Individuals who sold property in India between April 1 and June 15, 2026, may need to recalculate their advance tax payments after the government released the Cost Inflation Index (CII) for the 2026-27 fiscal year nearly a month after the first-quarter deadline.
The delay creates a compliance gap for investors who relied on indexation benefits to lower their long-term capital gains tax liability but could not access the official inflation benchmark in time to file accurate returns.
The CII for the current fiscal year was set at 384, a figure that serves as the official benchmark for adjusting the acquisition cost of assets to account for inflation.
For property sellers, this index is critical; it directly determines the taxable gain by allowing the purchase price to be inflated to current values.
Without the index, investors were forced to estimate their liabilities or pay tax without the benefit of indexation, potentially overpaying or facing penalties for underpayment.
The Indian Income Tax Department’s late notification disrupts the standard tax calendar, which typically aligns the release of such indices with the start of the fiscal year or well before the first advance tax due date.