Folks, we’re already into the new financial year. And if you’ve learnt your lessons from the last minute running around you did in March to save taxes, chances are you don’t want a repeat this time round.

So now is the time to plan your investments and gain high returns too. Under Sec. 80C of the IT Act you can invest upto Rs 1 lakh in various tax saving avenues. But how do you decide which one to go for? Here’s how you can make a smart move

1) Don’t invest in life insurance only to save tax: Life insurance policies offer tax sops no doubt but if you don’t have dependents, do not have a liability on you (like a home loan, car loan etc) you simply don’t need to buy life insurance. There are better tax saving avenues.

2) MFs - your best bet: Mutual funds are a good vehicle to save tax as also gain handsome returns. Invest in ELSS (Equity Linked Saving Schemes). Mind you, these have a lock in period of three years - but that’ll help your money grow since equities outperform other investment avenues easily.

3) Home loan, PPF, NSC etc: All these offer tax benefits but take into account the lock in period, your investment horizon before you take the plunge. More on this later...