Tax
STCG
Also known as: Short-Term Capital Gains
Tax on profits from assets sold quickly, like equity held under a year, taxed at a higher rate.
STCG applies when you sell an asset before the long-term holding period, which is one year for listed equity and equity funds.
For equity, short-term gains are taxed at a flat 20% (recently raised from 15%), regardless of your slab.
The message is clear: selling equity fast is taxed harder than holding it patiently.
For example
Sell an equity fund after 8 months with a ₹50,000 profit and you pay STCG at the flat equity rate, not your normal slab.