12A Registration

Overview

Section 12A Registration (now 12AB under the Finance Act 2020) exempts the income of a charitable or religious trust or institution from income tax. Without 12A registration, the NGO's entire income — including grants, donations, and programme income — is taxable at the applicable rate. With 12A registration, the surplus after application of income to charitable objects is fully exempt from tax.

Eligible organisations include Public Charitable Trusts, Registered Societies, and Section 8 Companies with objects confined to charitable or religious purposes. The new regime (effective April 2021) requires provisional registration (Form 10A) first for new NGOs, valid for 3 years, followed by permanent registration (Form 10AB) after 3 years of operations and audit reports. MFiling prepares the Form 10A application, reviews objects clause alignment with eligible charitable purposes, and manages Income Tax portal filings.

Government fee: Nil. MFiling professional charges: from Rs.9,899.

Key Benefits

Documents Required

How it Works

Frequently Asked Questions