diff --git a/Backend/.gitignore b/Backend/.gitignore
index 6eea31a..68cc21a 100644
--- a/Backend/.gitignore
+++ b/Backend/.gitignore
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ instance/
 
 # Scrapy stuff:
 .scrapy
-
+myenv/
 # Sphinx documentation
 docs/_build/
 
diff --git a/Backend/config.py b/Backend/config.py
index 073345d..5b43679 100644
--- a/Backend/config.py
+++ b/Backend/config.py
@@ -41,5 +41,8 @@ class Config:
     GROQ_BANK_ROWS_PER_CALL = int(os.getenv("GROQ_BANK_ROWS_PER_CALL", "20"))
     GROQ_TRANSACTION_ROWS_PER_CALL = int(os.getenv("GROQ_TRANSACTION_ROWS_PER_CALL", "25"))
     GROQ_OCR_MAX_INPUT_CHARS = int(os.getenv("GROQ_OCR_MAX_INPUT_CHARS", "12000"))
+    HF_TOKEN = os.getenv("HF_TOKEN", "")
+    HF_OCR_MODEL = os.getenv("HF_OCR_MODEL", "zai-org/GLM-OCR")
+    HF_OCR_PROVIDER = os.getenv("HF_OCR_PROVIDER", "zai-org")
     TESSERACT_CMD = os.getenv("TESSERACT_CMD", "")
     PDF_EXPORT_DIR = os.getenv("PDF_EXPORT_DIR", "generated_pdfs")
diff --git a/Backend/requirements.txt b/Backend/requirements.txt
index e317d2a..5040c31 100644
--- a/Backend/requirements.txt
+++ b/Backend/requirements.txt
@@ -3,10 +3,10 @@ groq
 PyJWT
 Pillow
 pandas
-pytesseract
 python-dotenv
 python-multipart
 SQLAlchemy
 psycopg[binary]
 uvicorn
 Werkzeug
+huggingface_hub
diff --git a/Backend/services/image_ocr.py b/Backend/services/image_ocr.py
index 7348568..a1f531f 100644
--- a/Backend/services/image_ocr.py
+++ b/Backend/services/image_ocr.py
@@ -1,21 +1,16 @@
 from __future__ import annotations
 
 import os
-from io import BytesIO
+import tempfile
 from typing import Any
 
-from PIL import Image, ImageOps
+from huggingface_hub import InferenceClient
 
 from runtime import get_runtime_config
 from services.document_ingestion import DocumentValidationError, parse_document
 from services.groq_ai import extract_csv_from_ocr_text, groq_status
 from services.tax_constants import SUPPORTED_DOCUMENTS
 
-try:
-    import pytesseract
-except ImportError:  # pragma: no cover
-    pytesseract = None
-
 
 IMAGE_EXTENSIONS = {".png", ".jpg", ".jpeg", ".webp", ".tiff", ".tif", ".bmp"}
 
@@ -23,51 +18,56 @@
 class OcrConversionError(ValueError):
     pass
 
+
 def ocr_status() -> dict[str, Any]:
     config = get_runtime_config()
-    tesseract_cmd = str(getattr(config, "TESSERACT_CMD", "")).strip()
+    hf_token = str(getattr(config, "HF_TOKEN", "")).strip()
     return {
-        "pytesseract_installed": pytesseract is not None,
-        "tesseract_cmd_configured": bool(tesseract_cmd),
+        "provider": getattr(config, "HF_OCR_PROVIDER", "zai-org"),
+        "model": getattr(config, "HF_OCR_MODEL", "zai-org/GLM-OCR"),
+        "has_hf_token": bool(hf_token),
         "groq": groq_status(),
     }
 
+
 def _is_image_filename(filename: str) -> bool:
     return os.path.splitext(filename.lower())[1] in IMAGE_EXTENSIONS
 
 
-def _extract_text_from_image(image_bytes: bytes) -> str:
-    if pytesseract is None:
-        raise OcrConversionError(
-            "pytesseract is not installed. Install it and ensure the Tesseract engine is available."
-        )
-
+def _extract_text_from_image(image_bytes: bytes, source_name: str) -> str:
     config = get_runtime_config()
-    tesseract_cmd = str(getattr(config, "TESSERACT_CMD", "")).strip()
-    if tesseract_cmd:
-        pytesseract.pytesseract.tesseract_cmd = tesseract_cmd
+    hf_token = str(getattr(config, "HF_TOKEN", "")).strip()
+    if not hf_token:
+        raise OcrConversionError("HF_TOKEN is not configured. Set HF_TOKEN to use Hugging Face OCR.")
 
