80G Registration in India

What is 80G registration?

80G registration is an approval granted to a fund or institution so that donations it receives become eligible for deduction in the donor's hands. The approval is granted by the Commissioner or Principal Commissioner (Exemptions) on an application by the organisation, and it carries its own order, its own unique registration number, and its own validity period, separate from the entity's exemption registration.

The approval is not a badge to be displayed once and forgotten. It is the front end of a reporting chain: the organisation reports every donation in an annual statement, the department generates a certificate for each donor from that statement, and the donor's deduction is matched against it when the return is processed. An approval that is not backed by accurate reporting produces disallowed donor claims and awkward conversations with your biggest givers.

It is also conditional on the organisation continuing to satisfy the substantive conditions in the section — charitable objects, no diversion of income for private benefit, proper books, and a subsisting entity registration. The donor benefit falls away the moment the underlying exemption does.

What does 80G actually give the donor?

The donor deducts a percentage of the donation from taxable income — not from tax. Donations fall into four categories depending on which fund or institution received the money, and the category determines both the percentage and whether a ceiling linked to the donor's income applies.

An ordinary approved NGO sits in the last row. A donor giving ₹1,00,000 typically deducts ₹50,000 from taxable income, subject to the ceiling below — the tax actually saved then depends on the donor's slab. Telling donors they "save 50% tax" overstates the benefit and creates resentment later; the honest pitch is that half the gift is deductible.

Categories are fixed by the Act and by the notification covering the recipient, not by what the receipt says. We confirm which category your approval places you in and give you accurate receipt wording, because the deduction category is one of the details the donor has to report.

What is the qualifying limit on an 80G deduction?

For donations in the two capped categories, the amount eligible for deduction is restricted to a prescribed share of the donor's adjusted gross total income — long set at ten per cent. Adjusted gross total income is gross total income reduced by certain other deductions and specified incomes, so it is not the same as taxable income.

The mechanics matter for large gifts. If the qualifying limit is ₹5 lakh and a donor gives ₹8 lakh to a 50%-category NGO, the eligible donation is capped at ₹5 lakh and the deduction is half of that. The excess is not carried forward to a later year. A donor planning a substantial gift is better served by staging it across years, or by giving to a category without a ceiling.

There is no single overall cap on 80G the way there is for some other deductions — the limits are recipient-by-recipient. Because the arithmetic is donor-specific, an NGO should never promise a donor a number. Point them to their own advisor, or to an online CA consultation.

Which donations do not qualify for deduction?

• Cash donations above the prescribed cash limit — long set at ₹2,000 — so larger gifts must come through banking channels
• Donations in kind: food, clothing, medicines, equipment, books, or computers, however valuable
• Volunteer time, pro bono services, or free use of premises
• Sums that are really payment for something — event tickets, sponsorship with branding rights, advertising, or auction purchases
• Donations to an organisation whose approval has expired, lapsed, or been cancelled before the donation date
• Donations by a taxpayer who has opted for a regime that gives up chapter deductions
• Corporate CSR spending mandated under company law, which is treated separately from a voluntary donation
• Donations where the organisation never reported the gift, so no certificate exists to support the claim

The sponsorship point trips up small NGOs constantly. If a company gets logo placement, stall space, or naming rights, the payment is commercially motivated and may be a business expense for them rather than a donation for you — and it may attract GST. Decide the character of the money before you issue a receipt, not after.

How is 80G approval different from 12A registration?

They are routinely applied for together and just as routinely confused. One protects the organisation; the other benefits the giver. They are separate applications, decided separately, with different validity and different consequences on lapse.

The dependency runs one way. You can hold the entity registration without donor approval — sensible for an organisation funded entirely by grants or government schemes. You cannot meaningfully hold donor approval without the entity registration, because the approval conditions assume it.

Who is eligible for 80G approval?

• A fund or institution established in India for a charitable purpose
• Holding a valid entity registration as a non-profit organisation under the income-tax law
• An instrument that does not permit application of income or assets for the benefit of any particular religious community or caste
• Objects and activities that are genuinely charitable and not a cover for business
• Not a wholly religious trust — the section is aimed at charitable purposes, with a limited allowance for religious spending
• Business income, if any, kept separate with separate books, within what the section allows
• Regular books of account maintained and audited where the threshold applies
• Public charitable trusts, registered societies, and Section 8 companies are all eligible forms

The community-and-caste condition is the one that most often forces a deed amendment. An instrument that confines benefits to members of a single community can hold entity registration and still be refused donor approval. Fix the instrument first — retrofitting after a refusal costs more.

How long is 80G approval valid?

Provisional approval for a newly formed organisation runs for three tax years. Regular approval runs for five tax years and has to be renewed by application at least six months before expiry. The longer ten-year term available on the entity registration for smaller organisations does not extend to the donor approval — the donation approval period is five years.

That mismatch is worth diarising carefully. An organisation on a ten-year entity registration still has to renew donor approval on the shorter cycle, and it is easy to assume one date covers both. The approval order states its own validity; read both orders and keep both dates.

Approval is prospective. Donations received after expiry and before a renewal order are not saved by a later renewal, so a lapse hits the donors who gave during the gap — which is the reputational cost, not just a compliance one.

How to apply for 80G registration online?

