There is a lot of buzz around linking of Aadhaar card with Permanent Account Number (PAN) card among Indians and the last date to link these two is June 30, 2021.

Earlier, the government had set March 31 as the deadline to link the two documents after pushing it for many times due to Covid-19 pandemic.

However, if the two cards will not be linked then your PAN card will become “inoperative” and a penalty of Rs1,000 would be levied on it.

In its order regarding the extension of the last date, the government said on March 31, “Representations have been received from taxpayers that the last date for intimating the Aadhaar number may further be extended in the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Keeping in view the difficulties faced by the taxpayers, the Central Government has issued notification today extending the last date for the intimation of Aadhaar number and linking thereof with PAN to 30th June 2021”.

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As the latest deadline is approaching, there are anticipations that government could extend it further due to the second-wave of Covid-19. However, if it does not extend you should know the ways to link PAN card and Aadhaar number.

What are the different ways to link the two cards?

Linking PAN and Aadhaar via the income tax department’s e-filing portal

The income tax department’s e-filing portal has a “Link Aadhaar” section on their list of services. When you click it, you will be redirected to another page where the user has to enter his correct details such as name, PAN card number, Aadhaar number. Following this, the details would be validated and the two documents would be linked.

Through SMS

If you want to link the two cards through an SMS rather than a website, you have to send a text message from your registered mobile numbers to 567678 or 56161. However, you will have to follow a specific format to send the SMS which is as follows – UIDPAN (12-digit Aadhaar Number) (10-digit PAN)

Visiting a nearby PAN service center

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If you wish to link the two cards manually then you can visit the nearest PAN service center. There you will have to fill a form named ‘Annexure-I’ and along with it you should submit a copy of the PAN card and Aadhaar card. You should not that this is a paid service, unlike the other two online services. Users are required to pay the prescribed fees for linking the two documents manually.