PAN Card

All taxpayers in the country are issued with a Permanent Account Number, i.e., PAN, by the Government of India. Any information pertaining to individuals or Companies is linked to this PAN number.

Information like tax payment, TDS credit, any investments made, specific transactions are linked to the PAN number and is shared across the country. This is the reason there is no duplication of PAN, i.e., no two individuals can have the same PAN Number.

When any taxpayer applies for a PAN, a PAN card in the form of a laminated plastic card containing the unique number will be issued. Quoting of PAN number is compulsory for various transactions, especially for cash transactions above Rs. 50000/

The details available on the PAN Card are

• Name of the PAN Card Holder for individual/Company
• Name of the PAN Card Holder's father-for individuals
• Date of birth of PAN Card Holder in case of individuals and date of registration in the case of Companies/Firms
• The PAN Card Holder's photograph-in the case of individuals
• Signature of the PAN Card Holder.
• The 10-digit PAN-It is an alpha-numeric number where each character denotes particular information of the cardholder, as mentioned below.
  • The first three letters are alphabets from A to Z
  • The fourth letter represents the category of the taxpayer as mentioned below:
    • A represents Association of Persons.
    • B represents the Body of Individuals.
    • C represents Company
    • F represents Firms
    • G represents Government
    • H represents HUF
    • L represents the Local Authority.
    • J represents Artificial Judicial Person.
    • P represents Individual
    • T represents the Association of Persons for Trusts.
  • The fifth letter is the first letter of the individual cardholder's surname.
  • The remaining characters are a combination of alphabets and numbers. The first four characters are alphabets, and a last character is a number.

The signature on the PAN Card is accepted as signature proof required for financial transactions carried out by the Individual.

The photo affixed PAN Card serves as a Photo Identity Proof wherever required.

Additional Info: Check your PAN Card Status Online.

The following are the different types of PAN Card.

• For individuals
• For business establishments (Companies, Partnership Firms)
• For Trusts
• For Societies
• For Foreigners
• For Hindu Undivided Family
• For NRIs 

Also know PAN Aadhar link to get some benefits.

PAN Card has to be obtained 

• Any individual whose total income in a financial year is beyond the exempted limit
• Any charitable trust that has to furnish form 139(4A)
• Any business owner or professional whose turnover or gross receipts in a year would exceed Rs. 5.00 lakhs
• Any person who intends to carry out financial transactions where mentioning PAN Number is compulsory.
• Non-individual residents and anyone associated with the need to obtain a PAN Card if the financial transactions conducted by them is in excess of Rs. 250000/- in a financial year.

For Pan Card Apply Online or Offline, you will have to produce address proof as well as a photo ID. Any two of the documents mentioned below can be produced as Proof of Address and Proof of Identity.

• Individual Applicant: Aadhar Card, Passport, Driving Licence Voter's ID
• HUF-Hindu Undivided Family: An affidavit issued by the Karta (head of HUF) along with POA and POI details.
• Company registered in India: Certificate issued by the Registrar of Companies.
• Firms/Partnerships(LLP)- Certificate issued by Registrar of Firms/LLP (Limited Liability Partnerships) and Partnership Deed.
• Trust: A copy of the Certificate issued by the Charity Commissioner or a copy of the Trust Deed.
• Societies: Certificate of Registration issued by Charity Commissioner or Registrar of Society.
• Foreigners: Bank statement of account at resident country and NRE account in India.

Additional Info: You can apply for a Duplicate PAN Card in India.

For PAN Card apply offline, you will have to follow the procedure given below.

• Obtain the PAN Card form either at UTIITSL or NSDL PAN application centres. If you need NSDL PAN, you will have to obtain the application form from NSDL Centre. Form 49A or 49AA is the PAN application form.
• Fill up the PAN Card form.
• Enclose the documents required.
• Pay the prescribed charges, and the process is complete.
• The PAN Card will be dispatched to the address mentioned in the PAN application form. 
• If you need an e-PAN Card, e-PAN Card apply also enabled. The process is the same as the physical PAN Card, but you will have to mention that you need an e-PAN. Providing an Email ID is mandatory as the e-PAN Card will be sent to your Email ID.

As per Section 139AA, every person who has an Aadhar Card has to mention the Aadhar number in the application form. If the Individual does not have an Aadhar card but has applied for one, the enrolment ID in the application form has to be mentioned.

The following persons who do not possess the Aadhar Card or do not have the enrolment are exempted from the provisions of Section 139AA if 

• They are non-residents as per the Income Tax Act 1961
• They are super senior citizens, i.e., above 80 years of age anytime during the previous year
• They are residents of Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya and Assam
• They are not Indian Nationals

Persons belonging to the above categories need not mention the Aadhar Number in the PAN application form.

While applying for the PAN, the following details have to be noted.