-    try:
-        image = Image.open(BytesIO(image_bytes))
-    except Exception as exc:
-        raise OcrConversionError(f"Uploaded file is not a readable image: {exc}") from exc
+    client = InferenceClient(
+        provider=str(getattr(config, "HF_OCR_PROVIDER", "zai-org")).strip() or "zai-org",
+        api_key=hf_token,
+    )
 
-    # Grayscale + auto-contrast usually improves OCR quality on scans.
-    processed = ImageOps.autocontrast(ImageOps.grayscale(image))
+    suffix = os.path.splitext(source_name)[1].lower() or ".png"
+    with tempfile.NamedTemporaryFile(delete=False, suffix=suffix) as temp_file:
+        temp_file.write(image_bytes)
+        temp_path = temp_file.name
 
     try:
-        text = pytesseract.image_to_string(processed)
-    except Exception as exc:
-        raise OcrConversionError(
-            "OCR failed. Verify Tesseract is installed and TESSERACT_CMD is configured if needed."
-        ) from exc
-
-    normalized = "\n".join(line.rstrip() for line in text.splitlines())
-    if len(normalized.strip()) < 20:
-        raise OcrConversionError(
-            "OCR extracted too little text from the image. Upload a clearer image or use CSV."
+        output = client.image_to_text(
+            temp_path,
+            model=str(getattr(config, "HF_OCR_MODEL", "zai-org/GLM-OCR")).strip() or "zai-org/GLM-OCR",
         )
-    return normalized
+        normalized = "\n".join(line.rstrip() for line in str(output or "").splitlines())
+        if len(normalized.strip()) < 20:
+            raise OcrConversionError(
+                "OCR extracted too little text from the image. Upload a clearer image or use CSV."
+            )
+        return normalized
+    except OcrConversionError:
+        raise
+    except Exception as exc:
+        raise OcrConversionError(f"Hugging Face OCR inference failed: {exc}") from exc
+    finally:
+        if os.path.exists(temp_path):
+            os.remove(temp_path)
 
 
 def convert_image_to_csv_document(
@@ -76,12 +76,13 @@ def convert_image_to_csv_document(
     source_name: str,
     image_bytes: bytes,
 ) -> dict[str, Any]:
+    config = get_runtime_config()
     if document_type not in SUPPORTED_DOCUMENTS:
         raise OcrConversionError(f"Unsupported document type: {document_type}")
     if not _is_image_filename(source_name):
         raise OcrConversionError(f"{source_name} is not a supported image format.")
 
-    ocr_text = _extract_text_from_image(image_bytes)
+    ocr_text = _extract_text_from_image(image_bytes, source_name)
     schema = SUPPORTED_DOCUMENTS[document_type]
     llm_result = extract_csv_from_ocr_text(
         document_type=document_type,
@@ -122,7 +123,9 @@ def convert_image_to_csv_document(
         "metadata": {
             "source": "OCR",
             "conversion_meta": {
-                "origin": "image_ocr",
+                "origin": "huggingface_glm_ocr",
+                "provider": getattr(config, "HF_OCR_PROVIDER", "zai-org"),
+                "model": getattr(config, "HF_OCR_MODEL", "zai-org/GLM-OCR"),
                 "original_source": source_name,
                 "ocr_chars": len(ocr_text),
                 "llm_meta": llm_result.get("meta", {}),
diff --git a/Frontend/.env b/Frontend/.env
index b9ceeef..a165169 100644
--- a/Frontend/.env
+++ b/Frontend/.env
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
 # Backend API URL
-VITE_API_URL=https://taxai-77xc.onrender.com
+VITE_API_URL=http://127.0.0.1:8000
diff --git a/Frontend/.env.example b/Frontend/.env.example
index 04665c4..a165169 100644
--- a/Frontend/.env.example
+++ b/Frontend/.env.example
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
 # Backend API URL
-VITE_API_URL=http://127.0.0.1:5000
+VITE_API_URL=http://127.0.0.1:8000
diff --git a/Frontend/src/pages/AIAssistant.jsx b/Frontend/src/pages/AIAssistant.jsx
index 59d48cd..2069276 100644
--- a/Frontend/src/pages/AIAssistant.jsx
+++ b/Frontend/src/pages/AIAssistant.jsx
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 import { useState } from 'react';
 import AppLayout from '../components/AppLayout';
-
-const API_URL = 'https://taxai-77xc.onrender.com';
+import { API_BASE_URL } from '../utils/api';
 
