FinMin to decide on extension of Aadhaar-PAN linkage deadline tomorrow

New Delhi: The finance ministry is likely to decide on Thursday on whether to extend till year-end the deadline for linking PAN with biometric identifier Aadhaar, a source said on Wednesday. 

The cut-off ends tomorrow. The Aadhaar matter is before the Supreme Court with next date of hearing posted for November, and the deadline for Aadhaar linking for availing of social sector schemes has been extended till December-end.

"The government will decide tomorrow if the deadline for PAN-Aadhaar linking will be extended," the source said.

Section 139 AA (2) of the Income Tax Act says every person with PAN as on July 1, 2017, and is eligible to obtain Aadhaar must intimate his Aadhaar number to tax authorities. 

However, those categorised as non-resident Indians as per income tax laws, people who are not citizens of India, those above 80 years of age and residents of Assam, Meghalaya and Jammu and Kashmir had been exempt from the requirement. 

The tax department had on July 31 stated that "unless a finding is made that Aadhaar is constitutionally not valid, tax return filers will need to link their PAN with Aadhaar by August 31, 2017". 

Incidentally, December 31 is also the deadline for people to link their bank accounts with Aadhaar. Tax filers however were allowed to file their annual income returns by August 5 without linking their Aadhaar with PAN. They were to just quote Aadhaar or acknowledgement number for having applied for Aadhaar. 

It had further stated that "income tax returns filed will not be processed should tax filers fail to link Aadhaar and PAN on or before August 31, 2017". 

The government earlier in the day told the Supreme Court that it is extending deadline for quoting Aadhaar in welfare schemes till December 31. The deadline was September 30. 

The deadline for linking PAN with Aadhaar previously was July 31, but was extended to August 31.