Banks do not argue tax law at the counter. They look at whether Form 15CA is Part A, B, C, or D, whether 15CB is attached, and whether the purpose code on the A2 form matches the invoice. The expensive mistake is filing Part D (“not chargeable”) on a royalty, FTS, or capital-gains remittance that is chargeable — or filing Part C with a 15CB that describes the wrong article of the DTAA.
This page is only the Part C versus Part D fork. The general remittance checklist stays at /guides/form-15ca-15cb-checklist. Withholding characterisation stays at /guides/section-195-tds-non-resident. We do not publish a fee per certificate or a same-day guarantee that survives a missing TRC.
How this page differs
- Part C vs D decision tree — not a reprint of the full 15CA/CB checklist.
- Pairs each part with whether 15CB is required and what the bank will still ask.
- Refuses Part D on “reimbursement” or “software” labels without a characterisation memo.
Who this is for
- Indian companies paying overseas vendors, parent companies, or group IP licensors
- Resident individuals remitting sale proceeds, gifts, or maintenance above bank thresholds
- CFOs whose AD bank bounced a Part D filing and asked for 15CB
- NRI sellers and buyers coordinating 195 TDS with repatriation certificates
How we work
- 01
Decide chargeability first
Is the sum chargeable under the domestic Act, and does a DTAA article reduce or eliminate it? Part C vs D is that answer — not the invoice title.
- 02
Pick the 15CA part
Part A/B for smaller or already-certified taxable remittances; Part C when 15CB is required; Part D only when not chargeable.
- 03
Align FEMA and the purpose code
A clean 15CA does not legalise an ODI that should have been OPI, or a current-account payment that is actually capital. Sequence the AD-bank pack.
What you receive
- Written characterisation (royalty / FTS / interest / business income / capital gains / not chargeable)
- Form 15CA in the correct part; Form 15CB where Part C (or the bank) requires it
- DTAA residency and beneficial-ownership document list
- Coordination with the AD bank purpose code — not a second invoice story
The four parts — then the C vs D fork
Part A is the taxable remittance at or below the live aggregate threshold for the financial year (practitioners still work against the ₹5 lakh figure — confirm on the portal before you file). Part B is a taxable remittance above that threshold when a certificate under section 197 / 195(2) / 195(3) (2025: lower-deduction machinery under section 395) already covers the payment. Part C is a taxable remittance above the threshold that needs a CA certificate in Form 15CB. Part D is a remittance not chargeable to tax in India.
C versus D is therefore not “large versus small.” It is “chargeable versus not chargeable.” A ₹50 lakh reimbursement of expenditure that is not income of the non-resident may still be Part D if the facts hold. A ₹6 lakh royalty is not Part D because someone typed “reimbursement” on the invoice.
Form 15CA parts as used in practice — confirm live thresholds and utility fields on incometax.gov.in.
| Part | When it is used | 15CB? | Typical failure |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Taxable remittance within the live FY aggregate threshold | Usually no | Splitting invoices to stay in Part A when the FY aggregate is already over |
| B | Taxable remittance above threshold with a lower/nil certificate already in hand | No 15CB; the 197/395 certificate is the paper | Using an expired or person-specific certificate for a different payee |
| C | Taxable remittance above threshold requiring CA determination of tax | Yes — Form 15CB | 15CB article / rate that does not match the TRC and beneficial-ownership file |
| D | Remittance not chargeable to tax in India | No 15CB for the tax line — bank may still want a CA letter | Labelling FTS, royalty, or taxable capital gains as “not chargeable” |
Facts that usually are not Part D
Royalty and FTS under the domestic Act remain chargeable until a DTAA article, make-available test, or PE analysis says otherwise — and even then the rate may be reduced rather than nil. Software “licence” versus copyrighted article is a characterisation, not a slogan. Capital gains on shares or immovable property of an Indian company / Indian property are rarely “not chargeable” just because the seller is abroad. Interest on an Indian-source loan is chargeable unless a specific exemption or treaty article applies.
Gifts, capital-account remittances under LRS, and true cost-pool recoveries without a mark-up are the files where Part D is often right — after the facts are on paper. We still align FEMA (LRS vs ODI vs current account). A Part D 15CA does not replace Form A2 honesty.
NRI property sale — where C, D, and 195 meet
The buyer of Indian immovable property from an NRI deducts tax under section 195 (2025: table under section 393(2)) — that is the buyer’s withholding, often with a 197/395 lower-deduction application. Separately, when sale proceeds are remitted abroad, the remitter (often the NRI through the AD bank) still faces 15CA. If the gain is chargeable and the remittance is above the 15CB threshold, expect Part C plus 15CB, not Part D “because it is my own money.” See /guides/form-15cb-nri-property-sale.
Common questions
Direct answers for searchers and answer engines
Nil tax because a treaty article applies is still a chargeability analysis. Many banks want Part C plus 15CB showing the nil/low treaty rate rather than Part D. We file the part that matches the utility and the characterisation memo — we do not pick D to skip 15CB when the sum is chargeable.
It is the commonly applied aggregate taxable remittance limit for Part A versus Part C. Confirm the live figure and the definition of “aggregate” on the income-tax utility before filing. We do not freeze it in a blog cell.
We can describe domestic-Act tax. Treaty rates in 15CB need tax-residency and beneficial-ownership papers. Missing TRC means we will not invent a treaty article.