According to the Income Tax Department’s strict guidelines, if you fail to link your PAN with Aadhaar by this deadline, your PAN card will become completely inactive from January 1, 2026. This will directly impact your bank account, salary credits, and income tax returns. In today’s digital age, a PAN card is a crucial financial identity; without it, all your banking and investment-related work can come to a standstill.
Why is PAN-Aadhaar linking a crucial requirement
According to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) rules, this is mandatory for every taxpayer who was allotted a PAN based on Aadhaar. The government aims to bring transparency to financial transactions and eliminate the menace of fake PAN cards. If your PAN is deactivated, you will not only be barred from paying taxes but will also be unable to avail of many other government benefits. This linking is a crucial step to ensure the accuracy of data.
Serious difficulties arise when your PAN card is deactivated
If you miss the December 31st deadline, you could face several serious problems. First, you won’t be able to file your Income Tax Return (ITR), which means your tax refund will be blocked. Your KYC will fail in the banking sector, making it impossible to obtain a new loan or credit card.
Furthermore, investment activities like mutual fund SIPs and share trading will come to a complete halt. The biggest blow to your pocket will be the higher TDS or TCS deducted from your transactions than usual. The TDS rate can go up to 20% if your PAN is deactivated.
Check your status in 1 minute from home
If you’re unsure whether your PAN is linked or not, there’s no need to panic. You can check your status by visiting the Income Tax e-Filing Portal and following the steps below:
First, visit the Income Tax official e-filing website.
Go to the ‘Quick Links’ section and click on the ‘Link Aadhaar Status’ option.
Enter your PAN number and Aadhaar number carefully.
As soon as you click ‘View Link Aadhaar Status’, your status will be displayed on the screen.
You will see one of three messages:
The first: Linked, which means your request is complete.
Second: Not Linked, which means you need to start the linking process immediately.
Third: In Process, which means your request is being processed. Check back in a few days.
Process to Link PAN and Aadhaar
If your status is “Not Linked,” follow this simple process to link it immediately. First, log in to the portal and go to the profile section, and click on ‘Link Aadhaar’. Check your name, gender, and date of birth, and enter your Aadhaar number. An OTP will then be sent to your Aadhaar-linked mobile number, which will require verification.
If you haven’t already linked your PAN card, you’ll need to pay a late fee of ₹1,000 through e-Pay Tax. Your linking request will be processed within a few days of successful payment. Please note that the data must match; otherwise, the request may be rejected.
Penalty Burden for Missing the Deadline
The government has clarified that linking is no longer possible without paying a penalty. Currently, a ₹1,000 penalty is mandatory, and linking is only permitted after payment. If you don’t do so after December 31, 2025, your PAN card will become useless. Reactivating it will require you to pay not only a penalty but also a lengthy government and legal process. Therefore, don’t wait for the deadline and get this crucial task done today.