07/07/2026
Political party donations and section 80GGC
The deduction itself is straightforward. If you donate to a registered political party, the entire amount is deductible from your taxable income. No upper limit. Hundred percent. It's actually one of the most generous deductions available.
But over the last couple of years, the department has been scrutinising this very closely. A lot of people received notices asking them to explain and verify their claims. Not because they did anything wrong necessarily — but because the documentation wasn't in order.
So if you are contributing to a political party, here's what you need to be careful about.
First — payment mode matters. It has to go through banking channels. Cheque, UPI, NEFT, RTGS — any of these work. If you pay even a small amount in cash, the entire deduction becomes ineligible.
Second — get a proper receipt from the party. And make sure that receipt has all the details — the party's name, their registration number, their PAN, your name, the amount in words and figures, and the mode of payment. A receipt without these details is not going to hold up if there's a query.
Third — and this is new from AY 2026-27 — the ITR form now mandatorily requires you to enter the name of the political party and their PAN. Earlier the form was asking for transaction reference, IFSC, date of donation. Now name and PAN are also mandatory fields. So you need those details at the time of filing, not after.
Fourth — this deduction is only available under the old tax regime. If you're filing under the new regime, it doesn't apply to you.
And fifth — the party must be registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act. Donations to unregistered parties or individuals don't qualify.
Now if you genuinely contributed to a political party — there is absolutely nothing to worry about. Just ensure the paperwork backs it up. And just make sure the party you donated- actually exists.
