What is PAN
All Indian taxpayers are given a PAN (Permanent Account Number), which is a special number.
A permanent Account Number (PAN) is a computerized system that keeps track of all tax-related data for an individual or business under a single PAN number. Every person in the nation uses this as the main key for data storage. No two tax-paying entities may thus share a PAN.
PAN Card Overview
Name Of Authority issuing PAN | Income Tax Department, Govt. of India |
PAN Customer Care Number | 020 – 27218080 |
The inception of PAN Card | 1972 |
Validity Of PAN Card | Life Time |
Cost of PAN Card | Rs. 110 |
Number Of Enrolments | 25 crore (approximate) |
Eligibility for PAN
A PAN Card is given to everybody who pays taxes in India, including individuals, corporations, non-resident Indians, and others.
Types of PAN
- Individual
- HUF-Hindu undivided family
- Company
- Firms/Partnerships
- Trusts
- Society
- Foreigners’
Documents for PAN
PAN require two types of documents. Proof of Address (POA) and Proof of Identity (POI) are two different types of proof (POI). Any two of the documents listed below should fit the requirements.
Individual Applicant | POI/ POA- Aadhaar, Passport, Voter ID, Driving Licence |
Hindu Undivided Family | An affidavit of the HUF issued by the head of HUF along with POI/POA details |
Company registered in India | Certificate of Registration issued by Registrar of Companies |
Firms/ Partnership (LLP) | Certificate of Registration issued by the Registrar of Firms/ Limited Liability Partnerships and Partnership Deed. |
Trust | Copy of Trust Deed or a copy of the Certificate of Registration Number issued by a Charity Commissioner. |
Society | Certificate of Registration Number from Registrar of Co-operative Society or Charity Commissioner |
Foreigners | Passport PIO/ OCI card issued by the Indian Government Bank statement of the residential country Copy of NRE bank statement in India |
Cost of PAN Card
PAN cards cost Rs. 110 or Rs. 1,020 (roughly) if they are being sent outside of India.
How to Enrol for PAN
Whether Online or Offline, you can enrol for PAN in 3 simple steps
- Visiting the PAN – NSDL /UTIITSL official website
- Fill out the form with your information.
- Please submit all of the relevant documentation.
- The processing charge must be paid.
- Within 15 days, PAN will be sent.
Structure of PAN Card
PAN card contains information such as identity, and age proof and also complies with the Know Your Customer (KYC) guidelines. PAN card details are as follows:
- Name of the cardholder – Individual/ Company
- Name of the father of the cardholder – Applicable for individual cardholders.
- Date of birth – the cardholder’s date of birth in case of an individual or date of registration is mentioned in the case of a company or firm.
- PAN Number – It is a 10-letter alpha-numeric number and each character represents distinct information of the cardholder.
- The first three letters – are purely alphabetical in nature and contain three-letter of the alphabet from A to Z.
- The fourth letter – represents the category of the taxpayer. The various entities and their respective characters are as follows:
A – Association of Persons
B – Body of Individuals
C – Company
F – Firms
G – Government
H – Hindu Undivided Family
L – Local Authority
J – Artificial Judicial Person
P – Individual
T – Association of Persons for a Trust
- The fifth letter – the fifth letter is the first letter of the individual’s surname
- The remaining letters – the remaining characters are random. The first 4 characters are numbers while the last one is an alphabet.
- Signature of the individual – PAN Card also acts as proof of the individual’s signature required for financial transactions.
- Photograph of the individual – PAN acts as a photo identity proof of the individual. In the case of companies and firms, no photograph is present on the card
Why do you need PAN?
PAN is a unique identification number that enables each tax-paying entity of India with the following:
- Proof of Identity
- Proof of Address
- Mandatory for Filing Taxes
- Registration of Business
- Financial transactions
- Eligibility to open and operate Bank Accounts
- Phone Connection
- Gas Connection
- Mutual Fund PAN is beneficial to complete e-KYC for mutual fund investments.