India has Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements (DTAAs) with various countries, which allow income earned by non-residents from India to be taxed in India at a lower rate of tax. To claim benefit under the DTAA, however, a non-resident has to submit Form 10F with the India tax authorities.
Form 10F is a self-declaration that a non-resident taxpayer must provide along with a tax residency certificate from the government of its home country. According to the Income-tax Act of India, non-resident taxpayers can claim the advantages of a DTAA only if they furnish a valid tax residency certificate from their country of residence. If the tax residency certificate does not include all the necessary information, non-residents must submit Form 10F.

As of now Form 10F can be submitted as blow:
- If a non-resident has Permanent Account Number (PAN) in India, it can submit Form 10F online through the Income-tax portal.
- If the non-resident does not have PAN in India, he can submit Form 10F manually (this relaxation was provided by Central Board of Direct Taxes till 30 September 2023).
Now, from 1 October 2023 onwards, Central Board of Direct Taxes has enabled non-residents who do not have a PAN to e-file Form 10F on the Income-tax portal by creating an account without the requirement of first obtaining a PAN.
A new option of ‘Non-Residents not holding and not required to have PAN’ is now available on the income tax portal’s registration tab although there is no official notification on this.