Form 15G (for individuals below 60) and Form 15H (for senior citizens aged 60+) are self-declarations under Section 197A for nil TDS on interest and certain other income, where the payee's total income is below the taxable limit. They are submitted to the payer at the start of the financial year.
Who can use which form
| Form | Eligibility |
|---|---|
| Form 15G | Resident individual (below 60) / HUF whose estimated total income is nil-taxable and total interest is within the basic exemption |
| Form 15H | Resident senior citizen (60+) whose estimated tax on total income is nil |
A key difference: for 15H (senior citizens), only the condition that tax on total income is nil applies; the income-within-exemption condition of 15G does not.
Where they apply
Common uses: bank/post-office interest (194A), dividends (194), EPF withdrawal (192A), and certain other incomes. The forms enable the payer to not deduct TDS where the conditions are met.
Conditions and caution
- Submit at the start of the financial year; valid for that year.
- A PAN is mandatory on the form.
- A false declaration can attract penalty and prosecution under Section 277.
- Do not file if your income is actually taxable — it does not exempt the income, only stops TDS.
Practical points
The forms only prevent deduction — the income remains taxable if your final income turns out to be above the limit, in which case you must pay tax (and possibly advance tax). Keep an acknowledgement from the payer.
Eligibility: the two tests that differ by form
| Test | Form 15G (below 60) | Form 15H (60+) |
|---|---|---|
| Final tax liability nil | Required | Required |
| Total interest income below basic exemption | Also required | Not required |
The second row is the practical difference: a senior citizen with Rs.9,00,000 of interest income but nil tax after the Section 87A rebate (new regime, income up to Rs.12,00,000) can validly file 15H. A 45-year-old with the same interest cannot file 15G — their interest exceeds the basic exemption even though their tax is nil. Filing 15G when ineligible is a false declaration under Section 277 — this is not a form to sign casually.
Worked example
A retired teacher (age 64) has pension of Rs.4,20,000 and FD interest of Rs.3,20,000 for FY 2026-27. Total income Rs.7,40,000 — after the new-regime slabs and 87A rebate, tax is nil. Without 15H, the bank deducts 10% on interest above the Rs.1,00,000 senior-citizen threshold (Section 194A, Finance Act 2025 limit): TDS of Rs.32,000 locked up until refund. With 15H filed at each bank in April, deduction stops at source. Note the threshold test the bank applies is per bank (aggregated across branches post-CBS), so spread deposits still need a form at every bank.
Filing mechanics and common failures
- File in April, at the start of the year, and again whenever a new deposit is opened — the declaration covers the year, not the deposit's life.
- PAN is mandatory on the form; without it, Section 206AA overrides and the bank deducts at 20%.
- Banks upload the declarations quarterly to the department, and the interest still appears in your AIS — a 15G/H filing does not make the income exempt, only undeducted. Report it in the return.
- Covered payments now extend beyond bank interest: 194A interest, dividends under 194 (15G/H available), rent under 194-I in specified cases, insurance commission (15G), and EPF premature withdrawal under 192A — each with its own eligibility nuance.
- If circumstances change mid-year (a property sale creates taxable income), the original declaration becomes invalid prospectively — inform the bank; the safer route is to let TDS run and claim refund.
Verify thresholds — the 194A senior-citizen limit of Rs.1,00,000 and general bank limit of Rs.50,000 are Finance Act 2025 figures — at incometax.gov.in.
Deductor-side obligations (for businesses receiving these forms)
If your entity pays interest and receives 15G/15H declarations, the compliance is yours: allot a Unique Identification Number to each declaration, stop deduction only from receipt (not retrospectively), upload the declarations quarterly in the e-filing portal statement, retain physical/digital copies for seven years, and report the interest with flag "no deduction — 15G/15H" in the TDS return so the payee's AIS reflects it correctly. Two failure modes attract notices: accepting a 15G that is invalid on its face (interest obviously above the basic exemption — the deductor is expected to apply the visible-facts test) and stopping TDS without any declaration on file. When in doubt, deduct — the payee's remedy is a refund; the deductor's exposure is 201(1A) interest, disallowance and penalty.
Key takeaways
- 15G/15H: self-declarations for nil TDS under Section 197A.
- 15G for under-60; 15H for senior citizens.
- PAN mandatory; submit at the start of the year.
- They stop TDS, not the tax — don't misuse them.