PAN Inoperative If Not Linked With Aadhaar Before March 31, 2023

The late fee that you would need to now pay for linking your Aadhaar with your permanent account number (PAN), has been doubled to Rs. 1,000 from the previous penalty of Rs 500. This, even as the Central Board of Direct Taxes has extended the date for linking the two by a year – from March 31, 2022 to March 31 2023.

In case you fail to link your Aadhaar and PAN before March 31, 2023, your PAN will become inoperative. In essence, even if you have a valid PAN card, it will not be accepted or used anywhere. In other words, it will be deemed that you do not possess a valid PAN. Do note that quoting PAN is mandatory for investing in stocks, mutual funds, loan, and others. 

So, here’s the step-by-step process to link your PAN with Aadhaar, as specified by the Income Tax department.

First Pay Fee On NSDL Website

Step 1: Go to the egov.nsdl website. Link- https://onlineservices.tin.egov-nsdl.com/etaxnew/tdsnontds.jsp

Step 2: Click on the proceed button in ‘Challan no./ITNS 280 tab in the non-TDS/TCS category column.

Step 3: After you click on the proceed button, a new window will open. You will have about 30 minutes to go through with the payment transaction. In this page, you will see two options i.e., tax applicable and type of payment. 

According to the Income Tax department, for this specific fee payment related to linking of Aadhaar and PAN, you will need to select the (0021) Income tax, other than companies in the ‘tax applicable’ column.

For the type of payment column, you will need to navigate to the bottom and click on ‘(500) other receipts column. 

Step 4: After you filled in the tax applicable and type of payment column, you will have to enter your PAN, address, email ID, mobile number, and preferred mode of payment i.e., Netbanking or debit card. Do note that there is no option as of now to pay this fee by unified payment interface (UPI) or credit card. So, keep your bank debit card and Netbanking details handy.

This was the last step, but do not immediately go now to link your Aadhaar and PAN. The process takes about four-five days. So, wait accordingly and then try linking after that.

“Submit the PAN-Aadhaar link request on e-Filing portal after 4-5 working days of making fee payment on NSDL (now Protean) portal,” reads an FAQ on the Income Tax Department portal.

Link Aadhaar Number With PAN After 4-5 Days

According to the Income Tax department, there is currently no validity period after the payment of fees relating to Aadhaar-PAN linking on the egov NSDL portal.

That said, wait for a minimum of four-five days, and after that, follow the below steps to link your Aadhaar with PAN.

Step 1: You have to log in with your PAN details in the Income Tax department’s e-filing portal.

Step 2: After you have successfully logged in, you should navigate to the ‘Dashboard’ page. There, you will find a button on the lower left side, which says ‘Link Aadhaar to PAN’. Click on that link button. You will also find the same button in your personal details section, too.

Step 3: Now, enter your Aadhaar number and click on the validate button, which you will find on the lower right side of the page. 

Things To Be Careful About When Linking

Verify Challan Number: When you are paying the fee on the egov NSDL website, a challan number receipt will be generated after you have successfully made the payment. 

Do note it down, because after a minimum of four-five days, when you go to the e-filing portal of the Income Tax department and try linking your PAN and Aadhaar, this same challan number will automatically be quoted after you click on the ‘validate’ tab. 

So here, check the challan number with the receipt you got from NSDL and the one shown on the Income Tax department website. After you have verified the same, click on continue.

Check Spelling On PAN Is Same As On Aadhaar: This is an important factor, since your name, date of birth, gender, and other details will be checked and matched by the Income Tax department with the records kept by UIDAI in the Aadhaar database.

In case your name is different in both the documents, then go to the appropriate places and change them.

For updating the Aadhaar details, you have to go to the nearest Aadhaar enrolment centre, or if your mobile number is already linked with Aadhaar, then you have to click on the UIDAI site.

For updating your PAN card details, you have to go to the NSDL site. After this, you need to proceed to the PAN column in the services type and then proceed to the application for updating the required details.