[2][3] The first description of the species was by the British ornithologist Allan Octavian Hume in 1872 under the binomial name Chrysomitris thibetanus.

[5] At that time, the Lepcha of Sikkim referred to it as tŭk nyil nyón ('fierce wormwood').

Wing and tail feathers of this bird species are broadly differentiated by a yellowish-green color.

A group of birders from West Bengal discovered its presence in Hee Village near Varsey Rhododendron Sanctuary, Sikkim, India in the month of March 2013.

Tibetan serins generally breed in mixed forest and spend their winter in alder.