Online Application Process for Availing PAN through UTIITSL:

• Visit www.utiitsl.com
• Click Services on the homepage and select ‘PAN Card’
• Next, select one among ‘Apply for New PAN card (49A)’ and ‘Apply for New PAN card (49AA)’
• Fill in the details and click ‘Submit’
• Re-verify the details provided in the form and ensure that it is correct.
• Make the payment of the requisite fee.
• Once the payment is successful, the applicant needs to save the fill-in application form and get a couple of printouts for further use.
• Affix two photographs on the printout and sign across it.
• The applicant also needs to sign below the photograph and on the bottom of the second page of the printout.
• Next attach the required documents with the form and submit it using the digital signature option or at the UTIITSL office located near the applicant.

How to link PAN to Aadhaar

Citizens of India who have been allotted a 12-digit Aadhaar number will have to have it linked to their PAN. Those who are planning on applying for a PAN card will also have to quote their Aadhaar number when they do so. The Finance Act of 2017-18 has made Aadhaar a necessary requirement for the filing of tax returns provided that your PAN has been linked with your Aadhaar. Linking the two is expected to keep a tab on tax evasion. According to a notice by the government, those who fail to link their Aadhaar and PAN will have their PAN canceled.

It has been reported that over 2.07 crore taxpayers residing in India have already linked their Aadhaar and PAN card. Currently, there are over 115 crore people who have an Aadhaar card where as there are over 25 crore PAN card owners in the country.

PAN and Aadhaar should be compulsorily linked

The Government of India has declared that every Permanent Account Number (PAN) holder has to connect his or her number to their Aadhaar from July 1, 2017. You will soon have to start quoting your Aadhaar when you apply for PAN or while filing your income tax returns.

In Form 49A, a new section has been added to enter the Aadhaar number while one is applying for PAN. The Income-tax Rules of 1962 have been amended to declare that whoever has PAN must mandatorily quote his or her Aadhaar number to the income tax authorities.

PAN and recently even Aadhaar have been made compulsory for creation of bank accounts and making cash transactions.

 In the rush to link Aadhaar to PAN on the income tax website before 1st July 2017, people have observed that the website has been crashing. Most people seem to have understood that if they do not link their Aadhaar with PAN before 1 July, the PAN would be automatically disabled. But that is not entirely true.

As per the latest declaration from the government, the linking will be mandatory from 1 July, and not before it. After July 1st, the government would declare a date after which PAN cards not linked to Aadhaar will be invalidated.

Individuals applying for new PAN post July 1 would have to quote their Aadhaar numbers mandatorily. Quoting of Aadhaar is also mandated when filing income tax returns.

Login to the income tax e-filing website, https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/ and access the ‘Profile Settings’ menu option. Click on ‘Link Aadhaar’. A form will be displayed in which you have to update your name, gender, date of birth, and Aadhaar details.

Submit the form to complete the process. You will receive a confirmation email at your registered email ID.

Things to Keep in Mind When Applying for a PAN Card

PAN cards  which have been a long standing identification card is an alphanumeric number having 10 digits is issued by the  Income Tax Department and is a pivotal ID proof when applying for a slew of various financial products including opening of bank accounts. This card is linked to numerous transactions such as payments towards tax, filing one’s tax returns, to TDS certificates and many more.

The card can be applied for by anyone over the age of 18 years and is used to link all tax related documents to bring about ease of retrieval of information, tax payment histories, to get information related to any investments made by the cardholder and even to check credit worthiness of an applicant when they apply for loans. The main idea behind the PAN card is to have a single point of data collection to detect and rectify cases of tax evasions thereby increasing the baseline of taxpayers. A PAN card can be applied through a simple process described below.

Application for PAN card: For first time applicants, a PAN card application form for Indian citizens can be found online. This form is titled FORM 49A and can be found on the NSDL website. The forms are also available through NSDL facilitation centres or centres that offer PAN creation services and are managed by the NSDL. All applicants will have to fill out this form. The PAN card does not provide any form of Tatkal facility to acquire the PANcard instantly. The forms need to be filled out and submitted at the centres along with the required supporting documents. For applications made online, acknowledgement receipts and supporting documents can be mailed to the Income Tax PAN services Unit located in Pune.

Supporting documents required: Now that the application forms have been filled out, they need to be submitted along with the required supporting documents. These supporting documents comprise of key details such as one coloured passport photograph of the applicant to go on Form 49A, valid proof of identity and address of the applicant and designation and code of the concerned assessing officer of the I-T department. The designation and code should be entered into the Form 49A.

Address proof will have to be in the form of a utility bill such as an electricity bill or telephone bill or a credit card statement or bank statement of the applicant. Drivers’ licenses and voter Ids can also qualify as valid address and identity proof.

In case the applicant has none of the above documents or does not own a property then they can provide a copy of the rental agreement and rent receipt signed by the MP, MLA or a gazetted officer representing the concerned locality.

If the applicant is a minor, then his/her parents or guardians can submit their address and identity proof documents listed above.

Fees for PAN card application: The fee for application of PAN card for Indian citizens residing in India is Rs.107 whereas Indian citizens currently residing outside India will have to pay an application fee of Rs.994. both charges depicted are inclusive of tax and dispatch fees.

Clauses: Only one PAN card can be held by an applicant at any time. Holding multiple copies of a PAN card is strictly against the law and those found to have more than one copy will face legal action as well as hefty fines of up to Rs.10,000. Holders with multiple PAN cards can voluntarily give up their additional cards and avoid any legal action. Application for request to change in PAN mentioning the one an applicant wants to retain and the one they want to surrender can be done on the Income Tax Department’s website.