 export default function AIAssistant() {
   const [activeTab, setActiveTab] = useState('tax');
@@ -120,7 +119,7 @@ export default function AIAssistant() {
         });
       }
 
-      const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/analyze`, {
+      const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/analyze`, {
         method: 'POST',
         headers: {
           'Content-Type': 'application/json',
@@ -161,7 +160,7 @@ export default function AIAssistant() {
     // For personal Q&A, call the API
     if (activeTab === 'personal' && taxAnalysis) {
       try {
-        const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/ask`, {
+        const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/ask`, {
           method: 'POST',
           headers: {
             'Content-Type': 'application/json',
diff --git a/Frontend/src/pages/Dashboard.jsx b/Frontend/src/pages/Dashboard.jsx
index 9017e3b..ccde5c8 100644
--- a/Frontend/src/pages/Dashboard.jsx
+++ b/Frontend/src/pages/Dashboard.jsx
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';
 import AppLayout from '../components/AppLayout';
-
-const API_URL = 'https://taxai-77xc.onrender.com';
+import { API_BASE_URL } from '../utils/api';
 
 export default function Dashboard() {
   const [dashboardData, setDashboardData] = useState(null);
@@ -12,7 +11,7 @@ export default function Dashboard() {
     const fetchDashboardData = async () => {
       try {
         const token = localStorage.getItem('access_token');
-        const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/dashboard/financial-data`, {
+        const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/dashboard/financial-data`, {
           headers: {
             'Authorization': `Bearer ${token}`,
             'Content-Type': 'application/json',
diff --git a/Frontend/src/pages/Filing.jsx b/Frontend/src/pages/Filing.jsx
index 26abfc5..56ab814 100644
--- a/Frontend/src/pages/Filing.jsx
+++ b/Frontend/src/pages/Filing.jsx
@@ -1,8 +1,7 @@
 import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';
 import { useAuth } from '../context/AuthContext';
 import AppLayout from '../components/AppLayout';
-
-const API_URL = 'https://taxai-77xc.onrender.com';
+import { API_BASE_URL } from '../utils/api';
 
 export default function Filing() {
   const { user } = useAuth();
@@ -29,7 +28,7 @@ export default function Filing() {
   useEffect(() => {
     const fetchOptions = async () => {
       try {
-        const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/options`, {
+        const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/options`, {
           headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('access_token')}` },
         });
         const data = await response.json();
@@ -56,7 +55,7 @@ export default function Filing() {
   const fetchJobs = async () => {
     try {
       setLoading(true);
-      const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs`, {
+      const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs`, {
         headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('access_token')}` },
       });
       const data = await response.json();
@@ -82,7 +81,7 @@ export default function Filing() {
       if (formData.deduction_80d) payload.deduction_80d = parseFloat(formData.deduction_80d);
       if (formData.advance_tax) payload.advance_tax = parseFloat(formData.advance_tax);
 
-      const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs`, {
+      const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs`, {
         method: 'POST',
         headers: {
           'Content-Type': 'application/json',
@@ -590,7 +589,7 @@ function JobDetail({ job, onBack, onJobUpdate }) {
         const token = localStorage.getItem('access_token');
 
         // Fetch options
-        const optResponse = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/options`, {
+        const optResponse = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/options`, {
           headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` },
         });
         if (!optResponse.ok) throw new Error('Failed to fetch options');
@@ -611,7 +610,7 @@ function JobDetail({ job, onBack, onJobUpdate }) {
         // Fetch review state if status is review or approved
         if (job.status === 'review' || job.status === 'approved') {
           const revResponse = await fetch(
-            `${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/review`,
+            `${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/review`,
             {
               headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` },
             }
@@ -651,7 +650,7 @@ function JobDetail({ job, onBack, onJobUpdate }) {
           docFormData.append('files', file);
         });
 
