The government on Saturday extended the deadline for the PAN-Aadhaar linking to March 31, 2019. This is the fifth time the CBDT has extended the deadline for individuals to link their PAN to their 12-digit biometric ID. In an order issued late night Saturday, the policy-making body of the tax department said: "CBDT had allowed time till 30th June, 2018 to link PAN with Aadhaar while filing the tax returns. Upon consideration of the matter, the CBDT further extends the time for linking PAN with Aadhaar till 31st March, 2019."
The fresh CBDT order has come against the backdrop of the Supreme Court earlier this year directing extension of the March 31, 2018 deadline for linking Aadhaar card with various other services. The apex court had ordered that the Aadhaar-PAN linking deadline be extended till the five-judge constitution bench delivers its judgment on petitions challenging the validity of the biometric scheme.
The five-judge Constitution bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AK Sikri, AM Khanwilkar, DY Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan are hearing the petitions contesting the validity of the Aadhaar law agreed with his contention.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had in the Budget for 2017-18 fiscal made quoting of Aadhaar mandatory for filing income tax returns as also linking of PAN with Aadhaar to check tax evasion through use of multiple PAN cards.
So far, the government has made the linking of Aadhaar with PAN or bank accounts mandatory for various state-sponsored schemes and subsidies. The earlier deadlines for linking Aadhaar-PAN were July 31, August 31 and December 31, 2017, March 31 and June 30 this year.
How to link your Aadhaar with PAN
Go to income tax department's e-filing portal at https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/ and enter your user id and password to access your profile. If you are a new user, you can register on the portal by entering basic registration details such as PAN card, name and date of birth. Update Aadhaar after logging into the portal, go to the "Profile Settings" tab.
Click on "Link Aadhaar" on the drop down menu that will appear. A new form will be displayed. Enter name, date of birth and gender as per PAN records. Then enter your Aadhaar number and name. After you submit the Aadhaar details, a success message is displayed confirming the linking of Aadhaar with PAN. A confirmation email will be sent to the registered email id of the assessee.
(With inputs from PTI)