List Of Documents Required For Income Certificate

People need an income certificate in India for various reasons. People from an economically lower background require it when they are trying to get admission in an educational institution that has a specific reservation quota, widows need an income certificate when applying for a pension, or people aiming for medical benefits, scholarships, old-age pension, or loans at a concessional interest rate require it to avail of the respective benefits. There is a list of documents Required For Income Certificate when the people belonging to economically weaker sections of the society apply for it. We will check more on this in the next section.

Information in an Income Certificate

The state government issues an income certificate which is an official document regarding an individual's as well as his family's annual income from different sources. In different states, the issuing authority varies. It can be some government-appointed persons such as District Authorities, District Magistrate, Revenue Circle Officers, District Authorities, Sub Divisional Magistrates, and Village Tahsildars.

List of Documents Required For Income Certificate

It is important to have an idea of a list of documents required for an income certificate before beginning the application process. These are mentioned as below:

• Electricity or water bill as an address proof.
• Aadhar card, voter ID card, PAN card, or driving license as valid proof for photo identity.
• National food security card or ration card.
• If needed, the applicant has to provide the previous income certificate.
• A passport-sized photograph.
• Agreement of rent, if applicable.
• Proof of income in the form of income certificate of the parent, along with income tax return, and Form 16 provided by the employer, salary certificate, and others.
• The application form has to be provided with a signed self-declaration copy.

The procedure of applying for an income certificate

Here are the steps that an eligible applicant needs to follow during the online application for an income certificate:

• Check the state or district's online portal for income certificate application, such as it will be https://edistrict.delhigovt.nic.in/ for the applicants in Delhi.
• An account needs to be created for registering the candidate in the portal. Once this is done, a unique username and password will be generated on the provided contact number of the applicant.
• Using the generated credentials, one can log into the account and go to the home page. There is a menu bar where the "Download Application Forms" option needs to be clicked.
• Then the application form can be downloaded in the PDF  by clicking 'Issuance of Income Certificate’.
• Then, fill in all the details in the application form, such as full name, DOB, age, caste category like SC, SC, or OBC, and other details.
• An affidavit needs to be attached to the application form. It is a self-signed form by the applicant or the family head. Here, the applicant has to mention all the details are true to the best of his/her knowledge.
• This application can now be submitted with other documents online. One can also submit it at the Sub-Divisional Magistrate office. Now an application number will be provided which can be used for tracking the income certificate's status in the portal.
• The concerned authority will carry out a local inquiry after the applicant submits the documents. This is for the verification of details mentioned in the application.
• One can expect the income certificate within 14 days of the application date.

Details mentioned on the Income certificate

The income certificate has details that are legally binding. Those can be used when an individual applies for any Government-sponsored schemes or subsidies

Upon the successful submission of the list of documents required for the income certificate, one can get the income certificate with various important information. These are mentioned as under:

• Applicant's name.
• The primary applicant's parent's or guardian's name.
• Details of applicant's address mentioning the name of the state, town, district, and other related information.
• Applicant's annual income for the corresponding financial year.
• Issued date of Income Certificate.
• The issuing State Government authority's signature and seal.

Importance of Income Certificate

An Income Certificate is useful for the following purposes:

• Admission of a candidate under a reserved category in an educational institution.
• Scholarships or other forms of economic assistance can be availed by the students who belong to economically backward groups.
• For availing of the subsided or free medical care and benefits.
• Availing old age pension and other pensions from the government, such as Widow Pension, Pension for people suffering from TB, Leprosy, Cancer, and others, Agricultural Labourers Pension.
• For availing the welfare schemes sponsored by the government.
• Application for the jobs in the government sector that are meant for certain reserved categories.
• Getting ration for free.
• In the case of victims of natural calamities, it helps in getting relief.
• Availing the financial aid available for the Ex-Servicemen.
• Getting loans for SC or ST applicants for different purposes.
• Physically handicapped individuals can avail it for getting artificial limbs, cycle, and other such assistive devices.
• It helps in getting loans from different Government departments such as Kerala Financial corporation and others for different purposes.

Income certificate authorising body

State Governments or the Union Territories generally issue the income certificate. The set of documents needed varies for each of these and has to be checked thoroughly by an Indian resident belonging to an economically weaker section of society. Payment of income tax is not applicable for such applicants.

Income Certificate validity

The document has a financial year mentioned in it, which is the validity of the Income Certificate. One has to update it every financial year to keep it valid. In such cases, providing the old certificate is crucial proof needed for issuing an updated income certificate.

Calculation of income assessed while providing income certificate

The income of the family is assessed while providing an applicant with the income certificate. This includes the applicant, his/her parents, dependent children or unmarried siblings living with the applicant, and widowed daughters dependent on the family.

The family income implies the regular income that these members earn. It also includes the income of unmarried daughters and unmarried siblings. Here are some incomes which are excluded during the calculation:

1. Widowed daughter or sister's income.

2. Salary earned for the leaves surrendered.

3. Terminal benefits.

4. Allowances obtained for the festival.

5. Pension earned in the family.

Here are more details on the incomes taken into account for calculation:

i. Income from salary:

This includes:

• HRA
• DA
• Pay during Deputation
• Any special pay
• Allowances and others.

These are excluded under this category:

• TA
• PTA

Any special work's honorarium and others.

ii. Income from Pension:

For assessing the pension, the Payment Pension ORder forms the basis. Here only the amount of commutation is excluded while calculating income for the Income certificate

iii. Income obtained from business:

The income tax return filed by the applicant is used for the assessment of the income from the business. Declaration filed by the person forms the basis in case of non-assesses

iv. Property income:

It includes income from produces such as coconut and others. The principles adopted for land acquisition purposes forms the basis of the calculation of landed property improvements.

v. Rented buildings income:

The annual maintenance charges are deducted to calculate the income in this case.

Conclusion

The online application process for obtaining the income certificate is quite easy and can be done with the least effort from the comfort of home.  Sometimes candidates may be needed to provide additional documents by the concerned authorities apart from those we mentioned above, to check the proof of expenses. It varies with the corresponding state government or union territory. While starting with the application process, an applicant should be ready with the complete list of documents required for the Income Certificate so that there is no delay in completing the procedure.

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FAQs

Q. How long is the Income Certificate valid?

Ans. An income certificate is usually valid for the purpose for which it was issued, generally for 2 years or for the financial year. For example in Delhi, the income certificate's validity is just for 6 months from the issued date. Applicants have to check the rule in their location for the exact details.

Q. When are the instances when the income certificate gets cancelled?

Ans. This happens if an applicant tries to get it fraudulently by suppressing his family income details and providing false information during the application process.

Q. What is the mandatory list of documents required for an income certificate?

Ans. This includes residential proof, age proof, details of income with an affidavit from the notary, salary slip, or a monthly salary certificate.

Q. How long does it take for the issuance of the income certificate?

Ans. This can be issued in 14 days from the date of application.

Q. How frequently does the income certificate need to be updated?

Ans. This has to be done every financial year to continue keeping it valid. The previous year's income certificate must be produced while doing this.