Form 15G and 15H — when you may file them, and when you must not
Form 15G and Form 15H are self-declarations to your bank that your total income is below the taxable limit, so that TDS is not deducted from your interest. Form 15H is for those aged 60 and above; Form 15G for everyone else. They are useful when they apply and actively harmful when they do not.
At a glance
- Form 15H
- Age 60 and above
- Form 15G
- Below 60, residents only
- Condition
- Estimated total income below the taxable limit
- Filed with
- Each bank, each branch, every financial year
- Not for
- Non-residents
What they actually do
They stop deduction at source. They do not make the income exempt. If the income turns out to be taxable, you owe the tax — you have simply postponed collecting it into a lump sum payable when you file, with interest under sections 234B and 234C for not having paid it along the way.
They also have to be filed afresh every financial year, and separately with every bank you hold deposits at. One form does not cover a household or a lifetime.
Filing 15G or 15H when your income is taxable is a false declaration, not a shortcut
The declaration states that your estimated total income for the year will be below the taxable limit. Making that statement when it is not true is a false declaration, and the Act treats it seriously rather than as a technicality. The practical harm is subtler and more common: with no TDS deducted, you reach the end of the year owing the whole amount at once, plus interest for having paid nothing during the year. Retired people with several deposits across several banks are the usual casualties, because each individual deposit looks small and the total is not. Add up all the interest before signing anything.
Questions we get asked
Can an NRI file Form 15G?
No. Both forms are for residents only.
I filed 15H and my income turned out to be taxable.
File the return, pay the tax with the interest that has accrued, and do not file the declaration again next year. It is correctable; ignoring it is not.
Do I file one form or one per bank?
One per bank, and in practice often one per branch, every financial year.
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