Aadhaar-PAN linking: Your PAN card may not become invalid right away if it is not done by 30th June

The status of Aadhaar is the most confusing thing in India right now. While there are multiple notifications coming from the government making it mandatory for various services, the Supreme Court is hearing cases against the move and has been making observations or giving directives on the way ahead.

The government seems itself caught in a legal maze. So are the common people. At least that is what one can make out of the supreme confusion that is ruling over linking of PAN and Aadhaar.

Over the last 2 days there have been reports saying 30 June is the last day for linking both identity proofs. However, there are fresh reports saying 30 June is not the last date and the government is yet to announce a deadline.

In all this, the government has remained silent, without issuing any clarification.

However, let’s get one thing out of the way.

It is mandatory to link your Aadhaar card to your PAN card.

For those who do not have Aadhaar.

According to the Supreme Court, if you do not have an Aadhaar or do not wish to get an Aadhaar as of now, you don’t need to worry, at least for now. Your PAN will not be canceled in such a case. "Only a partial relief by the court has been given to those who do not have Aadhaar and who do not wish to obtain Aadhaar for the time being, that their PAN will not be cancelled so that other consequences under the I-T Act for filing to quote PAN may not arise," the CBDT had said in a circular.

For those who have an Aadhaar and PAN, I recommend that you get the numbers linked as early as possible. If you read the latest government notification you will realise that Aadhaar-PAN linking will become mandatory from 1 July and not before 1 July.

What if you can’t make it by tonight? Your PAN will become invalid, but only eventually.

According to a report in The Economic Times: After July 1, the linking will become mandatory and the government may declare a date after which the PAN not linked to Aadhaar will become invalid. The government has not declared that date yet.

Fear that PAN will become invalid has forced many to visit the Income Tax website and link their cards. The website became accessible for several hours due to high traffic. Even tax and investment experts say that there is confusion over regarding the issue. The government should have in no uncertain terms explained the consequences of not linking.

One thing is for sure. Since the government has not declared the deadline, you still have time to get it done. If you have errors in your cards, we suggest you get them fixed quickly and get the cards linked.

Even if the PAN becomes invalid immediately, your life is not going to come to stand still. Of course, there will be some pain points. You will have difficulties to make some financial transactions, which require PAN, or even file returns.

However, for those who have Aadhaar, it is better to go ahead and link it with PAN. That makes all your dealings with the government easier

How to Link Aadhaar card to PAN ?

As per a Supreme Court judgment passed on 9 June 2017, if you have Aadhaar, it is mandatory to link it to PAN and mention the same in your tax returns. However, if you don’t have Aadhaar, you can e-file tax returns without the same for FY2016-17.

Now you can link your Aadhaar and PAN through SMS also. The Income Tax Department has urged taxpayers to link their Aadhaar with their PAN, using an SMS-based facility.It can be done by sending an SMS to either 567678 or 56161.

Send SMS to 567678 or 56161 from your registered mobile number in following format:

UIDPAN<12 aadhaar="" digit=""><10 digit="" pan="">

Example: UIDPAN 123456789123 AKPLM2124M

People can also visit the official e-filing website of the department to link the two identities, in both the cases– identical names in the two databases or in case where there is a minor mismatch.

The Income Tax Department has made it easy for taxpayers to link their PAN with Aadhaar with just a 2 step process which does not even require  to login or register at the e- filing website. This facility can be used by anyone to link their Aadhaar with PAN.

2 step process to link Aadhaar with PAN

Step 1 :

Just go to www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in and click on the link on the left pane – Link Aadhaar

Step 2 :

Provide PAN, Aadhaar no. and ENTER NAME EXACTLY AS GIVEN IN AADHAAR CARD (avoid spelling mistakes) and submit. After verification from UIDAI which is the government website for Aadhaar, the linking will be confirmed.

In case of any minor mismatch in Aadhaar name provided, Aadhaar OTP will be required. Please ensure that the date of birth and gender in PAN and Aadhaar are exactly same.

In a rare case where Aadhaar name is completely different from name in PAN, then the linking will fail and taxpayer will be prompted to change the name in either Aadhaar or in PAN database.

The process of linking Aadhaar with PAN is also available after login to the income tax website.Following are the steps for this :

Step 1.