-        const uploadUrl = `${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/documents`;
+        const uploadUrl = `${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/documents`;
         console.log('Uploading to:', uploadUrl, 'Document type:', docItem.documentType);
 
         const response = await fetch(uploadUrl, {
@@ -706,7 +705,7 @@ function JobDetail({ job, onBack, onJobUpdate }) {
     try {
       setProcessLoading(true);
       const jobId = currentJob.job_id || currentJob.id;
-      const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/process`, {
+      const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/process`, {
         method: 'POST',
         headers: {
           Authorization: `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('access_token')}`,
@@ -721,7 +720,7 @@ function JobDetail({ job, onBack, onJobUpdate }) {
         if (data.job?.status === 'review' || data.job?.status === 'approved') {
           try {
             const revResponse = await fetch(
-              `${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/review`,
+              `${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/review`,
               {
                 headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('access_token')}` },
               }
@@ -754,7 +753,7 @@ function JobDetail({ job, onBack, onJobUpdate }) {
     try {
       setApproveLoading(true);
       const jobId = currentJob.job_id || currentJob.id;
-      const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/approve`, {
+      const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/approve`, {
         method: 'POST',
         headers: {
           'Content-Type': 'application/json',
@@ -786,7 +785,7 @@ function JobDetail({ job, onBack, onJobUpdate }) {
     try {
       setExportLoading(true);
       const jobId = currentJob.job_id || currentJob.id;
-      const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/export/itr-pdf`, {
+      const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/export/itr-pdf`, {
         headers: {
           Authorization: `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('access_token')}`,
         },
diff --git a/Frontend/src/pages/Upload.jsx b/Frontend/src/pages/Upload.jsx
index 32a58d6..70cef90 100644
--- a/Frontend/src/pages/Upload.jsx
+++ b/Frontend/src/pages/Upload.jsx
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';
 import AppLayout from '../components/AppLayout';
-
-const API_URL = 'https://taxai-77xc.onrender.com';
+import { API_BASE_URL } from '../utils/api';
 
 export default function Upload() {
   const [mode, setMode] = useState('analyze'); // 'analyze' or 'filing'
@@ -35,7 +34,7 @@ export default function Upload() {
         const token = localStorage.getItem('access_token');
 
         // Fetch options
-        const optResponse = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/options`, {
+        const optResponse = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/options`, {
           headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` },
         });
         const optData = await optResponse.json();
@@ -43,7 +42,7 @@ export default function Upload() {
         setAnalyzeOptions(optData);
 
         // Fetch jobs
-        const jobResponse = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs`, {
+        const jobResponse = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs`, {
           headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` },
         });
         const jobData = await jobResponse.json();
@@ -63,7 +62,7 @@ export default function Upload() {
         try {
           const jobId = selectedJob.job_id || selectedJob.id;
           const response = await fetch(
-            `${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/documents`,
+            `${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/documents`,
             {
               headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('access_token')}` },
             }
@@ -142,7 +141,7 @@ export default function Upload() {
         });
 
         const response = await fetch(
-          `${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/documents`,
+          `${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/jobs/${jobId}/documents`,
           {
             method: 'POST',
             headers: {
@@ -218,7 +217,7 @@ export default function Upload() {
         formData.append('files', file);
       });
 
-      const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/tax-assistant/analyze-files`, {
+      const response = await fetch(`${API_BASE_URL}/api/tax-assistant/analyze-files`, {
         method: 'POST',
         headers: {
           Authorization: `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('access_token')}`,
diff --git a/Frontend/src/utils/api.js b/Frontend/src/utils/api.js
index 6b4c3ac..e8ba015 100644
--- a/Frontend/src/utils/api.js
+++ b/Frontend/src/utils/api.js
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-const rawBaseUrl = import.meta.env.VITE_API_URL || 'https://taxai-77xc.onrender.com';
+const rawBaseUrl = import.meta.env.VITE_API_URL || 'http://127.0.0.1:8000';
 
 export const API_BASE_URL = rawBaseUrl.replace(/\/+$/, '');
 export const API_PREFIX = `${API_BASE_URL}/api`;