What Is Form 10BD Under the Income Tax Act and Who Must File It?

The connection between Form 10BD and the donor's Section 80G deduction is probably the most important part.

The Income Tax Department has explained that certain donees have to report donor information through Form 10BD, and the donor's Section 80G deduction claim is expected to match the information reported by the donee.

After filing 10BD, the organisation can download the donation certificates in Form 10BE and provide them to donors. The current Income Tax Department user manual says Form 10BE becomes available for download after filing Form 10BD, subject to the system process.

So if you're an individual donor, you don't normally file 10BD yourself. If you're running or managing an eligible charitable organisation, that's when the Form 10BD compliance becomes relevant.

I dealt with this when helping with compliance for a charitable organisation. One thing that initially caused confusion was thinking that Form 10BD was something the individual donor had to file.

That's not how it works. The donee/reporting organisation files Form 10BD. The donor generally receives Form 10BE from the organisation after the donation details have been reported.

The Income Tax Department's guidance says that Form 10BD is mandatory for the relevant reporting entities when donations covered by the requirement are received. If no donation was received during the financial year, the Department says Form 10BD isn't required for that year.

The form includes information such as donor details and donation information, so organisations need to maintain accurate records.

I would still check the latest Income Tax Department instructions before filing because the applicable forms and provisions can change.

Form 10BD is basically a statement of donations received that certain eligible reporting entities are required to submit to the Income Tax Department.

According to the Income Tax Department, it is required from trusts, institutions or NGOs approved under Section 80G, and the requirement also relates to specified entities covered under Section 35(1A). The statement contains details of donors and donations.

The deadline is generally May 31 immediately following the financial year in which the donations were received. So donations received during FY 2025-26 would generally be reported by May 31, 2026.

Form 10BE is different. After filing Form 10BD, the reporting organisation provides the donor with the donation certificate in Form 10BE.

So, in simple terms, 10BD is the reporting statement filed by the organisation, while 10BE is the certificate provided to the donor.