ClaimingHouse Rent Allowance (HRA)has long been a common tax-saving strategy for salaried individuals, especially when paying rent to family members such as parents, a spouse or siblings. Whilepaying rent to relatives and claiming HRA was legally permissible under the old tax regime, recent changes proposed under theDraft Income-Tax Rules, 2026will bringstricter reporting and documentation requirements.

Under the new rules — tied to theupcoming Income Tax Act, 2025that takes effect fromApril 1, 2026— employees claiming HRA for rent payments above ₹1 lakh per financial year must nowprovide detailed information about the landlord’s relationship, their name, PAN and address as part of their tax filings. This is designed to give tax officials clearer visibility into rental arrangements that involve family members, which have sometimes been used informally to reduce taxable income without clear documentation.

Importantly, the updated rulesdo not ban paying rent to parents, spouses or other relativesor claiming HRA where a genuine rental relationship exists. However, taxpayers must nowensure formal rental agreements, genuine rent payments through bank transfers, and compliance with reporting obligations. The relative receiving rent must alsodeclare the income as rental earningsin their own tax return for the transaction to hold up under scrutiny.

Tax experts say these changes will make it harder to claim HRA on informal or fictitious rent arrangements — and failure to fully disclose the landlord relationship or provide proper documentation could lead topenalties, interest and noticesfrom the Income Tax Department. While genuine transactions with the right paperwork should remain acceptable, salaried individuals are advised toreview their HRA documentation and disclosuresbefore filing tax returns under the new regime.