With the income tax filing deadline for the last financial year, FY2020-21, getting pushed to December 31, 2021, many investors, savers or taxpayers may not have had the time or funds to invest for the next financial year, FY2021-22, from the tax planning perspective. But with the deadline for making tax-saving investments for FY2021-22 fast approaching (the last date being March 31, 2022), now is the time to start planning, if you haven’t already done so. “The Income-tax Act, 1961, allows various deductions and exemptions from the taxable income to encourage savings and investments amongst taxpayers. Few of them are short-term, whereas others are long-term investments that come with a lock-in period,” says Archit Gupta, CEO, ClearTax, a fintech software as a service startup. Note that tax deductions and exemptions are only allowed under the old tax regime and not the new tax regime, which has lower income slab rates. The best tax-planning strategy, however, is one that is aligned to your financial goals. For instance, if you are retired, your first priority is...