First register yourself at the income tax e filing portal, if you are not already registered.https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/

Step 2.

Log in to the e-Filing portal of the Income Tax Department by entering the log-in ID, password and date of birth

Step 3.

On logging in to the site, a pop up window will appear prompting you to link your PAN card with Aadhaar card. If you don’t see the popup, go to blue tab on the top bar named ‘Profile Settings’ and click on ‘Link Aadhaar’.

Step 4.

Details such as name, date of birth and gender will already be mentioned as per the details submitted at the time of registration on the e-Filing portal. Verify the details on screen with the ones mentioned on your Aadhaar card.

Step 5.

If the details match, enter your Aadhaar card number and captcha code and click on the “Link now” button.

Step 6.

A pop-up message will inform you that your Aadhaar card has been successfully linked to your PAN card.

GST impact: What may get costlier, what may get cheaper

Here's a guide on what products and services may tentatively get costlier or cheaper.

GST: What could get costlier, what could get cheaper

Here’s how prices of goods could move after the new GST rates kick-in from July 1, 2017.

Cheaper Meals?

A restaurant bill now is a complex jumble of food costs, taxes on food and alcohol and services, cesses and service charges. After GST, you may expect eating out to be cheaper as a single tax will replace a welter of levies.

Costlier Calls

Your phone calls may become costlier. Phone bills will likely attract an 18 percent GST rate compared to the current 15 percent (including cesses).

Free state-borders

GST will subsume most state local levies, including the entry tax or octroi. Trucks will be able to move across state borders without queuing up for long hours to pay taxes. Municipalities and local bodies, however, can continue to collect local taxes. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation have, however, lifted the entry taxes for entering Mumbai after GST.

Costlier Services

Currently most services are taxed at a standard rate of 15 percent; these will turn costlier as the standard service tax rate is expected to go up to 18 percent.

What is the due date for tax filing?

Due date of filing income tax return for FY 2016-17(AY 2017-18) is

31st July 2017 for Individuals

30th September 2017 for Businesses

(This is income tax return for the financial year 2016-17. Applicable for income earned from April 1st, 2016 to March 31st, 2017).

Important Due Dates of Income tax return filing for the year 2017

Whenever we talk about income tax, there are various kind of compulsory tax formalities that needs to be followed by a person and that too within the specified due dates prescribed; such as filing of income tax returns, paying advance tax on time.

Here is the TAX CALENDAR for 2017. This has important Tax Due and income tax return filing dates for the year 2017.                                               

TAX CALENDAR 2017
15th March, 2017	(a)    Fourth Instalment of Advance Tax due for the FY 2016-17
	(b)    Due date for the whole amount of Advance Tax for FY 2016-17 for taxpayers covered under presumptive scheme of Section 44AD
31st March, 2017	(a)    Last date for declaration of undisclosed income under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojna.
	(b)    Due date for the payment of second instalment(i.e. 25% of tax, surcharge and penalty) under Income Declaration Scheme,2016
15th June, 2017	Due date for the First instalment of Advance Tax for the FY 2017-18
31st July, 2017	Due date for filing Income tax return for FY 2016-17 for all persons except :
	(a)    Companies
	(b)    Non-Companies whose books are required to be audited
	(c)     Working partner of a firm whose accounts are required to be audited
15th Sep , 2017	Due date for the Second instalment of Advance Tax for the FY 2017-18
30thsep, 2017	Due date for filing of  Audit report/Income tax return for the FY 2016-17 for the following:
	(a)companies
	(b)Non-Companies Whose books are required to be audited
30thsep,2017	Due date for payment of the last instalment(i.e. 50% of tax, surcharge and penalty) under Income Disclosure Scheme, 2016
30th Nov, 2017	(a)    Due date for filing Audit report for the FY 2016-17 in case of a person who is required to submit a report pertaining to international or specified domestic transactions under section 92E
	(b)    Due date for report to be furnished in Form 3CEB in respect of international and specified domestic transactions.
15th Dec, 2017	Due date for the third instalment of Advance Tax for the FY 2017-18

Income Tax Slab Rates for FY 2016-17(AY 2017-18)

Income Tax Slab Rates for FY 2016-17(AY 2017-18)

PART I: Income Tax Slab for Individual Tax Payers & HUF (Less than 60 Years Old) (Both Men & Women)

