I am 58 years old with FD interest of Rs 60,000. Can I submit Form 15G?

Form 15G requires that your total interest income for the year not exceed the basic exemption limit, and that tax on your total income be nil. If your total income (including the Rs 60,000 interest) keeps you below the basic exemption limit after deductions, you can submit Form 15G. Once you turn 60, you would instead use Form 15H from the following financial year.

Do I need to submit Form 15G/15H every year, or is it a one-time declaration?

It must be submitted every financial year, before the first interest payment/credit of that year (typically by early April). A declaration submitted for one year does not carry over to the next.

What happens if TDS is deducted despite submitting Form 15G/15H?

This can happen due to processing delays or if the form was submitted after the first interest credit for the year. You cannot get it reversed by the bank retroactively, but you can claim the TDS amount as a refund when filing your Income Tax Return, since the TDS will appear as a tax credit in your Form 26AS.

Income tax · Practical guide

Form 15G & 15H: How to Avoid TDS on Interest Income (Complete Guide)

Original author: Finin2min · Sources checked 21 October 2026

Nil tax can arise through lawful deductions or rebate; it is not synonymous with income below the basic exemption amount. Current Form 121 also retains the additional specified-income test outside the resident senior exception.

Does zero estimated tax always mean income is below the basic exemption?

Use the correct current or saved form period.
Compute final estimated tax on total income, including other banks and special-rate items.
For non-senior declarants apply the separate statutory covered-income ceiling.
Supply truthful particulars to the payer and keep its UIN/reporting evidence; filing an ITR may still be required.

Choose the period before the form

FY 2025-26 / AY 2026-27 remains under the saved Income-tax Act, 1961 framework. TY 2026-27 begins on 1 April 2026 under the Income-tax Act, 2025 and Rules, 2026. A later filing or correction date does not, by itself, change the underlying form or year.

Current form and role	Legacy concordance and controlling source
Form 121: Declaration under section 393(6) for receipt of specified income without tax deduction.	15G, 15H; Rule 211; Physical PDF pp 708-711; printed Gazette pp 2240-2243

Form 121 — worked field example

Fictional data, not for filing. The existing full fictional Form 121 model shows a resident senior citizen with ordinary pension and interest income and nil estimated tax after the applicable rebate.

Prescribed field or block	Completed example
Part A: declarant / PAN / residence / age / TY	Suresh Kumar Sharma / synthetic ZZZPS0000Z / resident / born 15 August 1959, age 67 / 2026-27
Current declaration income / nature	Rs 3,00,000 bank FD interest
Earlier declarations count / income / annual aggregate	1 / Rs 50,000 / Rs 3,50,000
Estimated total income	Rs 8,75,000: pension Rs 6 lakh less new-regime standard deduction Rs 75,000 plus FD interest Rs 3,50,000
Nil estimated-tax computation	Ordinary slab tax Rs 27,500; eligible section 156 rebate Rs 27,500; remaining tax and cess nil, assuming no special-rate income
Senior specified-income ceiling condition	Not applicable to this resident individual aged 60 or more; nil estimated tax remains essential
Prior-return fields	Two assumed earlier FY returns in full model; dummy acknowledgements do not prove actual filing
Part B: payer / TAN / UIN	Illustration Bank Limited / synthetic PNEI00000X / model UIN only, not an issued acknowledgement
Receipt date / signature	21 October 2026 / all signature and certification fields explicitly NOT SIGNED

Check the figures and meaning

3,00,000 + 50,000 = 3,50,000 total income covered by declarations.
6,00,000 - 75,000 + 3,50,000 = 8,75,000 estimated total income.
20,000 + 10%×75,000 = 27,500; rebate reduces model tax to nil.

This senior example is not a universal nil-TDS entitlement for everyone below Rs 12 lakh. Other eligible declarants have the additional specified-income/basic-exemption condition. Use legacy 15G/15H for the applicable earlier-law period, and current Form 121 for TY 2026-27.

Official Form 121 source extract Filled fictional field illustration

The model completes the named fields. The official source contains every applicable schedule and verification; no signature, actual acknowledgement, certification or approval has been created.

Related guidance

Primary sources

Questions readers ask

Does zero estimated tax always mean income is below the basic exemption?

Can I submit the sample or treat it as an issued certificate?

No. It is a labelled fictional illustration of the named fields. Use the actual official procedure and the complete prescribed form for a real filing, professional certificate or authority action.