Today is the last date to link your Aadhaar card and PAN card. The income tax department had extended the deadline to link the two documents from March 31 to June 30.

Individuals who have not linked their PAN and Aadhaar till now can do so by paying a fee of Rs 1000 till June 30. Now if you fail to link your PAN card with your Aadhaar card, then you might have to face certain consequences. 

According to the income tax department, all taxpayers with PAN card allotted as of July 1, 2017, are required to link their Aadhaar number with their PAN Cards.However, NRIs, non-citizens of India, those aged above 80 years, and residents of Meghalaya, Assam, and Jammu and Kashmir are exempted to do so.

Consequences of not linking PAN-Aadhaar 

According to officials, the linking of PAN and Aadhaar is important to curb tax evasion. If you don’t link both the documents, your PAN card will become inoperative and no refund will be made against PANs not linked to Aadhaar.

In addition to that, interest will also not be payable on the refund for the period during which the PAN remains inoperative. However, it can become operative again in 30 days “upon intimation of Aadhaar to the prescribed authority after payment of a fee of Rs.1,000”, as per income tax department.

You will also have to pay a higher amount of tax deducted at sources (TDS) and tax collected at sources (TCS). 

According to a report by BG Prime, not linking your PAN Card and Aadhaar Card can also cause difficulties when trying to access government services, such as obtaining subsidies, applying for a passport, and opening a bank account. If the two documents are not linked, it may be problematic when attempting to make use of these services.

Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has also mandated for investors to link both your documents. “Since  PAN  is  the key identification  number and  part  of  KYC  requirements for  all transactions  in  the securities market, all SEBI registered  entities  and Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs) are required to ensure valid KYC for all participants,” SEBI wrote in a circular issued.

The circular stated that all existing investors must link their PAN with Aadhaar to ensure smooth transactions and avoid consequences in the securities markets. Restrictions could be imposed on securities and other transactions until the PAN and Aadhaar are linked.

Here’s step-wise guide on how to link your PAN Card with Aadhar Card —

  1. Open the Income Tax e-filing portal - https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/

  2. Register on it (if not already done). Your PAN (Permanent Account Number) will be your user id.

  3. Log in by entering the User ID, password and date of birth.

  4. A pop up window will appear, prompting you to link your PAN with Aadhaar. If not, go to ‘Profile Settings’ on the Menu bar and click on ‘Link Aadhaar’.

  5. Details such as name, date of birth and gender will already be mentioned as per the PAN details.

  6. Verify the PAN details on screen with the ones mentioned on your Aadhaar. Pls. note that if there is a mismatch, you need to get the same corrected in either of the documents.

  7. If the details match, enter your Aadhaar number and click on the “link now” button.

  8. A pop-up message will inform you that your Aadhaar has been successfully linked to your PAN.

After you have successfully linked your Aadhaar Card and PAN Card, here’s how you can check your Aadhaar-PAN Card link status online —

  • On the homepage, click Quick Links, then Link Aadhaar Status.

  • The page that opens will have two fields where you will need to enter your PAN and Aadhaar numbers.

  • After the server checks the status, a pop-up message will be displayed. If Aadhaar and PAN are linked, the message will read: "Your PAN is already linked to given Aadhaar".

  • If the two documents are not linked, following message will appear on the screen: "PAN not linked with Aadhaar. Please click on 'Link Aadhaar' to link your Aadhaar with PAN".

  • In case the Aadhaar-PAN link is in progress, the taxpayer will see this message: "Your Aadhaar-PAN linking request has been sent to UIDAI for validation. Please check the status later by clicking on 'Link Aadhaar Status' link on Home Page."