PAN-Aadhaar link: Around 17.5 crore PAN cards may become inoperative after 31 March, here's why

The Income Tax department, in its latest notification, has clearly said that the PAN cards will become inoperative if not linked with Aadhaar by March 31, 2020.  According to I-T department, over 30.75 crore Permanent Account Number (PAN) had been linked to Aadhaar till January 27, 2020. However, nearly 17.58 crore PANs are yet to be linked.

If both these cards are not linked then you won't be able to perform at least 18 financial transactions. These transactions include sale or purchase of a vehicle (excluding two wheelers), applying for debit/credit cards and opening a demat account among many others as per the Rule 114B of the Income Tax Rules.

Besides, any person with an inoperative PAN card will be liable for all consequences under the I-T Act for not furnishing, intimating or quoting the permanent account number, I-T department said.

Section 139 AA (2) of the Income Tax Act says that every person having PAN as on July 1, 2017, and eligible to obtain Aadhaar, must intimate his Aadhaar number to the tax authorities.

In 2018, the Supreme Court of India declared Aadhaar as constitutionally valid and held that the biometric ID would remain mandatory for the filing of income tax returns and allotment of PAN cards.

There are two ways to link your PAN card to your Aadhaar card: through SMS and/or through the IT department website. In order to link your PAN and Aadhaar via SMS, you need to type a message in the format: UIDPAN . You can send this SMS either to 567678 or 56161.

In order to link your PAN and Aadhaar via the IT department website, you will have to visit the IT department website homepage. You need to follow the steps specified on the IT department website to link your PAN and Aadhaar online.

Here's how to link PAN -Aadhaar on Income tax's website:

Step 1: Visit the Income Tax Department e-filing portal - incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in

Step 2: Go to 'Link Aadhaar' option on the left side of the homepage

Step 3: Enter your PAN and Aadhaar number and your name as per AADHAAR

Step 4: Mark 'I have the only year of birth in Aadhar card,' if you have only the birth year on the Aadhaar

Step 5: Mark 'I agree to validate my Aadhar details with UIDAI,' if you agree to do so

Step 6: Enter the captcha code on your screen

Step 7: Click on 'Link Aadhaar' option to request linking of PAN and Aadhaar