Donation Deduction: 80G Proofs, Receipts and Eligible Donee Checks
An 80G evidence guide covering donee approval, category, qualifying limit, non-cash requirement, Form 10BE, PAN matching and regime eligibility.
A donation receipt shows payment. It does not by itself prove the institution, category and amount are eligible for deduction.
The Income-tax Act, 2025 took effect on 1 April 2026. FY 2025–26 and AY 2026–27 remain governed by the Income-tax Act, 1961, including the notified AY 2026–27 ITR forms. Tax year 2026–27 beginning 1 April 2026 is governed by the 2025 Act and the Income-tax Rules, 2026. Legacy section numbers and forms should therefore be used only for the period to which they legally apply.
For FY 2025–26, section 80G deduction remains an old-Act claim and is generally unavailable under the default new regime.
The donee’s approval and deduction category determine whether the claim is fifty or one hundred per cent and whether a qualifying limit applies.
Cash donations above the statutory cash ceiling do not qualify under the old-Act rule.
What the taxpayer should understand
- The Income-tax Act, 2025 took effect on 1 April 2026. FY 2025–26 and AY 2026–27 remain governed by the Income-tax Act, 1961, including the notified AY 2026–27 ITR forms. Tax year 2026–27 beginning 1 April 2026 is governed by the 2025 Act and the Income-tax Rules, 2026. Legacy section numbers and forms should therefore be used only for the period to which they legally apply.
- For FY 2025–26, section 80G deduction remains an old-Act claim and is generally unavailable under the default new regime.
- The donee’s approval and deduction category determine whether the claim is fifty or one hundred per cent and whether a qualifying limit applies.
- Cash donations above the statutory cash ceiling do not qualify under the old-Act rule.
- Form 10BD is filed by the approved donee and Form 10BE is issued to the donor; the donor’s return claim should match reported details.
- Donations in kind are not ordinarily eligible for the monetary deduction.
The five-point review
| Check | What to examine |
|---|---|
| Donee | Legal name, PAN and approval. |
| Category | 50/100 per cent and qualifying-limit status. |
| Payment | Date, amount and non-cash trail. |
| Certificate | Receipt and Form 10BE. |
| Return | Old-regime eligibility and Schedule 80G matching. |
Practical example
A taxpayer donates ₹1 lakh online but the receipt has the wrong PAN. The payment is real, yet the return claim can mismatch the donee’s Form 10BD until the institution corrects its reporting.
How to apply the framework
Verify the institution’s approval for the donation date, not only its public reputation.
Preserve the bank statement and Form 10BE; a generic thank-you email is insufficient.
Filing-control workflow
Fix the tax period and statutory route
Identify the financial year, assessment year or tax year before using any threshold, form or section. Review donee, category and payment together. A form filed in June 2026 for AY 2026–27 remains an old-Act filing, while an event occurring after 1 April 2026 can fall under the new Act.
Reconcile the commercial evidence
Start from contracts, invoices, bank statements, payroll, broker records, property documents and statutory certificates. Then reconcile AIS, TIS, Form 26AS, ITR schedules, tax payments and prior returns. Portal information can contain gross values, timing differences or reporting errors and should not replace primary evidence.
Test the live filing result
Review validation messages, selected regime, form acknowledgements, loss schedules, tax-credit matching and processed intimation. Preserve the filed JSON or form, computation, supporting schedules, transaction IDs and any correction request. A saved draft or payment debit is not proof that the statutory task is complete.
Implementation checkpoint
Before treating the filing step as complete, verify the live portal or processed outcome. Confirm the form and regime, taxable income, losses, tax credit, payment mapping, deduction schedule and acknowledgement. Record any remaining mismatch, responsible person and correction deadline. This check prevents a technically submitted return from preserving the wrong tax result.
Action checklist
- Confirm old-regime eligibility.
- Verify donee approval and category.
- Pay through qualifying mode.
- Collect receipt and Form 10BE.
- Match PAN and amount.
- Complete Schedule 80G accurately.
Evidence to keep
- Donation receipt
- Bank transfer
- Form 10BE
- Donee approval/category evidence
- ITR Schedule 80G
Warning signs
- Cash above permitted ceiling
- Donation in kind claimed
- Wrong donor PAN
- Political contribution treated as 80G automatically
- New-regime claim
Finin2min takeaway
Advanced tax filing is a classification and reconciliation exercise. A lawful result depends on the correct period, taxpayer, form, regime, evidence and portal outcome—not a deduction label copied from a checklist.