Chartered Accountant · ICAI M.No. 153926 · FRN 136869W
How (Form 10A online)
File Form 10A on the income-tax portal with the trust deed, PAN, trustee and activity details.
What you get
A time-bound registration (Section 12A(1)(b) r/w Rule 17B and 12AB) that lets the trust claim exemption on income applied to its objects.
The two-stage process, and the 85% rule
Registration usually comes in two stages. A new trust first gets a provisional registration on filing Form 10A — granted fairly mechanically — valid for three years; then, once it has begun its activities, it applies in Form 10AB for regular registration, which runs for five years and where the department examines the genuineness of the activities and the objects. The same Form 10A route is used by existing trusts re-registering and by trusts seeking 80G alongside. Once registered, the exemption isn’t automatic each year: the trust must apply at least 85% of its income to its charitable objects, and income it can’t spend in the year can be accumulated for a stated purpose (by filing Form 10) for up to five years. It must keep proper books, get audited in Form 10B or 10BB if income crosses the limit, and file ITR-7 by the due date. Registration also brings conditions — commercial activity beyond limits, or income benefiting the trustees, can jeopardise it. Getting the trust deed’s objects and the activity write-up right at the Form 10A stage is what makes the regular registration in Form 10AB straightforward later. Confirm the current timelines and forms, which were reworked under the 12AB regime.