Section 80G and 12A Registration

80G Registration – An Overview

Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) - trust, society or Section 8 Company run on funds received through different sources of donations. All NGOs are eligible to apply for 80G certification. 80G registration falls under the purview of section 80G of the Income Tax Act of 1961. It benefits the donors in part or full by exempting them from paying taxes on their donations made to a registered NGO.

What are the Requirements for 12A and 80G Registration?

The requirements for 12A and 80G Registration are:

• Registration – Only registered NGOs are eligible for these registrations.
• 12A Must – Only NGOs with a valid 12A registration can apply for 80G registration.
• Income Clarity – NGOs should not have any revenue generation sourced from commercial activities.
• Account Transparency – Maintaining account records with receipts and expenses is a must.

80G & 12A Registration Process

Step 1. Ready your documents

Step 2. File the Application

Step 3. Assesment of Application

Step 4. 80G & 12A Granted

Who is Eligible for Tax Savings under 80G?

• Eligible donations by individuals are entitled for tax exemption u/s 80 G.
• Donations to only registered NGOs are entitled for tax exemption u/s 80G.

What are the Documents Required for 80G Registration?

Here is a checklist of documents required for 80G registration:

• PAN Card copy of the NGO.
• Form 10A if applying for registration under section 80G.
• Bank account statement for the last three years.
• MoA & AoA if the applicant is registered as a Section 8 Company under Companies Act 2013.
• Trust Deed if the applicant is a Trust.
• Registration Certificate and MoA if the applicant is registered as a Society or Section 8 Company.

What is the Procedure for 80G Registration?

Below is the step-by-step guide for 80G Registration:

• Application to be filed in Form 10A under the Income Tax Act.
• Attach all required documents with the application.
• Submit the application to the Income Tax Commissioner (Exemptions).
• The submitted application is reviewed by the Income Tax Commissioner.
• Furnish any additional documents and information (if any) demanded by the Income Tax officials.
• 80G certificate is issued once the scrutiny and validation of the application, documents and the NGO’s registered office is successfully done by the officials.

What are the Benefits of 80G Registration?

The benefits of 80G registration for NGOs are:

• Credibility – Boosts the credibility of the NGO, thereby attracting the confidence of the stakeholders, including the donors.
• Tax Benefits – 80G certifications facilitate donors to avail tax exemptions for the donations made to the NGO.
• Tax Exemption – All NGOs can avail tax exemptions for both the donors as well as the organisation.
• Funding Support – NGOs can apply for grants and receive additional funding from the government.
• Donor Support - Boosts transparency and strengthens donor confidence to attract more donor contributions through different channels.
• Reduced Tax Obligation for Donors – Donors donating to NGOs can use these certificates to reduce their tax burdens despite paying their regular taxes.
• Legal Identity – These certificates establish the legal identity of the NGOs, giving them access to legal documents required to apply for grants and loans.
• Foreign Contributions – NGOs with 80G certification can avail hassle-free foreign contributions.

12A Registration – An Overview

All non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are engaged in social endeavours through charity work. While they run their daily operations through donations, they do sometimes earn income as per the law. However, NGOs that are not registered under Section 12A of the Income Tax Act of 1961 have to pay taxes. But NGOs with 12A registration are exempt from paying taxes on their income.

What are the Documents Required for 12A Registration?

Here is a checklist of documents required for 12A registration:

• PAN Card copy of the NGO.
• Trust Deed if the applicant is a Trust.
• List of the Board of Trustees.
• Registration Certificate and MoA if the applicant is registered as a Society or Section 8 Company.
• Form 10G if applying for registration under section 12A.
• Address proof of the registered office.
• No Objection Certificate (NoC) from landowner in case the office is rented.
• Utility bill copies – Water Bill, Electricity Bill.
• Books of account with records of last three years of operations or since the date of establishment including income tax returns.
• Report of Welfare Activities undertaken in the last three years.
• Bank account statement of last three years.
• List of donors with their PAN and address details.

What Is the Procedure for 12A Registration?

Here is a checklist of documents required for 12A registration:

• Application to be filed in Form 10G in accordance with rule 17A of the Income Tax Act.
• Attach the required documents along with the application.
• Submit the application.
• Submitted application is reviewed and the commissioner validates the authenticity of the NGO.
• Submit any additional information and documents (if any) demanded by the officers.
• Upon satisfactory validation of the documents and the NGO, officers’ issue 12A certificate.
• The commissioner documents the refusal to grant 12A certificate in the report.
• The applicant gets a fair chance to be heard in case their application gets rejected by the commissioner.

What are the Benefits of 12A Registration?

Benefits of 12A registration for NGOs are:

• Income Tax Exemption – It exempts the NGOs from paying income tax on income received, helping them direct their funds to philanthropic causes.
• Grants – It makes the NGOs eligible for receiving grants from the government as well as national and international donors.
• One-Time Registration – It is a one-time registration process and needs no periodic renewal until the NGO remains functional.
• Accruing Wealth – It facilitates the NGOs to accrue some income for future operations not amounting to more than 15% of the funds received for charitable activities.
• Reduced Tax Liability – Accumulated income is not considered as the taxable income of the NGO, thereby reducing its tax liability.
• FCRA Benefits - NGOs with 12A certification are eligible to avail seamless foreign contributions.

Recent Update

As per the recent notification, all existing NGOs registered under Section 80G and 12A now have to re-register themselves under section 80G and 12AA to avail tax exemptions. NGOs wanting to avail CSR Funding will now have to register Form CSR-1.

Recently Introduced Terms for Registration and Re-Registration under section 80g and 12A

• Income Tax department will issue Provisional Registration Certificate to freshly incorporated NGOs, Trusts, Societies, Section 8 Companies submitting an application for 80G and 12A Registrations.
• The issued 80G and 12A Certificates will expire after 3 years and thereafter need to be renewed.
• The Income Tax department will extend the validity of the registration for 5 years and thereafter will require renewal after every 5 years.

The Re-Authorization Process – Timeline

Highlights of the re-authorization process:

• This process takes between 2-3 months.
• The process starts 10-days after the application with attached documents is submitted to the Income Tax Commissioner.
• The validity of the authorized certificate is 5 years.
• The certificate needs to be renewed after every 5 years to ascertain its validity/authorization.

Documents required for Re-Authorization

Here is a checklist of documents required for re-authorization:

• Financial Statements and Income Tax Returns – NGOs need to submit documents for the last three financial year.
• Incorporation Certificate – Submit this certificate in case the applicant is a Section 8 Company.
• Trust Deed – Submit the registered trust deed in case the applicant is a trust.
• Society Registration – Submit the society registration certificate in case the applicant is a society.
• Welfare Activities – Submit a list of all the welfare activities undertaken by the NGO during the course of its operations.
• NGO DARPAN ID – Submit the NGO DARPAN ID, if applicable.
• FCRA ID – Submit the FCRA ID, if applicable.
• 80G & 12A Certificates – Submit the previously received copies of 80G and 12AA certificates.

80G and 12A Registration Fee

• The total registration fees for 80G and 12A is in the range of INR 8,999-12,999.
• The above-mentioned fee is exclusive of GST.

Timeline for 80G and 12A Registration

• Application is filed within 5-10 working days.
• Approval time of the application is between 20-30 working days.

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