India Extends PAN-Aadhaar Linking Deadline from March 31 to June 30, 2023

Posted by Written by Naina Bhardwaj Reading Time: 3 minutes

In order to provide some more time to India taxpayers, the date for linking PAN and Aadhaar has been extended to June 30, 2023, whereby individuals can link the two without facing repercussions and upon the payment of a fine.

The deadline for linking Aadhaar with Permanent Account Number (PAN) has been extended by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) in India. The new deadline is now June 30, 2023; it was previously March 31, 2023.

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Individuals holding a PAN card will not face any consequences for linking their Aadhaar until the extended deadline. However, if they fail to link it before June 30, 2023, their PAN card will become inoperative thereafter.

Previously, PAN cardholders were required to complete the Aadhaar linking process and pay a fee of INR 1000 by March 31. As per reports, more than 510 million PANs have already been linked with Aadhaar to date.

Also read: Essential Personal Finance Compliance Checklist for India as March 31 Deadline Approaches

How to check the status of PAN-Aadhaar linking?

Check status online

  • Access the Income Tax e-filing portal at https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/
  • Click on the “Quick Links” option from the homepage and select “Link Aadhaar Status.”
  • Enter your PAN and Aadhaar numbers in the respective fields.
  • A pop-up message will be displayed, indicating the status of the linking process.
  • If Aadhaar and PAN are already linked, the message will confirm it.
  • If the PAN-Aadhaar are not linked, the message will direct you to “Link Aadhaar.”
  • In case the PAN-Aadhaar linking request is under process, the message will inform you to check the status later through the “Link Aadhaar Status” link on the Home Page.

Check status via SMS

Here are the steps to check your documents’ status via SMS:

  • To check the status, send an SMS to 567678 or 56161.
  • If your Aadhaar card is linked with PAN, you will receive a message stating “Aadhaar is already associated with PAN in ITD database. Thank you for using our services.”
  • If your Aadhaar is not linked with PAN, you will receive a message stating “Aadhaar is not associated with PAN (number) in ITD database. Thank you for using our services.”

Consequences of not linking Aadhaar with PAN by June 30, 2023

If individuals fail to link their Aadhaar with their PAN by June 30, 2023, their PAN will become inoperative from July 1, 2023. This will restrict them from filing their income tax returns, performing various banking services, and carrying out transactions in the stock market.

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PAN Application Procedure in India: A Step-by-Step Guide

To reactivate the PAN, individuals will need to inform the prescribed authority of their Aadhaar within 30 days and pay a fee of INR 1,000. During the period that the PAN remains inoperative, individuals will not receive refunds, and interest will not be payable on any refunds. Additionally, the TDS and TCS will be deducted or collected at higher rates provided in the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Individuals exempted from mandatory PAN-Aadhaar linking

There are certain categories of individuals exempt from the mandatory linking of Aadhaar with PAN, which includes:

  1. Residents of Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, and Meghalaya.
  2. Non-resident Indians (NRIs) as defined under the Income-tax Act, 1961.
  3. Individuals who were 80 years of age or older at any time during the previous year.
  4. Non-citizens of India.

Why has the government mandated PAN-Aadhar linking?

The government has made Aadhaar-PAN linking mandatory to address the issue of duplicate PAN cards.

The Income-tax Department of India had identified cases where one person possessed multiple PANs or where one PAN number was assigned to several individuals, leading to inaccuracies in the tax collection process.

By linking Aadhaar cards with PAN cards, the government intends to bring in a transparent method of de-duplication of the PAN database. This will help to verify the identity of taxpayers, prevent tax evasion, and ensure compliance with tax laws.

The unique identification number and biometric data of Indian residents stored in Aadhaar can help eliminate fake and duplicate PANs, increasing the efficiency of the tax system.

 

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