Section 54 → Section 82

Exemption on long-term capital gain from sale of a residential house reinvested in another residential house

New reference Section 82

Income-tax Act, 1961Section 54

Individual or HUF; original asset a long-term residential house
New house bought 1 year before or 2 years after transfer, or constructed within 3 years
Exemption capped at ₹10 crore of investment
One-time option of two houses where capital gain does not exceed ₹2 crore
Unutilised gain to be deposited in the Capital Gains Accounts Scheme before the return due date

Applies to FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) and earlier years.

Income-tax Act, 2025Section 82

Same exemption, now section 82
Time windows, ₹10 crore cap and two-house option carried over
Capital Gains Accounts Scheme deposit continues
Lock-in: exemption reversed if the new house is sold within 3 years

Applies from tax year 2026-27 (from 1 April 2026).

What changed

Renumbered and redrafted in simpler language. Commentators report no substantive change to conditions.

Practice notes

Exemption claimed for sales in FY 2025-26 stays under section 54, including the 3-year lock-in that continues after 1 April 2026.
Cross-references move too: the charging section for capital gains (old section 45) is now section 67.

These are summaries, not the statutory text. Read the bare Act for both sections on the Income Tax Department's official site, which also has a side-by-side comparison utility.

Related sections

54F→86Exemption on long-term capital gain from any asset other than a residential house, when net consideration is invested in a residential house 139→263Return of income: original, belated, revised, updated and defective returns