Your PAN card might turn useless if you don't link it to Aadhaar this month
1 min read 26 Sep 2019, 11:25 AM ISTThe last date to link your PAN card with Aadhaar is 30 SeptemberIf you file ITR by quoting an Aadhaar number which is not linked to any PAN, you will be issued a new PAN card automatically
PremiumNEW DELHI : The deadline to link your Permanent Account Number (PAN) card with Aadhaar card is ending this month. According to a notification issued by the finance ministry earlier this year, 30 September is the last date to link the two id cards -- PAN and Aadhaar. The government has extended the deadline several times in the past and this could be the last and final call to complete the linking process.
What will happen if you don't link PAN with Aadhaar
The consequences of not linking Aadhaar with PAN have been spelled out clearly in the Finance Bill 2019. Sub-section (2) of section 139AA of the Income Tax Act had earlier stated that PAN will become invalid if it is not linked to Aadhaar number till the deadline notified by the income tax department.
However, the Finance Bill has amended the provision with effect from this month. According to the new rule, all such PAN cards will become "inoperative". This means that such PAN cards will no more be treated as being in use by the government. Whether they can be made operative again later on is not yet clear as the word "inoperative" is yet to be defined by the income tax department.
"In order to protect validity of transactions previously carried out through such PAN, it is proposed to amend the said proviso so as to provide that if a person fails to intimate the Aadhaar number, the PAN allotted to such person shall be made inoperative in the prescribed manner," the Finance Bill said.
The new rules also allow PAN card holders to quote Aadhaar in lieu of the former. Those who quote a Aadhaar number, which is not linked to any PAN, will be automatically issued a new PAN card while income tax returns (ITR).
How to link PAN with Aadhaar
You can easily link your 12-digit UIDAI-issued Aadhaar number with your 10-digit alphanumeric PAN on the income tax department's e-filing website. You can also check the status of Aadhaar-PAN linking on the portal. For all new PAN cards it is mandatory to quote your Aadhaar numbers. It is also mandatory to link your PAN with Aadhaar while filing income tax returns (ITR).
