment on retirement fully exempt from income tax under Section 10(10AA)(i). There is no monetary ceiling or conditions to satisfy. Private sector employees are governed by Section 10(10AA)(ii) and the exemption is the minimum of 4 conditions: actual amount received, ₹25 lakh statutory limit, 10 months’ average salary, and cash equivalent of unavailed leave (capped at 30 days per year of service). PSU employees are generally treated as private sector unless the PSU qualifies as a government establishment.
Yes, fully taxable. Section 10(10AA) exemption applies ONLY when leave encashment is received at the time of retirement, superannuation, resignation, or death. If you encash leave while still employed (during service), the entire amount is added to your salary income and taxed at your applicable slab rate. This is a common and costly mistake — many employees assume all leave encashment is tax-free, which is incorrect. The TDS will be deducted by your employer and reflected in Form 16.
For the purpose of Section 10(10AA) exemption, "salary" means basic pay + dearness allowance (DA) only. It does not include HRA, special allowances, bonuses, commissions, overtime pay, or any other component. The "average salary" used in condition 3 (10 months’ salary) is the average of basic + DA for the last 10 months immediately preceding retirement or resignation. This definition is consistent across conditions 3 and 4 of the exemption calculation.
Section 10(10AA) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 provides the tax exemption framework for leave encashment. It has two sub-clauses: (i) covers government employees and provides full exemption with no ceiling; (ii) covers non-government (private sector) employees and limits exemption to the minimum of 4 conditions. The section was amended by Finance Act 2023 to increase the statutory limit from ₹3 lakh to ₹25 lakh (CBDT Notification No. 31/2023). The ₹25 lakh limit is the aggregate across all employers — if you claimed exemption from a previous employer, that amount reduces your available limit with the current employer.

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