Is Hyderabad a metro for HRA exemption?

No. Hyderabad falls under the 40% basic cap on HRA exemption, not the 50% metro cap. The four cities classified as metro under Rule 2A are Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata. Hyderabad's economic scale and rent levels no longer match the original four, but the IT Act has not been updated since 1962 to reflect that.

How does Telangana's slab-based Professional Tax work?

Telangana collects PT in three tiers: ₹0 below ₹15,000 monthly salary, ₹150 between ₹15,001 and ₹20,000, and ₹200 above ₹20,000. For most salaried employees above the ₹20K threshold, the monthly deduction is ₹200 and the annual total is ₹2,400. The structure mirrors neighbouring Andhra Pradesh's exactly, as both states inherited the 2013-era APPT Act after the 2014 bifurcation.

Is take-home the same in Bangalore and Hyderabad at the same CTC?

Effectively yes. Both states are non-metro for HRA (same 40% cap), both levy modest PT at ₹2,400/year for typical salaries, both apply the same central-government tax rules. A ₹20 lakh CTC employee will see essentially identical take-home in either city. What differs is rent and cost of living — Hyderabad is typically 15-25% cheaper than Bangalore at comparable amenity levels, so practical purchasing power is meaningfully higher.

Does HITEC City have any special tax status?

No. HITEC City is a development zone under Telangana state policy, but it has no special status under the central Income Tax Act. HRA classification, PT rules, and income tax slabs apply identically to employees in HITEC City and the rest of Hyderabad.

Hyderabadsalary calculator

Hyderabad pays Bangalore-level salaries to engineers in the HITEC City cluster, with Bangalore-style cost of living in the corridors around Madhapur and Gachibowli. Like Bangalore, it is not classified as a metro under Rule 2A — HRA exemption caps at 40% of basic, not 50%. The state-level tax is collected by Telangana on a salary-slab basis: ₹150 a month between ₹15,001 and ₹20,000 of monthly salary, ₹200 above ₹20,000. The slab structure is identical to neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, a vestige of the 2014 bifurcation.

For a ₹16,00,000 CTC in Hyderabad at default 50% basic and the new regime, the calculator below shows about ₹1,06,250 a month in take-home. The non-metro HRA classification is the largest single difference from a comparable Chennai job at the same CTC — about ₹75,000 less HRA exemption a year under the old regime, though the new regime erases the gap entirely.

01 · Your salary

Annual CTC

15.00 lakh · monthly ₹1,25,000

City

Age group

Monthly rent paid — optional, for HRA

02 · Your take-home

→ Monthly take-home

Old regime

₹96,422

per month

Annual: ₹11,57,060

Tax/yr: ₹1,24,465

New regime

₹1,00,308

per month

Annual: ₹12,03,692

Tax/yr: ₹77,833

New regime saves you ₹46,632 per year — about ₹3,886/month.

CTC breakdownwhere your money goes

Basic salary50% of CTC₹7,50,000

HRA40% basic₹3,00,000

Special allowance₹3,23,925

Employer PF ₹90,000

Gratuity ₹36,075

Total CTC₹15,00,000

Monthly deductionswhat comes off your salary

Employee PF − ₹7,500

Professional taxTelangana− ₹200

Income taxnew regime− ₹6,486

Total monthly deductions₹14,186

Tax-saving investmentsold regime only

80C investmentsPPF, ELSS, EPF · cap ₹1.5L

80D health insuranceself ₹25K + parents ₹25K

Home loan interestsection 24(b) · cap ₹2L

80CCD(1B) NPS selfextra NPS · cap ₹50K

Employer NPS80CCD(2) · % of basic, both regimes

Tax breakdownnew regime · FY 2025-26

Gross taxable salary₹13,73,925

Less: standard deduction− ₹75,000

Taxable income₹12,98,925

0–4Lat 0%₹0

4L–8Lat 5%₹20,000

8L–12Lat 10%₹40,000

12L–16Lat 15%₹14,839

Tax on slabs₹74,839

+ Health & Education Cess (4%)+ ₹2,994

Total income tax₹77,833

Customise CTC structureadvanced

Basic % of CTC

range 40-60, default 50

Employee PF mode

Include gratuity in CTC

PT work state

defaults to your city

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Hyderabad · the salary-structure details

Hyderabad's non-metro HRA classification matters for the same reason it matters in Bangalore: salaries and rents have caught up to or exceeded the historical metros, but the IT Act hasn't. A senior engineer in Madhapur paying ₹40,000 monthly rent on a ₹62,500 basic gets ₹3,00,000 of HRA exemption under the 40% cap, against ₹3,75,000 the same person would claim in Chennai. The 800km between the two cities shifts the math by ₹75,000 of annual exemption capacity.

Telangana's slab-based Professional Tax is moderate by Indian standards. Below ₹15,000 monthly salary, PT is ₹0. Between ₹15,001 and ₹20,000, ₹150 a month. Above ₹20,000, ₹200 a month. For most salaried engineers above the ₹20K threshold, the deduction is ₹200 × 12 = ₹2,400 a year — same as Karnataka or Gujarat in absolute terms. The annual cap is the same constitutional ₹2,500 that applies to every state.

The Hyderabad-specific consideration worth knowing is the relationship between Cyberabad's salary structure and the HRA cap. Many Hyderabad tech employers anchor their CTC packages on the Bangalore market rate to compete for talent. If your Bangalore offer was ₹25 lakh and your Hyderabad offer is also ₹25 lakh, your take-home will be very nearly identical (Karnataka and Telangana both levy modest PT at the same effective rate for typical salaries). What's not identical is rent — Hyderabad's gross rents are typically 15-25% below Bangalore's at comparable amenity levels, so the practical purchasing power of the same CTC is meaningfully higher in Hyderabad.

Frequently asked questions

Is Hyderabad a metro for HRA exemption?: No. Hyderabad falls under the 40% basic cap on HRA exemption, not the 50% metro cap. The four cities classified as metro under Rule 2A are Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata. Hyderabad's economic scale and rent levels no longer match the original four, but the IT Act has not been updated since 1962 to reflect that.
How does Telangana's slab-based Professional Tax work?: Telangana collects PT in three tiers: ₹0 below ₹15,000 monthly salary, ₹150 between ₹15,001 and ₹20,000, and ₹200 above ₹20,000. For most salaried employees above the ₹20K threshold, the monthly deduction is ₹200 and the annual total is ₹2,400. The structure mirrors neighbouring Andhra Pradesh's exactly, as both states inherited the 2013-era APPT Act after the 2014 bifurcation.
Is take-home the same in Bangalore and Hyderabad at the same CTC?: Effectively yes. Both states are non-metro for HRA (same 40% cap), both levy modest PT at ₹2,400/year for typical salaries, both apply the same central-government tax rules. A ₹20 lakh CTC employee will see essentially identical take-home in either city. What differs is rent and cost of living — Hyderabad is typically 15-25% cheaper than Bangalore at comparable amenity levels, so practical purchasing power is meaningfully higher.
Does HITEC City have any special tax status?: No. HITEC City is a development zone under Telangana state policy, but it has no special status under the central Income Tax Act. HRA classification, PT rules, and income tax slabs apply identically to employees in HITEC City and the rest of Hyderabad.