The month of March is about to end and after 5 days April (April 2026) will begin. Like every month, this new month is also going to start with many big financial changes in the country (Rule Change 1st April) and the impact of these changes can be seen on every home and every pocket. Talking about some big changes, then due to the ongoing war in the Middle East, there may be a change in the LPG cylinder price from 1st April in the already ongoing LPG crisis, and with the implementation of the new Income Tax Act, there are going to be changes related to tax and salary. Not only this, the rules regarding PAN card are also going to change (PAN Card Rule Change).
First change: Prices of LPG, ATF to CNG-PNG
Like the first of every month, the beginning of 1st April 2026 can also be seen with a change in the prices of LPG cylinders. After the start of the ongoing war in the Middle East, amidst the severe LPG shortage, oil companies have already given a shock of inflation by increasing its prices and now new rates can be issued on the first of this month. Apart from this, amid the Oil Crisis, a change in the prices of air turbine fuel (ATF Price Change) and the rates of CNG-PNG can be seen.
Second Change: New Income Tax Rule
The second and biggest change in the country is going to be related to tax from the first of April and the Income Tax Act, 2025 will replace the existing law, which is in force since 1961. Along with the New Income Tax Rule, many changes related to tax are going to be seen. According to the government, many changes have been made to reduce the compliance burden on taxpayers and to make the law modern and easy. Talking about some changes related to tax, from April 1, Form 16 which is required for filing ITR, you will no longer get Form 16, instead, another form will be given in its place and you can use that form as an income document.
Form 16 is considered a TDS certificate. It is also a TDS certificate for salary income. Form 16A is a TDS certificate for non-salary income such as rent, interest, business and consultancy fees. Its name will also be changed to Form 131 from April 1. It must be issued within 15 days from the date of issuance of the relevant quarterly TDS statement.
Third change: Rules from HDFC, PNB to Bandhan Bank
If you have an account in HDFC Bank, PNB or Bandhan Bank and you use the ATM of these banks, then ATM rules are going to change for you too from April 1, 2026. If we look at the major changes, HDFC Bank will now count UPI withdrawals in free ATM withdrawals, till now these were counted separately. This means that the free transaction limit through ATM may be reduced for those HDFC Bank customers who use UPI on ATMs and after this, a fee of Rs 23 may be levied on the withdrawals per transaction. Currently, the bank has provided the facility of 5 free withdrawals from ATM in a month.
Apart from HDFC Bank, Punjab National Bank (PNB) has also announced changes to the daily transaction limits for some of its debit cards. Customers will now be able to withdraw between ₹50,000 and ₹75,000 per day, depending on their card category. This limit is lower for cardholders who previously had a daily limit of up to ₹1 lakh.
In addition to PNB, Bandhan Bank is also changing the rules for ATM transactions for debit card holders starting April 1. Bandhan Bank ATM users in metropolitan areas will receive three free transactions per month, while elsewhere, the limit will be five. Once this limit is exceeded, a ₹23 charge will apply for each financial transaction. The bank also stated that if there is insufficient funds in the bank account and the ATM transaction fails, a penalty of ₹25 will apply.
Fourth Change: PAN Card Rules
Other major changes expected from April 1, 2026, include changes related to PAN Cards. Under the new rules, the rules for obtaining or updating PAN cards may become stricter. Reports suggest that Aadhaar cards alone will no longer be sufficient for PAN applications; applicants will also be required to submit other documents. Orders have been issued to complete pending applications before the new rules come into effect.
Fifth change: Cancelling railway tickets will be expensive.
There will be changes for the passengers travelling by train from the first of April. Especially the rules related to cancellation of railway tickets are going to change. Under the rules that will be applicable from 1st April, now the passengers will have to pay more money for cancelling confirmed railway tickets. Now no refund will be issued 8 hours before the departure of the train, earlier it used to be issued up to 4 hours. 50% refund on tickets cancelled 8 to 24 hours before, while 25% deduction will be given on tickets cancelled 24 to 72 hours before and the maximum refund will be given on cancellation of tickets 72 hours before.