State governments in India can issue income certificates to citizens so that they can claim the benefits of various social welfare schemes. It contains a declaration about a person and his/her family’s annual income; it is used to assess their eligibility for various government schemes.
Here are the various aspects of the income certification, including its usage and application procedure. Take a look!
An income certificate is an official document issued by a state government stating a person’s annual income from all sources. It includes the income of an individual and his/her family from salary, pension, business profits, rent, daily earnings and remittance from foreign sources, whichever is applicable.
The issuing authority for income certificates varies from one state to another. If you reside in a village, you have to go to a Tehsildar to apply for an income certificate. In towns and cities, the issuing authority can be the Collector, District Magistrate, Deputy Commissioner, Sub Divisional Magistrate, Revenue Circle Officer or any other district authority.
The main function of an income certificate is to act as proof of an Indian citizen’s income for availing of various government schemes. People require this document for various reasons such as availing scholarships, medical benefits, old-age pension, etc.
The following are some cases where one may need to show his/her income certificate:
You need to submit the application for an income certificate to a state government-appointed authority, which varies from one state to another. Nowadays, many states have made their dedicated websites where you can apply for an income certificate online. Eligible applicants can follow these steps:
When applying at a CSC (Citizen Service Centre), you need to produce a self-attested copy of the original documents. Individuals applying online need to upload scanned copies on the respective portal or verify the documents physically at the counter. Such documents include the following:
When issuing income certificates, the authority calculates the regular income earned by all family members. A family consists of the applicant, his/her siblings, parents, dependent unmarried sons or daughters and widowed daughters living together in the same house.
The income of unmarried daughters, brothers, sisters and other family members is considered for this certificate. However, income from the following sources is excluded:
The annual earnings of individual family members from the following sources are added to compute total income:
The income certificate is an official declaration of your and your family’s annual income. Based on the eligibility, you can use this document to avail various schemes and benefits offered by your state government. The issuing authority and process to apply for these certificates depend on the respective state.
An income certificate usually remains valid for one year since the date of issuance. The actual validity depends on the issuing state and ranges from 3 months to 4 years. One will typically need to renew it every financial year.
No, state governments issue this certificate to their own residents so that they can avail various schemes/benefits. As a result, a resident of West Bengal will not be able to get an income certificate from the Government of Tamil Nadu.
No, you do not need to submit your old income certificate to renew it. However, you have to keep your old certificate for 5 years after it is issued. This is necessary to verify eligibility for any government program that you may avail yourself at a later date.
No, the income certificate certifies the annual income of an individual and his/her family for around a year. On the other hand, People belonging to the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) can apply for an EWS certificate. Using this, they can get the benefit of a 10% reservation in government jobs and higher education.
While an income certificate declares the income of a family from all sources, it does not include agricultural income. An agricultural certificate computes income from agricultural sources for tax exemption. Using it, individuals can get income tax exemption under Section 10(1) of the Income Tax Act.
Disclaimer: Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks, read all scheme-related documents carefully.
This article has been prepared on the basis of internal data, publicly available information and other sources believed to be reliable. The information contained in this article is for general purposes only and not a complete disclosure of every material fact. It should not be construed as investment advice to any party. The article does not warrant the completeness or accuracy of the information, and disclaims all liabilities, losses and damages arising out of the use of this information. Readers shall be fully liable/responsible for any decision taken on the basis of this article.
Income Tax
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