Due Date for filing Income tax Form 9A or Form 10
Tax exempt charitable trusts and institutions are required to apply (utilize) at least eighty-five per cent of their Total Income during the financial year. In case the organisation is not able to do so, it is required to exercise the option to spend the un-applied amount in the next immediate financial year by filing online Income tax Form 9A or accumulate the un-applied amount for up to a period of five years by filing online Form 10.
The deadline for filing Form 9A and Form 10 is sixty days prior to the due date for filing Income tax return in ITR-7 and which means the due date for filing Form 9A and Form 10 is, 31st August.
However, last year, CBDT vide Circular 6/2023 dated 24-5-2023, has clarified that “the accumulation / deemed application shall not be denied to a Trust as long as the statement of accumulation / deemed application is furnished on or before the due date of furnishing the return as provided in sub-section (1) of section 139 of the Act.” (See below extract from the CBDT circular).
The circular does not state that this relaxation is only for a specific financial year (i.e., financial year 2022-23) and therefore it is assumed by most professionals that it is a general directive for subsequent financial years as well.
Regardless, NGOs are advised to try and file Form 9A or Form 10 (only if eighty-five per cent of the income for the FY 2023-24 is not applied) by 31st August 2024.