Aadhaar PAN Linking: Deadline Extended to March 31; Know How to Link and Check Status

The central government has extended the deadline for linking Aadhaar card and PAN (Permanent Account Number) card to March 31, 2021. The decision was made due to coronavirus pandemic in India. "Understanding and keeping in mind the times that we are in, we have extended deadlines. Aadhaar Pan linking can be done till 31st March 2021. We do hope this helps you plan things better," the income tax department shared on Twitter.

The income tax department earlier extended the last date of payment of self-assessment tax, in tax liability up to ₹1 lakh till November 30, 2020.

Supreme Court made it mandatory to link 12-digit identification number with PAN card for filing of income tax returns (ITR). Even when one is applying for a new PAN card, quoting of your Aadhaar number is obligatory. If one is applying for a new PAN card, automatically the interlinking is done during the application stage itself.

The existing PAN cardholders must link it with Aadhaar within the deadline, i.e. March 31, 2021.

To link PAN with Aadhaar, you need to visit the income tax department's e-filing portal and click the link that says Link Aadhaar section on the left side. You need to fill in all the details like PAN number, Aadhaar number and your name. The I-T department will validate the details like your name, date of birth and gender against Aadhaar details after which the linking will happen.

Follow this process to link your PAN with Aadhaar:

1. Go to the income tax e-filing portal

2. Register on it, if you have not done it before. Your PAN will be your user ID.

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

4. A pop-up window will be displayed, prompting to link your PAN with Aadhaar. If it does not get displayed, go to 'Profile Settings' on the Menu bar and click on 'Link Aadhaar'.

5. Few details such as name, date of birth and gender will already get mentioned according to the PAN details.

6. Verify the PAN details on-screen with that specified on your Aadhaar.

(*Note: If there is any mismatch, you have to get it corrected in either of the documents)

7. If there is no mismatch and everything is correct, enter your Aadhaar number and click on the "link now" button.

8. A pop-up message will let you know whether your Aadhaar has been successfully linked to your PAN or not

9. To link your PAN and Aadhaar, you can also visit https://www.utiitsl.com/ OR https://www.egov-nsdl.co.in/.

Once the deadline to link Aadhaar and PAN is over, the income tax department will consider all unlinked PAN cards "inoperative". This means that your PAN card will be of no use, and you will also not be able to file ITR (income tax returns).

You can also check whether your PAN is linked to Aadhaar, and the status in income-tax department's e-filing portal by entering the details.

Know-How to Check Status

1. Go to www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/aadhaarstatus

2. Fill in PAN and Aadhaar Number

3. Click 'View Link Aadhaar Status'. The linking status gets displayed in a new screen

To check your PAN-Aadhaar linking status, you can SMS to 567678 or 56161 in the below format.

UIDPAN < 12 digit Aadhaar number> < 10 digit Permament Account Number>