The Buyt Desk
You must link your PAN and Aadhar by 30th June or else your PAN may not work after the due date. The government has already extended the deadline for linking Aadhar and PAN several times and wants people to pay a fine if they miss the last date. After the change in the Income Tax Act, this system was to be started from 1st July 2017, but due to various reason, the date has been extended. Now we are nearing the new last date deadline of 30th June. In all probability the way COVID has derailed our lives it may again get an extension but do not wait for that to happen. If you have not yet linked the two important document then do so. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court’s decision in the case related to Aadhaar also upheld the mandatory linking of unique identity with PAN.
Why PAN- Aadhar should be linked?
PAN is a very important financial identity document. It is illegal to have multiple PAN on your names. The Income Tax law mandates that there should be only one PAN in a person’s name, but getting a new PAN is so simple that people easily make multiple PANs and try to evade their tax liability. On the other hand, Aadhaar is a unique identification number based on an individuals fingerprint and iris image. Since these cannot be duplicated, a person can’t get two Aadhaar numbers. That is why linking the two will help in eliminating duplication. PAN found with no linkage to Aadhar will raise a red alert.
If PAN and Aadhaar are not linked by the due date then what will happen?
If you fail to link your PAN and Aadhar by 30th June then you will have to pay a penalty of Rs 1000 for the delay. There are several specified payments under Section 114B of the Income Tax Act that you make or receive where you have to quote your PAN such as buying a vehicle, opening a bank account, making an investment or making a one-time payment of Rs 50,000 in a hotel or restaurant etc. If you fail to give your PAN number to these authorities or persons you will end up paying a TDS at a higher rate of 20%.
PAN and Aadhaar have been made ‘interchangeable’ through the Finance Bill 2019. This means that if you do not have a PAN, then Aadhaar can be used in all the places where PAN is required to be presented.
How to Link PAN-Aadhar?
You simply have to log in to the new website of Income Tax Department www.incometax.gov.in and complete the process. This linking can also be done by sending an SMS to 567678 or 56161 along with your PAN and Aadhar ID number.
