Income Tax Form 156: Undertaking for Persons Domiciled in India Leaving India

Form 156 under the Income-tax Act, 2025 is a mandatory undertaking required to be furnished by persons domiciled in India at the time of leaving the country, provided they have a PAN and taxable presence in India. Filed electronically through the Income Tax e-filing portal, the form captures personal details, passport information, purpose of travel, and duration of stay abroad. It is event-based, meaning it must be submitted each time such a person leaves India. The form cannot be edited once submitted, and PAN is mandatory for filing. Notably, it does not require disclosure of tax payments but serves as a declaration mechanism to track outbound individuals for compliance purposes. The updated framework separates Form 156 (for persons with PAN) from Form 157 (for those without PAN or taxable income), improving ease of compliance and data management. Overall, Form 156 enhances transparency and ensures regulatory oversight of individuals departing India.

Income Tax Department
Ministry of Finance, Government of India

FAQs on Income Tax Form 156 (Earlier Form 30C): Form for furnishing the details under section 420(3) of Income Tax Act, 2025

Form 156 for furnishing the details under section 420(3) of the Act

Q1. What is Form 156?

Ans: Form 156 is an undertaking to be furnished by persons domiciled in India leaving India. It is to be filed at time of departure.

Q2. Who should file Form 156?

Ans: Form 156 is to be filed by persons domiciled in India and leaving India subject to the exceptions notified. If such persons do not have PAN or income chargeable to tax in India, this Form does not apply to them. The relevant Form in such case being Form 157.

Q3. Is Form 156 mandatory?

Ans: Yes, Form 156 is mandatory subject to exceptions notified, if any, by the government from time to time.

Q4. What is the time limit for filing Form 156?

Ans: Form 156 must be filed when the said domiciled person is leaving India

Q5: How many times can Form 156 be filed in a year?

Ans: Form 156 is event-based and is filed each time the said domiciled person is leaving India. Thus, the frequency of filing is dependent on the number of journeys undertaken by such domiciled person outside India.

Q6: What documents are required to file Form 156?

Ans: The following documents are required for filing Form 156.

1) Passport, PAN of the person leaving India

2) In absence of Passport, Emergency Certificate of the country issuing the same

Q7: Can I edit Form 156 after submission?

Ans: No. Once Form 156 is submitted and acknowledgment is generated, it cannot be edited. Ensure all details are correct before submission.

Q8: Do I need to attach proof of tax payment?

Ans: No. Form 156 is a simple declaration of details of the person leaving India. Tax payments are not part of the details to be given.

Q9: While filling personal details, can I leave Aadhaar or mobile number blank?

Ans:

• PAN is mandatory for filing Form 156.
• Aadhaar is no longer required in the personal details.
• Mobile number ensures faster communication and verification; it is recommended to provide it.

Q10. What if I do not have a PAN?

Ans: Form 156 cannot be submitted without a valid PAN.

Q11. Can Form 156 be filed offline?

Ans: Form 156 is now to be filed on the e-filing portal of the department.

Q12. What is the process flow of filing Form 156?

Ans: The Form is to be filed electronically through the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department. The steps involved are as under:-

1) Registration: The persons should register on the e-filing portal through a valid active PAN.

2) Form 156 Submission: After registration, taxpayer must login to the e-filing portal and submit Form 156 electronically.

3) Verification: The form can be verified using an Electronic Verification Code generated through pre-validated bank account or demat account, through net banking or ATM (bank specific) or a Digital Signature Certificate (DSC), depending on the taxpayer’s profile.

Guidance Note on on Income Tax Form 156 (Earlier Form 30C): Form for furnishing the details under section 420(3) of Income Tax Act, 2025

FORM 156– Form for furnishing the details under section 420(3) of the Act

A. PURPOSE

This form is an undertaking to be furnished by persons domiciled in India leaving India to be filed at time of departure. It is a requirement under Section 420(3) of the Income-tax Act, 2025 and prescribed in Rule 228 of Income-tax Rules, 2026.

B. WHO SHOULD FILE

Persons domiciled in India and leaving India subject to the exceptions notified.

C. FREQUENCY & DUE DATES

Filed when leaving India

D. STRUCTURE OF FORM 156

• Details of the person leaving India including Name, PAN, Aadhar and Passport/Emergency Certificate Number details
• Details regarding purpose of visit outside India, estimated duration of stay outside India and passport related information

E. WHAT ARE THE DOCUMENTS REQUIRED TO FILE THE FORM 156?

1) Passport, PAN of the person leaving India

2) In absence of Passport, Emergency Certificate of the country issuing the same

F. FILING COUNT

N.A. Being a manual form, centralised data is not available.

G. WHAT IS THE PROCESS FLOW OF FILING FORM 156?

The Form is to be filed electronically through the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department

H. BRIEF NOTE ON BROAD OR QUALITATIVE CHANGES PROPOSED

Key updates include the following

• Standard template for personal details
• This Form is currently manual and applicable to those having PAN/taxable income as well as to those not having PAN/no taxable income. This is now proposed to be e-form. The form is therefore split into two – Form 156 as a simple declaration (for those with PAN) and Form 157 as a certificate/undertaking (for those without PAN or without income chargeable to tax).
• Details required from persons with no PAN or no chargeable income and the certificate from them removed as current form is split and these details incorporated into the split Form 157

I. CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS

• The current Form 156 applies to those with PAN and also to those without PAN. The splitting of the Form 156 is to provide both ease of compliance to the taxpayers and to enable easier handling of data by the department. By splitting, the Form 156 can be made into e-form (where PAN is available) and the split Form 157 remains manual (for persons with no PAN or no chargeable incomes), This enables the management of the undertakings and certificates filed, in more convenient manner.

J. COMMON CHANGES MADE ACROSS FORMS

1. To make Forms system-friendly and enable e-filing and uploading, certain anomalies found due to grouping of Name, Designation, Address, PAN have been separated into different boxes.

2. Assessment / Financial / Previous year or years have been replaced with Tax year or years, wherever appearing in the Form/Annexure.

3. Sections, Clauses and Schedules changes as per the Income-tax Act, 2025.

4. Common verification statement