Link PAN card with Aadhaar before March 31, 2022. Know simple and easy tricks

Government has extended the PAN card linking with Aadhaar card till March 31, 2022.

Know how to link PAN card with Aadhaar Card. (Vipin Kumar/Hindustan Times)

If you're a PAN card holder and haven't linked your PAN with the Aadhaar card number, then you must do it by March 31, 2022. Government has extended the last date to link Aadhaar Card with PAN Card till March 31, 2022. Failing to do so might land you into trouble as your PAN card will become invalid. After the scheduled date, it would require a fee of ₹1,000 for PAN Aadhaar linking.

Moreover, if your PAN card is not linked with your Aadhaar card, then you won't be able to invest in mutual funds, stocks, open a bank account, etc. where furnishing a PAN card is a must. If the person furnishes the invalid PAN Card, they will be required to pay a penalty of ten thousand rupees under Section 272N of the Income Tax Act 1961.

The newly inserted Section 234H of Income Tax Act (in March 2021 via Finance Bill) says, "Without prejudice to the provisions of this Act, where a person is required to intimate his Aadhaar number under sub-section (2) of section 139AA and such person fails to do so on or before such date, as may be prescribed, he shall be liable to pay such fee, as may be prescribed, not exceeding one thousand rupees, at the time of making intimation under sub-section (2) of section 139AA after the said date."

Know how you can link your PAN card with Aadhaar card

There are two ways to link your PAN card and Aadhaar card- either through the Income Tax e-filing website or by sending an SMS to 567678 or 56161. Here's a step by step process:

Linking PAN with Aadhaar online ( Through the e-filing Website)

Step 1: Visit the Income Tax official portal and click on the designated tab

Step 2: On the next page, provide the PAN, Aadhaar number, name as mentioned in the Aadhaar card, and other details

Step 3: Enter the Captcha code. Visually challenged applicants can request for an OTP instead of the captcha code. The OTP is sent on the registered mobile number.

Step 5: Next, click on the 'Link Aadhaar' button and complete the process.

How to link PAN with Aadhaar through SMS

Step 1: Open the SMS on your phone and type UIDPAN<12-digit Aadhaar><10-digit PAN> on your mobile

Step 2: Send the message to 567678 or 56161.

Once done, here's how you can check the status of your Aadhaar Card Link with PAN number.

How to check the status of an Aadhar Card link with a PAN number?

Given below are the steps to check the status of linking of Aadhaar Card with PAN:

Step 1: Visit the Income Tax Department's official website

Step 2: Go to Aadhaar status or simply click on the link incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/aadhaarstatus.

Step 3: Now, enter your Aadhaar and PAN number and click on ‘View Link Aadhaar Status'.

You can check the status of linking Aadhaar with PAN via SMS. You will just have to send an SMS to 567678 or 56161 in the format: UIDPAN < 12-digit Aadhaar number> < 10-digit Permanent Account Number>. If your Aadhaar is successfully linked with PAN then you will get the message “Aadhaar (Aadhaar number) is already associated with PAN..in ITD database.”