Form 15G, Form 15H to Save TDS on Interest Income

Form 15G and 15H are self declaration form file to request non deduction of TDS on certain income such as pension, interest from bank, divided, rent, insurance commission or received payment in respect of deposit under national saving schemes, etc. if the total income is below the basic exemption limit or persons total tax liability for year is nil. 

Form 15G is filled by any person (other firm and company) who are below 60 years and form 15H filled by resident senior citizens aged  60 years or more. These forms should be filed at the beginning of the financial year in which such income is expected to be received.

What are Form 15G and Form 15H?

Form 15G and Form 15H are self-declaration forms that a taxpayer submits to request that income tax or TDS be not deducted on certain income received from the bank, dividend, rent, insurance commission, or withdrawal of EPF, NPS, etc. because their income does not exceed the basic exemption limit or their tax liability on total income is nil.

For this, providing PAN is compulsory. Some banks allow you to submit these forms online through the bank’s website.

Note: 

• If an individual aged less than 60 years has an interest income exceeding the basic exemption limit available to that person, then Form 15G cannot be filed. 
• However, if the interest income and other income of the person put together does not exceed the applicable basic exemption limit and no tax liability arises, in such a case, Form 15G can be filed to avoid TDS on interest income. 
• In the case of an individual aged 60 years or more, where the total income including interest income is less than the applicable basic exemption limit, then Form 15H can be filed to avoid TDS. 

Important Points for Understanding

• Form 15G and 15H are applicable only for ‘residents’, hence a non-resident cannot take the benefit of these forms.
• Condition of interest income being more than the basic exemption limit is applicable for form 15G only and not for form 15H. 
• Form 15H can be submitted by senior citizens even if the interest income is more than the basic tax exemption limit, provided that the taxable income (after deductions) is below the exemption limit.

Form 15G and Form 15H PDF Download

Form 15G Sample

Form 15H Sample

TDS For Which Form 15G And 15H Can Be Filled

Important Information for Deductor's

If you are a TDS deductor, the Income-tax Act requires you to allot a Unique Identification Number or UIN to everyone who submits the Form 15G/Form 15H. You must file a statement of Form 15G/Form 15H on a quarterly basis and must retain these forms for 7 years.   

When Should You Submit Form 15G and Form 15H?

Form 15G and Form 15H are valid for one financial year. So, please submit these forms every year at the beginning of the financial year, preferably by April 1st. This will ensure that the bank does not deduct any TDS on your interest income. 

Forgot to Submit Form 15G or Form 15H?

A lot of taxpayers forget to submit Form 15G and Form 15H on time. In such a situation, the bank might have already deducted the TDS. Based on your situation, you can do any of the following.

• File your income tax return to claim refund of TDS: The only way to seek refund of excess TDS deducted is by filing your income tax return. Banks or other deductors cannot refund TDS to you, since they have already deposited it to the income tax department. Income tax department will refund excess TDS, after you file an income tax return.
• Submit Form 15G and Form 15H immediately: Most banks deduct TDS every quarter. If you forget to submit Form 15G or Form 15H, don’t worry. Submit it at the earliest so that no TDS is deducted for the remaining financial year. To claim refund of excess TDS deducted, start filing your return on ClearTax.

Filling False Form 15G and 15H

• If the person filing a self-declaration in Form 15G and 15H is to avoid a TDS deduction on income.
• Even though such person's income is above the maximum exemption limit or the tax on the total income for a year is not nil.
• In that case, such a declaration shall be considered false, and 
• The person shall be punishable with imprisonment of 6 months, which may extend to 7 years or more, and a fine if the tax amount evaded exceeds Rs. 25,000. In other cases, imprisonment of 3 months, which may extend to 2 years or more, and a fine.
   

Where Can You Submit Form 15G or Form 15H Apart From Banks?

While these forms can be submitted to banks to make sure TDS is not deducted on interest, there are a few other places too where you can submit them.

TDS on EPF withdrawal

TDS is deducted on the EPF balance if withdrawn before 5 years of continuous service. 

If you have had less than 5 years of service and plan to withdraw your EPF balance of more than Rs.50,000 you can submit Form 15G or Form 15H. However, you must fulfill the conditions (listed above) to apply for these forms. It means the tax on your total income including the EPF balance withdrawn should be nil.  

TDS on income from corporate bonds

If you hold corporate bonds, TDS is deducted is on them if your income from them exceeds Rs 5,000. You can submit Form 15G or Form 15H to the issuer requesting non-deduction of TDS.  

LIC maturity proceeds

• From 1st September 2019, TDS is 5% on the amount of income comprising the proceeds paid or payable upon maturity. 
• In case of failure to submit PAN details of the deductee to the LIC companies, TDS is to be deducted at the rate of 20%.
• You can submit Form 15G/Form 15H to request that no TDS be deducted since the tax on your total income is nil. 

TDS on post office deposits

Post offices that are digitalized also deduct TDS and accept Form 15G or Form 15H, if you meet the conditions applicable for submitting them.   

TDS on rent

TDS is deducted on rent exceeding Rs 2.4 lakh annually. If the tax on your total income is nil, you can submit Form 15G or Form 15H to request the tenant to not deduct TDS (applicable from 1 April 2019).

TDS on Insurance Commission

TDS is deducted on insurance commission, if it exceeds Rs 15,000 per financial year. However, insurance agents can submit Form 15G/Form 15H for non-deduction of TDS if tax on their total income is nil.

TDS on Dividends

If the dividend income exceeds Rs. 5,000 then TDS is required to be deducted. Form-15G/Form-15H can be submitted for non/lower deduction of TDS.

How to fill Form 15G?

• Name of Assesse (Declarant) – Enter your name as per income tax records & PAN number as per your PAN card,
• Status – Input whether you are an individual or HUF
• Previous Year –Input the current financial year for which you are filing up the form
• Residential Status – this form can only be filled by residents.
• Fill in Address details along with PIN code, email, and telephone number.
• Whether assessed to tax under the income tax act, 1961? – If your income was above the taxable limit in any of the past 6 years, answer this question with ‘yes”.
• If yes, the latest assessment year for which assessed – mention the latest year in which your income was above the taxable limit.
• Estimated income for which declaration is made – fill sum of interest or other income on which TDS should not be deducted.
• Estimated total income of the previous year in which income mentioned in column 16 to be included – Calculate your total income from all sources, salary, stipend, interest income, any other income that you have earned during the year. Include the income mentioned in 16, above
• Details of Form 15G other than this form filed during the previous year, if any;- please mention the total number of Form 15G filed for that particular year.
• Also, fill the aggregate amount of income for which form 15G filed – Also provide the total income for which Form 15G was filed
• Fill details of income for which declaration is filed; Identification number of relevant investment/account etc, nature of income, Section under which tax is deductible, Amount of income – Provide fixed deposit account number, recurring deposit details, details of NSCs, life insurance policy number etc. (many of these are chargeable to tax under section 56 of the income tax act)
• Signatures – mention your capacity when signing on behalf of a HUF or AOP

Do not submit Form 15G, if your income has to be clubbed with someone else. Interest income from an FD for a non-earning spouse or a child has to be clubbed with the income of the depositor. In such a case Form 15G is not valid. PAN of the depositor is mandatory and TDS should be deducted in the name of the depositor.

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