Income Slab	Tax Rate
Income up to Rs 2,50,000*	No tax
Income from Rs 2,50,000 – Rs 5,00,000	10%
Income from Rs 5,00,000 – 10,00,000	20%
Income more than Rs 10,00,000	30%
Surcharge: 15% of income tax, where total income exceeds Rs.1 crore.
Cess: 3% on total of income tax + surcharge.
*Income tax exemption limit for FY 2016-17 is up to Rs. 2,50,000 for individual & HUF other than those covered in Part(II) or (III)

PART II: Income Tax Slab for Senior Citizens (60 Years Old Or More but Less than 80 Years Old)(Both Men & Women)

Income Slab	Tax Rate
Income up to Rs 3,00,000*	No tax
Income from Rs 3,00,000 – Rs 5,00,000	10%
Income from Rs 5,00,000 – 10,00,000	20%
Income more than Rs 10,00,000	30%
Surcharge: 15% of income tax, where total income exceeds Rs.1 crore.
Cess: 3% on total of income tax + surcharge.
*Income tax exemption limit for FY 2016-17 is up to Rs. 3,00,000 other than those covered in Part(I) or (III)

 

PART III: Income Tax Slab for Senior Citizens (80 Years Old Or More) (Both Men & Women)

Income Slab	Tax Rate
Income up to Rs 2,50,000*	No tax
Income up to Rs 5,00,000*	No tax
Income from Rs 5,00,000 – 10,00,000	20%
Income more than Rs 10,00,000	30%
Surcharge: 15% of income tax, where total income exceeds Rs.1 crore.
Cess: 3% on total of income tax + surcharge.
*Income tax exemption limit for FY 2016-17 is up to Rs. 5,00,000 other than those covered in Part(I) or (II)

Please also note that there is also a tax rebate of up to Rs 5,000 for a taxable income up to Rs 5 lakh.

Income Tax Slab Rates for FY 2017-18 (AY 2018-19)

Income Tax Slab Rates for FY 2017-18(AY 2018-19)

For FY 2017-18, the slab rate for income tax up to Rs. 5 lakh has gone down from 10% to 5%.

PART I: Income Tax Slab for Individual Tax Payers & HUF (Less Than 60 Years Old) (Both Men & Women)

Income Slab	Tax Rate
Income up to Rs 2,50,000*	No tax
Income from Rs 2,50,000 – Rs 5,00,000	5%
Income from Rs 5,00,000 – 10,00,000	20%
Income more than Rs 10,00,000	30%
Surcharge: 10% of income tax, where total income exceeds Rs.50 lakh up to Rs.1 crore. Surcharge: 15% of income tax, where the total income exceeds Rs.1 crore.
Cess: 3% on total of income tax + surcharge.
*Income tax exemption limit for FY 2017-18 is up to Rs. 2,50,000 for individual & HUF other than those covered in Part(II) or (III)

PART II: Income Tax Slab for Senior Citizens (60 Years Old Or More but Less than 80 Years Old)(Both Men & Women)

Income Slab	Tax Rate
Income up to Rs 3,00,000*	No tax
Income from Rs 3,00,000 – Rs 5,00,000	5%
Income from Rs 5,00,000 – 10,00,000	20%
Income more than Rs 10,00,000	30%
Surcharge: 10% of income tax, where total income exceeds Rs.50 lakh upto Rs.1 crore. Surcharge: 15% of income tax, where the total income exceeds Rs.1 crore.
Cess: 3% on total of income tax + surcharge.
*Income tax exemption limit for FY 2017-1 is up to Rs. 3,00,000 other than those covered in Part(I) or (III)

PART III: Income Tax Slab for Senior Citizens(80 Years Old Or More) (Both Men & Women)

Income Slab	Tax Rate
Income up to Rs 2,50,000*	No tax
Income up to Rs 5,00,000*	No tax
Income from Rs 5,00,000 – 10,00,000	20%
Income more than Rs 10,00,000	30%
Surcharge: 15% of income tax, where total income exceeds Rs.1 crore.
Cess: 3% on total of income tax + surcharge.
*Income tax exemption limit for FY 2017-18 is up to Rs. 5,00,000 other than those covered in Part(I) or (II)