Attention PAN card holders. You may have to pay a hefty fine amounting to Rs 10,000 if you fail to link the PAN card with Aadhaar by March 31, 2021.
The PAN card, which is not linked to Aadhaar after March 31, will not be valid for conducting financial transactions. This can pose major problems. Also, it remains to be seen how effectively such an inoperative document can be used as ID proof for non-tax purposes.
The income tax department had earlier announced that any PAN that is not linked with Aadhaar will be declared as inoperative. But now, in its latest notification, the IT department has mentioned the resulting consequences under the Income Tax Act.
The Income Tax Department said in a fresh notification that those who fail to link their personal account number with their 12-digit biometric Aadhaar number before the set deadline, their PAN cards will become inoperative. What’s more, they may face a fine up to Rs 10,000 for using inoperative PAN cards.
Under Section 272B of the Income Tax Act, someone found using invalid or operative PAN card may face fine up to Rs 10,000. The Assessing Officer may direct such people to pay the penalty.
Once made inoperative, a PAN card can be made valid again with Aadhaar linking. The inoperative PAN card will become valid and operative again as soon as the individual links it with his/ her Aadhaar card.
You can link your PAN card with Aadhaar number by visiting the e-filing website of the income tax department or by sending an SMS to 567678 or 56161 in a prescribed format.Â
