Section 194P: Seniors 75+ Skip ITR - citizen guide 2026

If you are a resident aged 75 or above and your only income is pension plus interest from the same bank that pays that pension, you can submit Form 12BBA to that bank and you do not have to file an income tax return. This is Section 194P of the Income-tax Act 1961. It removes the filing duty for a narrow group; it is not a blanket tax exemption.

Section 194P is a relief from filing an income tax return, not from paying tax. A qualifying senior aged 75 or above gives a declaration in Form 12BBA to their specified bank. The bank then works out the total tax, deducts it as TDS, and the senior need not file a return for that year.

Section 194P, Income-tax Act 1961 was inserted by the Finance Act 2021 and is effective from 1 April 2021, that is from Assessment Year 2022-23 onwards.

The section lets a “specified bank” take on the senior's tax compliance. The bank must be a bank notified by the Central Government as a specified bank. Once you file Form 12BBA, the bank computes your total income, gives effect to the Chapter VI-A deductions and the Section 87A rebate as you declare them under the tax regime you choose, and deducts the resulting tax as TDS. After this, Section 139 does not require you to file a return.

Note on regime: the new tax regime is the default. Most Chapter VI-A deductions, like Section 80C, apply only if you opt for the old regime. The Section 87A rebate exists in both regimes. The bank applies whatever you correctly declare in Form 12BBA, so declare honestly and pick your regime with care.

RTI relevance: Public-sector banks are public authorities under the RTI Act 2005. You can file an RTI with the bank's Public Information Officer to confirm the branch is a notified specified bank, or to ask exactly how your Section 194P tax was computed.

1. Confirm you are a resident and turned 75 or above at any time during the financial year.
2. Confirm your only income is pension plus interest, and that the interest is earned in the same bank that pays your pension.
3. Confirm that bank is a specified bank notified by the Central Government. If unsure, ask the branch in writing or file an RTI.
4. Collect Form 12BBA from the bank branch or its website.
5. Fill in your total income, the deductions you claim under Chapter VI-A, your chosen tax regime, and the Section 87A rebate, then sign it.
6. Submit Form 12BBA to your specified bank, ideally early in the year.
7. The bank computes your tax, deducts it as TDS, and issues Form 16. You then do not file an ITR for that year.

• Filled and signed Form 12BBA
• Proof of age (Aadhaar, PAN or passport showing date of birth)
• Pension payment details from the same bank
• Interest details from accounts in the same specified bank
• Proof of any Chapter VI-A deductions you declare (for the old regime)

• Believing Section 194P is a full tax exemption. It only waives the return filing; tax still applies if payable.
• Having income from a second bank or another source. Section 194P needs pension and interest from the same specified bank only.
• Earning rental income, capital gains, or business income. Any of these disqualifies you from Section 194P.
• Being under 75 at every point in the year. The age test is 75+ during the year.
• Assuming any bank qualifies. The bank must be a specified bank notified by the Central Government.
• Claiming old-regime deductions like Section 80C while staying on the default new regime in your Form 12BBA.

If a bank refuses Form 12BBA, or you cannot tell whether it is a notified specified bank, an RTI to the bank's Public Information Officer is a clean way to get a written answer. Public-sector banks are public authorities under the RTI Act 2005.

To: The Public Information Officer
[Name of public-sector bank], [Branch], [District]

Subject: Information under the Right to Information Act 2005

Sir/Madam,

Under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act 2005, please provide:

1. Whether this bank is a specified bank notified by the Central
   Government for the purposes of Section 194P of the Income-tax
   Act 1961.
2. The procedure and form (Form 12BBA) for a resident senior aged
   75 or above to claim relief from return filing at this branch.
3. For account [your account number], how the tax under Section
   194P was computed for financial year [year], including the
   deductions and rebate applied.

I am eligible for fee exemption / I enclose the prescribed fee
under Section 7. If any part is held by another public authority,
please transfer it under Section 6(3).

Name:
Address:
Date:

If you get no reply within 30 days, file a first appeal under Section 19(1) to the First Appellate Authority.

No. Section 194P does not exempt you from tax. It only removes the duty to file an income tax return. The specified bank computes your tax and deducts it as TDS. If tax is payable after your deductions and the Section 87A rebate, it is still collected.

A resident individual who is 75 or above at any time in the financial year, whose only income is pension plus interest, and where the interest is earned in the same specified bank that pays the pension. The bank must be notified by the Central Government.

Form 12BBA is the declaration a qualifying senior gives to their specified bank to claim Section 194P relief. In it you declare your income, your Chapter VI-A deductions, your chosen tax regime, and your Section 87A rebate eligibility. The bank uses it to compute and deduct your tax.

No. Section 194P needs your pension and your interest to come from the same specified bank. Income from a second bank, or any other source, makes you ineligible. You would then file a normal ITR.

Yes. Section 194P applies only when your income is pension plus interest from the same bank. Rental income, capital gains, or business income disqualify you, and you must file a return in the usual way.

A specified bank is one notified by the Central Government under Section 194P. Ask your branch in writing, or file an RTI with the bank's Public Information Officer if it is a public-sector bank, to get a written confirmation.

The bank applies the regime you declare in Form 12BBA. The new regime is the default. Most Chapter VI-A deductions, such as Section 80C, count only under the old regime, so choose carefully. The Section 87A rebate applies in both regimes.

Section 194P was inserted by the Finance Act 2021 and is effective from 1 April 2021, that is from Assessment Year 2022-23 onwards.

• Section 194P, Income-tax Act 1961 - https://incometax.gov.in
• Finance Act 2021 - https://incometaxindia.gov.in
• Income-tax Act 1961 (full text) - https://www.indiacode.nic.in
• Right to Information Act 2005 - https://rti.gov.in

• Draft your RTI with the AI RTI Drafter
• Build a first appeal if the bank ignores you
• Record your RTI with AwaazRTI
• Read the RTI Act 2005
• The RTI Playbook

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