A permanent account number (PAN) is a distinct identification number issued by the income tax department of India to identify taxpayers in the country. This number enumerates the complete tax-related information of a person. On application, a PAN card is issued to the individual, with the PAN, name, photograph, date of birth and Father’s name.
In the present technology-run world, this unique identifier can be obtained in an electronic format as well. It is digitally signed and its purpose stays equivalent to that of the PAN card. The primary purpose of the card is for making IT returns filing. This card holds a detailed record of all the financial transactions made by an individual or a firm and is issued to prevent tax evasion of any sort. The requirement of a PAN/e-PAN card is also made mandatory to open a new account in a public, private, or cooperative bank.
Application for a fresh allotment of online PANs can be made by following a few no-sweat, simple steps.
It is indeed mandatory for people falling into the brackets of the conditions mentioned below:
There exist four different types depending on the entity and the form of their income tax payments.
The sole difference between a company PAN card and an individual's PAN card is that signature and a photograph are not required for the former.
Both the cards hold individual's/company's name, date of registration, quick response (QR) code, a hologram of the government, the tag of the Income Tax Department, the 10 characters alphanumeric permanent account number, and the date of issue of the card in common.
Among the 10 alphanumeric characters, the first
five are from the English alphabet. The next four are from the numerical and the last one being an alphabet again. The first three alphabets form a random combination of the English alphabet. The fourth character represents the status of that particular individual. There are nine divisions in total. They are C, H, F, A, T, B, L, J, P and G. Each of them stands for company, Hindu undivided family, partnership firm, an association of persons, trust, a body of individuals, local authority, artificial judicial person, individual and the Government respectively.
The fifth alphabet is the first letter of the individual's surname. The PAN number remains unchanged even if the person changes the last name post marriage.
The next four digits are sequential yet random numbers between 0001 to 9999.
The final character is an alphabetic check digit which is generated by applying a formula to the preceding nine letters and numbers.
Yes, this slightly complicated classification of the unique identity proof is extremely important. It is because no information shared between the two parties can be tampered with at any cost and the data remains highly secured. The Government also uses this number to track down every single financial transaction made by the person to calculate the taxation amount.
According to seventh provision of Section 139A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, an individual can hold only one permanent account number. There are strict regulations tied to it and if an individual possesses more than one or a duplicate card, legal action will be taken.
As per Section 272B of the Income Tax Act, a penalty of rupees 10,000 will be imposed by the Government of India.
Offline Method-
a) By visiting your local income tax office and handing over a request letter addressing the Assessing Officer (AO) to cancel or surrender your card. You will receive an acknowledgment slip which must be kept safely.
b) As another option, you can fill up Form 49A for any alteration in PAN and submit it to the closest UTI or NSDL TIN facilitation center.
Online Method-
Step 1: By visiting the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) website.
Step 2: Provide the details of the PAN/e-PAN card that you want to surrender along with your details and contact number.
Step 3: Press Submit and wait for the process to get completed.
This unique number must be acquired by every citizen of India as it is repeatedly required for important activities involved in our everyday lives. The Government of India is making substantial efforts to expand the density of the PAN/e-PAN cardholders to include more people under the tax net.
