Any person can make a donation to the PM CARES Fund (Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund) to contribute towards the relief work for the Coronavirus pandemic. The donations made to the fund can be claimed as a tax deduction under section 80G of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
Payment facility provided by other banks: Various banks such as ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank and so on have received the mandate to collect funds for the PM CARES Fund. For example, ICICI Bank has designated a bank account for collecting donations.
The details required for making the payment are the same as required in the method shown above. However, the payment gateway does not support payment through all the banks except SBI. Hence, it is advisable to make the payment through the website pmindia.gov.in.
The government has allowed for a 100% tax deduction under section 80G for the donations made to the PM CARES Fund. In case of donations made from 1st April 2020 until 30th June 2020, taxpayers also have an option to claim the deduction for the FY 2019-20.
However, do note that the deduction for donation can be claimed only once. A taxpayer who claims a deduction in FY 2019-20 cannot claim in FY 2020-21.
For the FY 2020-21, an individual or HUF making the donation can also claim deduction under the new optional tax regime. Once a deduction is claimed under section 80G for a particular financial year, it cannot be claimed again under any other provision of the income tax law for any other purposes.
In the case of corporates making donations to the PM CARES Fund, the donations will also qualify as eligible expenditure under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) spending mandated for Companies registered under Companies Act, 2013.
Any person such as an individual, any firm, company or any other person can make a donation to the PM CARES Fund. Any amount of donation can be made starting from as low as Rs 10. The donation has to be made electronically or through UPI. The fund is constituted to enable donations from all the sections of the society. The PM CARES Fund will not be allotted funds from the government’s budget, but will entirely consist of voluntary contributions from the public. Hence, the spending from the fund will not require approval from the Parliament.
The PM CARES Fund is set up as a public charitable trust under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister of India. The members of the fund include the Finance Minister, Home Minister and the Defence Minister.
The PM CARES Fund is meant to provide relief, support or assistance of any kind towards any public health emergency or any other type of emergency, distress or calamity. The fund will also financially assist in the development of healthcare facilities or any other necessary infrastructure for the public.