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NGO, Trust & Not-for-Profit Services

Overview of CA services for NGOs, trusts, and not-for-profit organisations — 12AB / 80G registration, FCRA, Form 10B audit, CSR compliance, and Section 10(23C) advisory.

Reviewed by CA Harun Raaj, ICAI Reg. No. 238303·Last reviewed:
Discuss with usTypical timelineNGO, Trust & Not-for-Profit Services

Overview of CA services for NGOs, trusts, and not-for-profit organisations — 12AB / 80G registration, FCRA, Form 10B audit, CSR compliance, and Section 10(23C) advisory.

What is included
  • • 12AB registration and 80G approval (Form 10A / 10G)
  • • 12AB renewal and Form 10AB re-registration
  • • FCRA registration and annual FC-4 compliance
  • • Form 10B / 10BB audit and ITR-7 linkage
  • • Form 10BD / 10BE donor compliance
  • • Form CSR-1 registration for CSR funds
Documents required
  • • Certificate of Incorporation
  • • Entity PAN Card
  • • MOA & AOA
  • • Trust Deed / Society Rules / Memorandum
  • • Registration Certificate (12A / 80G / Section 8)
Government fees

See the fee table below for the statutory filing charge and common delay logic.

Legal basis
  • • Sections 11-13 and 12AB of the Income-tax Act 1961
  • • Section 80G of the Income-tax Act 1961
  • • Section 10(23C) of the Income-tax Act 1961
  • • FCRA 2010 and FCRA Rules 2011
  • • Section 135 of the Companies Act 2013
Not included in this service
  • ✕The statutory audit itself — we prepare, the auditor signs
  • ✕Litigation and assessment responses — separate engagements
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Process

How the service works

The workflow is built to be predictable: document collection, legal review, filing, and post-filing follow-through.

Step 1Route

Pick the route

We map the entity to the right approvals — 12AB / 80G, FCRA, Section 10(23C), or CSR — based on its funding and activities.

Step 2Register

Register

We file the registrations — Form 10A / 10G, FC-3A, CSR-1 — and process the approval orders.

Step 3Comply

Comply annually

We run the annual cycle — Form 10B / 10BB audit, Form 10BD / 10BE, FC-4 — from reconciled books.

Step 4Renew

Renew on time

We track the renewal windows — 12AB re-registration, FCRA renewals, prescribed-authority approvals — before they lapse.

AEO summary

A not-for-profit runs on approvals and filings: 12AB and 80G for tax exemption and donor deduction, FCRA for foreign contribution, Form 10B / 10BB audits each year, and CSR registration to receive corporate funds. We run the whole lifecycle.

The approvals stack

The not-for-profit lifecycle stacks approvals in a specific order: the structure first (trust, society, or Section 8 company), then the income tax approvals (12AB and 80G through Form 10A), then the funding-specific regimes (FCRA for foreign contribution, CSR-1 for corporate CSR funds).

Each approval carries an annual obligation — Form 10B / 10BB audit, Form 10BD / 10BE donor statements, the FC-4 return — and the stack only stays clean if the books and the calendar are run together.

  • • Structure → 12AB / 80G → FCRA / CSR-1
  • • Annual audit and donor compliance on top
  • • Renewals tracked before they lapse

The annual cycle

A registered NGO files every year: the Form 10B / 10BB audit report, the ITR-7 return, Form 10BD donor statement by 31 May, and FC-4 by 31 December where FCRA applies. The cycle is unforgiving — the 12AB exemption and the 80G donor deduction both depend on the filings staying current.

We run the cycle as one calendar, drawn from fund-wise books, so the entity is never reconstructing a year at its end.

  • • One compliance calendar, all filings
  • • Fund-wise books as the source of truth
  • • Exemption and deduction protected

Government fees

Fee breakdown

ItemFeeNotes
Registrations and filingsVaries by routeIncome tax portal filings (10A / 10AB / 10BD / 10B) carry no government fee; MCA (CSR-1) and MHA (FC-3A) fees follow their respective rules.

Timeline

Typical turnaround

Typical timeline usually means a 1–6 months depending on the route turnaround, assuming documents are complete and any board or shareholder approvals are already in place.

Pricing note

There is no fixed government fee profile until the engagement scope is confirmed; the professional fee is quoted after the document review.

Related services

Keep the company moving

12A & 80G Registration

The core registrations — exemption for the entity, deduction for donors

FCRA Registration

Foreign contribution registration with the MHA

Form 10B / 10BB Audit

The annual audit report every 12A / 12AB entity files

Trust Registration

The underlying structure — trust, society, or Section 8 company

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What approvals does an NGO need?
The core set is 12AB registration (income tax exemption), 80G approval (donor deduction), and — if it receives foreign contribution — FCRA registration. CSR-fund NGOs also register in Form CSR-1 on the MCA portal. The mix depends on funding sources and activities.
What is the difference between 12AB and 80G?
12AB exempts the trust’s own income under Sections 11-13. 80G makes donations to the trust deductible for donors. Most NGOs need both — 12AB for the entity, 80G for the donors.
Do we need FCRA?
FCRA applies to foreign contribution — funds from abroad, whether from individuals, companies, or foundations. Even a single foreign donation triggers the regime, so the question is answered by the funding plan, not the deed.
What should you send us before we start?
The trust deed / society rules / MOA, PAN and incorporation documents, the funding profile (donors, foreign or domestic, CSR partners), and any existing approvals. From that we map the full route.

Canonical reference: https://www.pvtltd.co/services/nfp-hub

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