On this Women's Day, let's look at various financial benefits for women

" I think women are foolish to pretend they are equal to men, they are far superior and always have been ", says British novelist and Nobel laureate Sir William Gerald Golding.

Indian women have come a long way from the time when they were dependent on the male members of their family to make themselves independent. Thanks to the various financial benefits given to women, they have been able to cover the distance between then and now.

Income tax
Since the introduction of income tax (I-T), women have been given special attention by the government, thereby paving the way for their financial independence.

The government gave higher tax exemption limit to women. However, this practice was abolished prior to the 2012 budget. In the 2011 budget, the exemption limit difference between men and women was Rs 10,000.

However, to save taxes, women get the same deductions as men under Section 80C to 80U under the Income Tax Act, 1961.
For 2017-18, following are the income tax slabs applicable to women:

GROSS INCOME	RATE	EDUCATION CESS	SECONDARY CESS
Upto Rs 2,50,000	NIL	NIL	NIL
Rs 2,50,001 to Rs 5,00,000	5% of (total Income – Rs 2.5 lakh)	2% of income tax	1% of income tax
Rs 5,00,001 to Rs 10,00,000	Rs 12,500 + 20% of (Income tax – Rs 5 lakh)	2% of income tax	1% of income tax
Rs 10,00,001 & above	Rs 1,12,500 + 30% of (Income tax – Rs 10 lakh)	2% of income tax	1% of income tax

Savings bank account
Banks have come up with savings accounts to cater to the financial, investment and lifestyle needs of the modern woman. There is customised savings bank account for women, which offer various rewards and cash back offers.

Banks now offer discounts and cash back rewards for women who spend money from their bank's debit card on shopping, food, wellness, entertainment, etc.

Some banks have also started offering discounts on medical tests required by women like thyroid tests, etc.

To save for their kid's education, working mothers can open a 'Junior/Kid Account' with the waiver of monthly account balance requirement if it is linked to a Recurring Deposit (RD) Account or Systematic Investment Plan (SIP).

Insurance
While buying an insurance policy, women receive a benefit on the premium paid as compared to their male counterparts. Traditionally, women pay less premium than men for the same sum insured when it comes to buying a life insurance policy.

The reason behind this is that women have a higher life expectancy as compared to men.

Yashish Dahiya, co-founder and CEO of Policybazaar.com, says, "There is definitely a difference in the life insurance premium paid by men and women. The premium rates for women are priced lower because men have a shorter life expectancy than women. Therefore, the likelihood of a death claim by women customers will be lower as compared to men."

He further adds that generally, women get a three-year setback on premium rates as compared to men. For example, a premium for a 31-year-old male and 34-year-old female would be the same, i.e., Rs 991 per month.

Difference in life insurance premium
A comparison for 30-year-old male and female, non-smoker, with Rs 1 crore cover on a policy term of 35 years.

PLAN	Premium – Male	Premium – Female
ICICI iProtect Smart	Rs.991 per month	Rs.879 per month
HDFC click 2 protect	Rs.991 per month	Rs.857 per month
Max OTP Plus	Rs.807 per month	Rs.621 per month
Aegon iTerm	Rs. 676 per month	Rs.558 per month

Source: Policybazaar.com

However, the same cannot be said for health insurance, where the premium is decided on the basis of the age and another factor such as any pre-existing condition. So as you age, you have to pay a higher premium.

About health insurance premium, Dahiya adds, "The health insurance market has been a mixed one when one considers the concept of differential premium to men and women. While there is a clear differentiation offered in the life insurance market, health insurance - both indemnity and critical illness - has shied away from offering much of a differentiation. The absence of a push from most insurers in this direction is due to many factors. We hypothesize that such outcomes may be a result of (1) the mainstay of the market being a floater health policy where both adult family members (husband and wife) are covered and hence the risk is almost always evenly spread (indemnity) and (2) with multiple hospitalisation events expected through the lifetime of a typical health insurance policy (indemnity), the differences may not effectively remain."

But the question is: Are things changing? Dahiya responds by saying that this is, however, changing as at least three insurers today offer differential premiums - Bajaj Allianz, Cigna TTK and Aditya Birla Health. On critical illness piece too, many companies now offer differential premiums owing to the perceived risk of women versus men.

Cheaper interest rate on loans
Many banks offer lower interest rates on home loans if a woman is applying for it or if she is the first applicant for a joint loan. Usually, the interest rate difference is around 0.05 per cent. The same difference goes for car loans too.

The difference in the interest rate may not seem that much, but if looked from the perspective of net interest savings, the longer the term period and higher the loan amount, the more you save.

For instance, a Rs 30 lakh home loan in the name of a woman, or where she is a co-applicant, at the floating interest rate of 8.6 percent for 20 years gives saves approximately Rs 1 lakh as compared to the floating interest rate charged @ 8.65 per cent for men.

Here the assumption is that the interest rate is constant throughout the period. However, with the falling interest rates scenario, a borrower savings may vary.

The net savings on a car loan may not be as exponential as it is in the case of a home loan because of the fact that the tenure of the car loan is for the maximum of seven years, whereas a home loan can last up to 30 years.

Real estate: Investment and taxes
The discount offers just don't end here. Some state government provide exemption with respect to stamp duty and transfer duty in case of sale deeds, conveyance deeds and gift deeds if the property is in the name of a woman.

For Instance, In Delhi, Stamp duty and transfer duty charges when a sale deed is executed in favour of a woman as a buyer is 4% as compared to 6% paid by a man in the same situation. Similarly, same rates are charged by in the case of Conveyance Deeds i.e. conversion of property from leasehold to freehold and Gift deeds.

Some municipal corporation even offers a rebate in the property tax if it is in the name of a woman. For instance, Delhi Municipal Corporation (All, i.e., east, south and west) offer a 30 per cent rebate on property tax for the properties in the name of a woman.

Entrepreneurship
To promote entrepreneurship among women, the government has introduced various policies, schemes and incentives.

The latest scheme,'Stand Up India' allows women entrepreneurs to avail bank loans between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 100 lakh in the areas of manufacturing or trading sector for the first time.

The loan provided under this scheme allows women entrepreneurs to facilitate the purchase of assets such as plant, machinery, etc., and to fund the working loans.

As per the government, the interest rate charged on the loan will be lowest applicable for that category and not exceed the base rate (MCLR) plus 3 per cent plus tenor premium.

The government is also providing training facilities for new entrepreneurs. This includes a step by step guidance for connecting to various agencies providing expertise in skills, entrepreneurship development programs. A nominal fee is charged to avail this facility.