1. 1.Confirm the instrument has no community, caste, or private-benefit restriction that would bar approval
2. 2.Secure or confirm the entity registration as a non-profit organisation first
3. 3.Register the organisation's PAN on the income-tax e-filing portal and arrange the signatory's digital signature
4. 4.Select the correct application form and section code — provisional, regular, conversion, or renewal
5. 5.Prepare the activity note, donor-funding plan, and a sample donation receipt format
6. 6.Attach the instrument, registration certificate, governing-body PANs, and financial statements for the preceding years
7. 7.Attach the audit report where the audit threshold was crossed, and the existing approval order for a renewal
8. 8.File the application on the portal under the exemption forms section and verify it
9. 9.Respond to any notice calling for clarification, documents, or a hearing
10. 10.Receive the approval order and note the unique registration number and validity
11. 11.Put the approval number and validity on every donation receipt, and start the donation-reporting cycle

The same application form serves both the entity registration and the donor approval, but they are filed as separate applications with different section codes and produce separate orders. Filing one and assuming it covers both is a common and expensive misunderstanding.

What documents are required for 80G approval?

• Self-certified trust deed, society bye-laws, or MOA and AOA of the Section 8 company
• Registration certificate from the charity commissioner, sub-registrar, Registrar of Societies, or MCA
• PAN of the organisation and of each trustee, governing-body member, or director
• Copy of the entity registration order under the non-profit provisions
• Copy of the existing provisional or regular approval order, for conversion and renewal applications
• Financial statements for the preceding years, and the audit report where applicable
• Note on activities with programme evidence — reports, beneficiary data, utilisation statements
• Details of donors and funding pattern, including any foreign contribution registration held
• Sample donation receipt format showing the approval number and the required particulars
• Bank statement in the organisation's name showing donation receipts through banking channels

Where the organisation has any business or commercial receipts, keep them separately identified in the accounts. Mixed books are read as an inability to demonstrate that the section's separation condition is met.

What annual reporting does 80G approval create?

This is the part organisations underestimate. An approved institution has to file an annual statement of donations naming every donor with their identifier and the amount, and then issue each donor a certificate generated from that statement. The donor's deduction is matched against this data when the return is processed.

1. 1.Capture donor name, address, PAN or Aadhaar, amount, and donation type at the time of receipt
2. 2.Issue a numbered receipt quoting the approval number and the deduction category
3. 3.Keep cash receipts within the prescribed cash limit and route larger gifts through banking channels
4. 4.Reconcile the donation ledger to the bank statement before the year closes
5. 5.File the annual statement of donations by the prescribed due date — 31 May following the financial year
6. 6.Download the department-generated donation certificate and issue it to every donor
7. 7.File a correction statement promptly where a PAN, amount, or donation type was wrong
8. 8.Reconcile the donation total in the statement with the figure in the audit report and the return
9. 9.Tell donors when the statement has been filed, so they do not claim before their certificate exists

Where you receive donations continuously through the year, the portal allows pre-acknowledgement numbers to be generated so certificates can be issued manually at the time of receipt; every such certificate must then be accounted for in the annual statement. Under the Income-tax Act, 2025 these two documents carry new form numbers, so confirm the current form before filing.

What are the penalties for not filing the donation statement?

Late filing of the donation statement attracts a fee for every day of delay, and a separate penalty in the prescribed range can be levied for failure to furnish the statement or the certificate. The amounts are meaningful for a small NGO, and the fee accrues daily rather than as a one-time charge.

The harder cost is on the donor side. If the statement is not filed, the certificate is never generated, and the donor's claim is either disallowed on processing or flagged for verification. Corporate and high-value donors treat that as a failure of the organisation, not of the tax system, and it is one of the fastest ways to lose a repeat giver.

Mismatches cause the same outcome more quietly — a wrong PAN, a donation recorded in the wrong year, or a receipt total that does not tie to the statement. Reconcile before filing, and file a correction statement as soon as an error surfaces.

Can a donor claim 80G under the new tax regime?

Broadly, no. The donation deduction sits in the chapter of deductions that the concessional personal regime gives up, so an individual taxed under that regime cannot claim it. Since the concessional regime is now the default for individuals, a growing share of donors get no tax benefit from a gift at all.

This changes how honest fundraising is pitched. Ask a prospective donor which regime they file under before leading with the tax benefit, and lead with the work instead where the benefit is unavailable. Companies, firms, and trusts sit under different rules again, so a corporate donor's position has to be checked separately.

The regime landscape has moved repeatedly in recent years and the Income-tax Act, 2025 has re-lettered the provisions. Treat any statement about a specific donor's benefit as something to be confirmed for that donor and that year.

How much does 80G registration cost and how long does it take?

Figures above are indicative and statutory positions change; we confirm what applies to your entity and state before filing, and quote professional fees separately from government charges. Provisional approval is usually the quicker route because the examination is largely documentary; regular approval takes longer, since activities, accounts, and the funding pattern are examined and queries or a hearing are common.

Why do 80G applications and donor claims fail?

• Instrument restricts benefits to a particular religious community or caste
• Objects or activities read as substantially religious rather than charitable
• Business receipts not separated in the books, or beyond what the section permits
• Entity registration not held, expired, or under cancellation proceedings
• Payments to trustees, relatives, or related concerns that look like private benefit
• Activity evidence too thin to show the organisation actually does what it claims
• Receipt format missing the approval number, the donor identifier, or the deduction category
• Cash donations above the prescribed limit receipted as deductible
• Annual donation statement not filed, filed late, or filed with mismatched PANs and amounts
• Renewal application filed after expiry, leaving a gap in which donations were receipted

The pattern is clear: approvals are refused on the instrument and the activity evidence, while donor claims fail on receipting and reporting. The first is fixed before filing; the second is a discipline you have to build into how donations are recorded from day one.

Why choose Arjun Filings for 80G registration?

Arjun Filings runs 80G registration as a checklist-first engagement: a qualified CA or CS scopes the work, tells you exactly which documents are needed, and reviews every form before it is signed and submitted. You get a named specialist, a status update at each stage, and a compliance calendar for whatever comes next.

• End-to-end help for 80G registration
• Department-ready document pack
• Application tracking updates
• Renewal calendar starter