How long you held it
Section 2(101) says listed shares, equity-fund units and zero-coupon bonds are short-term if you held them for 12 months or less. Land, a building, physical gold and unlisted units are short-term if you held them for 24 months or less. A listed gold ETF uses 12 months.
Listed equity with securities transaction tax paid: short-term gains are section 196 at 20%. Long-term gains are section 198 at 12.5% on the gain above ₹1,25,000 in the year. Other long-term gains are section 197 at 12.5%, with no ₹1.25 lakh exemption. Cess is 4%.
A worked example
Listed equity bought on 1 April 2020 and sold on 15 June 2026. Sale ₹3,25,000, cost ₹1,00,000. The gain is ₹2,25,000. Other taxable income is ₹15,00,000, so the nil slab is already used. Tax at 12.5% on ₹1,00,000 is ₹12,500. The extra tax, with cess, is ₹13,000.
A house bought in June 2014 for ₹20,00,000 and sold in June 2026 for ₹50,00,000. The Cost Inflation Index moves from 240 to 384, so the indexed cost is ₹32,00,000. Tax at 12.5% is ₹3,75,000. Tax at 20% with indexation is ₹3,60,000. The lower bill, plus cess, is ₹3,74,400. Other income of ₹8,00,000 is inside the new-regime rebate, so it adds no slab tax.