File Form FC-4 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Every person who receives foreign contribution under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 files an annual return in Form FC-4. It is a signed or digitally signed report in electronic form, filed within nine months of the close of the financial year, with scanned copies of the detailed activity report, the income and expenditure statement, the receipt and payment account and the balance sheet. A NIL report is due even where nothing is received. This article sets out what rule 17 and the Form print.
It is written as per the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 read with the Amendment Act, 2020, and the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Rules, 2011 as amended by the notifications named in this article (latest consulted: S.O. 3272(E) dated 22 June 2026). Later amendments, notifications and Ministry of Home Affairs orders should be checked. The Rules say "in electronic form" and name the Form; this article gives no screen-by-screen steps because the Rules and the Form print none. The FC forms of the Companies Act are different forms with similar numbers.
Who: every person who receives foreign contribution under the Act. When: within nine months of the closure of the financial year (for a year ending 31 March, by the end of December). What: Form FC-4 with scanned copies of the detailed activity report, income and expenditure statement, receipt and payment account and balance sheet, plus a certified bank statement. NIL report if nothing was received. Signed by the chief functionary, with a chartered accountant's certificate. Open point: Form FC-4 still refers to a certificate under rule 17(5), which the 2026 notification omitted.
The Act behind the return
Section 18(1) requires every holder of a certificate or prior approval to give an intimation, within the time and manner prescribed, of each foreign contribution received, its source and manner of receipt, and its utilisation, and section 18(2) requires a bank-certified statement of the particulars to go with it. Section 19 requires an account and a record in the prescribed form; rule 11 requires a separate set of accounts and records, kept exclusively for the foreign contribution. Rule 17 prescribes the time and manner; see sections 18 to 20 and rules 10 and 11. Our books of accounts and compliance team works from those separate accounts when it prepares the figures.
What rule 17 prints
| Sub-rule | Requirement |
|---|---|
| (1) | A signed or digitally signed report in electronic form in Form FC-4, with scanned copies of the detailed activity report, income and expenditure statement, receipt and payment account and balance sheet, for every financial year beginning on 1 April, within nine months of the closure of the financial year. "In electronic form" came in 2020; "the detailed activity report," was added in 2026 |
| (2) | The return shall reflect the foreign contribution received in the exclusive bank account and the details of funds transferred to other accounts for utilisation |
| (3), (4), (5) | Omitted by S.O. 3272(E) of 22 June 2026. They dealt with receipts of articles and securities (Form FC-1) and the chartered accountant's certification |
| (6) | The return is accompanied by a copy of the statement of account from the bank where the exclusive foreign contribution account is maintained, certified by an officer of the bank |
| (7) | The accounting statements are preserved for six years |
| (8) | A NIL report is furnished even if no foreign contribution is received in the year. The proviso says that where foreign contribution has not been received or utilised, the chartered accountant's certificate, the income and expenditure statement, the receipt and payment account and the balance sheet need not be enclosed |
Rule 17 rests on the third-party consolidation of 17 September 2019 as its base; confirm it against the official text. The rule does not define "detailed activity report" and prints no fee for the return. See rule 17.
What Form FC-4 contains
The Form is headed "Account of Foreign Contribution (FC) for the year ending on the 31st March" and is marked "". Its parts, as substituted in 2020 and amended in 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026:
| Serial | Content |
|---|---|
| 1 | Name, address, registration or prior permission number and date; official website and social media accounts (2026) |
| 2 | Receipts: brought forward, interest and other income, foreign contribution received; donor-wise details, with ultimate donors where the remitter is a donor advised fund or other intermediary (2026) |
| 3 | Utilisation: projects and activities, with the detailed activity report to be attached (2026); administrative expenses under rule 5; fresh assets; movable and immovable assets (2023, replaced in 2025) |
| 4 | Unutilised foreign contribution; carry forward of unspent allowable administrative expenses (2024) |
| 5 to 7 | Foreigners as key functionaries; land and buildings unutilised for more than two years; details of the FCRA Account and utilisation accounts as on 31 March |
| 8 and 8A | Fifteen Yes/No questions on transfers, prosecutions, assets, other accounts, purposes, speculation, administrative expenses above 20 per cent. and use outside India; publications brought out (2026) |
| 9 | Details of the chartered accountant issuing the certificate: name, address, membership number, e-mail, date of issue and UDIN of the certificate (2026), whether any violation was pointed out, and the UDIN of the separate audited financial statements |
The carry-forward table on administrative expenses, inserted by G.S.R. 790(E) with effect from 1 January 2025 under the third proviso to rule 5, is explained in rule 5. The Form's contents are described in the Forms article.
Who signs
The Form closes with a declaration, signed by the chief functionary (Chairperson, President, Secretary, CEO or MD) with the seal. The person declares that the particulars are true and correct, and affirms that receipt and utilisation have not violated the Act, the Rules, notifications or orders, and that the foreign contribution was used for the purposes for which registration or prior permission was granted. A separate Certificate to be given by Chartered Accountant follows. The accountant certifies, after audit, the brought-forward and received amounts, the unutilised balance, that accounts and records are maintained under section 19 read with rule 17, and that the contribution was used for the registered purposes. A paragraph added in 2024 asks the accountant to state, so far as he knows and believes, whether the Act, Rules or notifications have been violated, with details, and a paragraph added in 2025 asks for activity-wise, project-wise and location-wise details.
The open point
Serial 9 of the Form speaks of "the certificate under sub-rule (5) of rule 17", and the 2026 notification adds the UDIN of that certificate, yet the same notification omits sub-rules (3), (4) and (5) of rule 17. Both are stated as printed; the sources do not reconcile them. Readers should confirm the position against the official text and current instructions. A second slip in the Form: serial 7 lists sub-items (a), (b) and (d), with no (c).
Related duties and what follows from a missed return
- Website. Under rule 13(a) the audited statement of accounts is placed on the person's website, or the website specified by the Central Government, within nine months of the closure of the financial year; see rule 13.
- Audit and offence. Section 20 allows an audit if an intimation is not furnished in time; a knowingly false intimation under section 18 falls under section 33(a).
- Compounding. The table lists failure to intimate under section 18 and failure to maintain accounts under section 19, each at one lakh rupees or five per cent. of the contribution concerned, whichever is higher; see section 41.
Need help with the annual return?
The return draws on every ledger head and bank statement for the year. Speak to our books of accounts and compliance team or book a short legal consultation before the nine months run out.
Key takeaways
- Every person who receives foreign contribution files Form FC-4, in electronic form, within nine months of the close of the financial year; a NIL report is due even if nothing was received.
- The chief functionary signs the declaration; a chartered accountant signs the certificate.
- Form FC-4 still refers to rule 17(5), which was omitted in 2026.
Read next
- Rule 17: annual return in Form FC-4
- Rule 5: what counts as administrative expenses
- Rule 13: audited statement on the website
- Section 41: compounding of offences
Disclaimer: Based on the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 as enacted, read with the Amendment Act, 2020 and the other amendments named in this article, and on the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Rules, 2011 as amended by the notifications named (latest consulted: S.O. 3272(E) dated 22 June 2026), as consulted on 2 October 2026. No consolidated official text was available; some provisions rest on a third-party copy and are identified as such. Later amendments, notifications and Ministry of Home Affairs orders should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.