• Companies that are not registered under the Companies Act 2013 can apply for PAN in Spice-SPN 32 specified under Sub-Section (1) of Section 7 of the said Act.
• The PAN Card application form for residents is Form 49A, and for Non-residents and Foreign Companies, it is Form 49AA.
• Individual applicants should affix two recent colour passport size photographs in the application form.
• Mention designation and code of the concerned Assessing Officer of the Income Tax Department in the application form.
• Enclose the prescribed proof of address and proof of identity.

There are a few simple steps for editing or updating details in PAN Card. They are:

• Visit the NSDL website and choose the PAN update option
• Under the existing PAN, data choose the 'Correction' option

For completion of the updating/editing process, you will have to upload a copy of the Proof of Address and Proof of Identity.

While filling up the PAN update form, you will have to pay attention to the following:

• Use Capital letters to fill the form
• The fields specified for PAN updation have to be filled.
• Mentioning the mobile number is mandatory for the successful updation of the fields.
• The form should be filled up in English as well as the local language used while filling up the PAN application form
• Ensure that the updation details are current details and are relevant.
• Provide the complete address so that the PAN Card can be dispatched to the address.
• Avoid prefixing the name with Mr/Ms/Mrs/Dr etc.
• Supporting documents should be relevant to the details for updation.
• Incorrect and incomplete details will result in the rejection of the application.

There are two types of PAN Card forms

1. Application for allotment of PAN for those who do not have a PAN

• Form 49A is for Indian Nationals, including those who are located outside India.
• Form 49AA is for Foreign Nationals.

2. Application for a new PAN Card along with corrections in the PAN details or only updation of PAN Card details.

Persons who already have a PAN but wish to have a new PAN Card or for those who want the PAN details corrected/updated should submit the form specified for the purpose. Both Indian Citizens, as well as foreigners, can use the same form. A new PAN card with updated details will be dispatched to the address mentioned in the form.

If you have lost your PAN Card, you need not worry. You can apply for a duplicate PAN Card by filling up form 49A if you are an Indian National and 49AA if you are a foreigner. You should opt for the PAN Reprint option. The PAN Card will be reprinted without changing the PAN Card details and dispatched within 45 days from the date of application. You can obtain NSDL PAN Reprint by applying through the NSDL website.

The applications can either be submitted online or can be submitted at any of the NSDL PAN Centres. 

For an NSDL PAN Card, you will have to follow the steps given below.

• Visit the official website of NSDL, i.e.,https://tin.tin.nsdl.com/pantan/StatusTrack.html.
• In the Application Type option, choose PAN-New or Change Request from the drop-down menu.
• Enter the acknowledgement number and click on the submit button.
• If you do not have the acknowledgement number select the NAME option instead of Acknowledgement Number. Enter the First Name, Middle Name and Last Name, as well as the date of birth and click on the submit button.

Income Tax of India has authorized NSDL e-GOV to provide an online PAN Verification facility to enable authorized entities to verify PAN. Some of the entities who can access this facility are:

• Insurance Companies
• Insurance Depositories
• Companies/Institutions issuing Credit Card
• Mutual Funds
• Centra KYC Registry
• DSC issuing Authorities
• Credit Information Companies approved by RBI
• Depository Participants
• Educational Institutions established by Regulatory Bodies
• Companies or any other entities that have to furnish AIR, i.e., Annual Information Return or SFT, i.e. Statement of Financial Transaction
• Stock Exchanges
• GST Network
• Central/State Government Agencies
• Government Agencies (Central/State)
• Income Tax Projects
• Reserve Bank of India
• Payment And Settlement System Operators authorized by RBI.
• Commercial Taxes Department
• Department of Stamps and Registration
• Central Vigilance Commission
• Payments Bank approved by RBI.

There are three modes of PAN verification enabled.

1. Screen-based verification

You have the option of verifying 5 PANs at a time. You will have to enter the PAN in the box provided and then click on the submit button. The response will also be displayed on the screen.

2. File and Screen-based Verification

Here you can create a file containing up to 1000 PANs in the format provided by NSDL e-Gov and upload the same. A response file containing the details of all the 1000 PANs will be available within 24 hours. The file will be available for download for up to a maximum of 15 days.

If the file is created in any other format, the rejection will also be conveyed within 24 hours.

3. Software (API) based PAN Verification

The user can access the site for verification using a software application. This facility enables. an online PAN verification

The response received depends on the type of PAN as given below:

If the PAN is being verified by Commercial Tax Department, details like the date of birth and name of the father have to be provided.

If the name field is blank, then it means that the ITD database does not have the name in the name field.

Aadhar Seeding Status will be displayed only for cards that are existing and valid.

For e-KYC and verification, linking PAN with Aadhar is compulsory. Many service providers insist on this to provide services and benefits. The benefits of PAN for e-KYC are immense both to the user as well as the Government.

• It helps in the efficient management of documents for the service provider as the whole e-KYC process is paperless.
• Timelapse in waiting in queues can be avoided as the PAN holder can share the details online through a secure channel within no time.
• The information shared between the PAN holder and the service provider is secure, and nobody else can gain access to it. Fraud and forgery of documents will be avoided as the same cannot be used for any other purpose without the consent of the service provider and the PAN holder.