Guide
Link PAN with Aadhaar: how to link, check the status and fix an inoperative PAN
- Fee
- Rs 1,000, as of 29 Oct 2026
- Payment not showing?
- Wait 4 to 5 working days
- Operative again
- Within 30 days (2023 CBDT rule)
If your PAN was allotted on or before 1 July 2017 and you are not exempt, it has to be linked with your Aadhaar, or it becomes inoperative. You can still link it on the Income Tax e-filing portal after paying a Rs 1,000 fee (as of 29 October 2026).
Fees as listed on 29 October 2026. They come from the official pages in the sources below and can change at any time. DigiSafe cannot guarantee them, so check the official page before you pay.
A real moment
“Your tax refund failed, and the e-filing dashboard says your PAN is inoperative because it is not linked with your Aadhaar. You have a salary credit coming and do not want tax cut at a higher rate.”
On incometax.gov.in, open Link Aadhaar from Quick Links, enter your PAN and Aadhaar, and pay the Rs 1,000 fee through e-Pay Tax under Other Receipts (500). Once the payment shows, submit Link Aadhaar again and verify with the OTP; if it says payment details are not found, wait 4 to 5 working days. Check progress under View Status. Under a 2023 CBDT rule, an inoperative PAN becomes operative within 30 days of linking.
Who has to link PAN with Aadhaar, from the Income Tax e-filing portal
| If you | What applies |
|---|---|
| Got your PAN on or before 1 July 2017 | You must link it with Aadhaar |
| Applied for PAN after that with your Aadhaar | Linked automatically when you applied |
| Got your PAN on an Aadhaar enrolment ID | Link your actual Aadhaar number; the deadline was 31 December 2025 |
| Are a non-resident, not an Indian citizen, aged 80 or more during the previous year, or live in Assam, Jammu and Kashmir or Meghalaya | Exempt; you can still link by paying the fee |
Steps from the Income Tax portal's own manual
Fee first, then the link: the order matters
What an inoperative PAN means, and the fix
Fee
Rs 1,000, as of 29 Oct 2026
Payment not showing?
Wait 4 to 5 working days
Operative again
Within 30 days (2023 CBDT rule)
Must match
Name, date of birth and gender
Who has to link
The e-filing portal says linking is mandatory for PANs allotted on or before 1 July 2017, and that for new applicants the link is made automatically when they apply. It lists four exemptions: residents of Assam, Jammu and Kashmir and Meghalaya, non-residents, people aged 80 or more at any time during the previous year, and people who are not Indian citizens. A CBDT circular of March 2023 says the inoperative-PAN consequences do not apply to exempt people. If you are a non-resident and your PAN still shows as inoperative, UTIITSL asks you to send proof of your NRI status to your jurisdictional assessing officer.
Step 1: pay the Rs 1,000 fee
On incometax.gov.in, open Link Aadhaar from Quick Links, choose Link Aadhaar, enter your PAN and Aadhaar and tap Validate. Choose Continue to Pay Through e-Pay Tax, pick the Income-tax Act, 2025, confirm your PAN and a mobile number with an OTP, and open the Income Tax tile. Select the tax year, Other Receipts (500) and the sub-type for the fee for delay in linking PAN with Aadhaar. The Rs 1,000 is filled in for you; pay by any mode offered.
Step 2: submit the link
After paying, open Link Aadhaar again with the same PAN and Aadhaar. If it says payment details are not found, the portal advises waiting 4 to 5 working days and trying again. Once it says your payment details are verified, enter your name exactly as on your Aadhaar and a mobile number, tick the box if your Aadhaar shows only your year of birth, agree to validate your Aadhaar details and tap Link Aadhaar. Enter the 6-digit OTP, which is valid for 15 minutes. The portal then says your request has been sent to UIDAI for validation.
Check the link status
On the portal's home page, open Link Aadhaar from Quick Links, choose View Status, enter your PAN and Aadhaar and tap View Link Aadhaar Status. It says either that your linking request has been sent to UIDAI for validation, so check later, or that your PAN is already linked to the Aadhaar you entered. After logging in, the same check is under My Profile, then Link Aadhaar Status.
What an inoperative PAN means
Under a CBDT circular of March 2023, an inoperative PAN gets no tax refund and no interest on that refund for the period, and tax is deducted and collected at higher rates. The e-filing portal's refund guide says a refund to an inoperative PAN fails. These consequences last until the PAN becomes operative again, which a CBDT notification of 2023 puts at within 30 days of linking your Aadhaar.
If the link fails: details do not match
The portal checks the name, date of birth and gender on your PAN against your Aadhaar, and they must match exactly. Correct whichever is wrong: PAN details through Protean or UTIITSL, Aadhaar details through UIDAI, where name, date of birth and gender changes are done at an Aadhaar centre. If it still fails, the portal suggests biometric authentication at a designated PAN centre of Protean or UTIITSL: carry your PAN, Aadhaar and the Rs 1,000 fee challan, and pay the centre's charge. If the portal says your PAN is linked to a different Aadhaar, contact your jurisdictional assessing officer to have it delinked.
Which law applies now
The Income-tax Act, 2025 replaced the 1961 Act from 1 April 2026. Section 262 now requires you to intimate your Aadhaar, and section 430 allows a fee of up to Rs 1,000 for doing it late. Many portal pages still cite the old section 139AA, and the portal's current Link Aadhaar manual, updated for the Income-tax Act, 2025, shows the same steps and the same Rs 1,000 fee.
Keep the proof together
Save the fee challan, an unlocked copy of your e-PAN and your Aadhaar in DigiSafe, encrypted on your phone, so the challan is at hand if the link fails and you need to submit again. DigiSafe is a private app, not connected with the Income Tax Department or UIDAI, and free today, with no ads.
Step by step
- 1
Check that your name, date of birth and gender match on PAN and Aadhaar.
- 2
On incometax.gov.in, open Link Aadhaar from Quick Links.
- 3
Pay the Rs 1,000 fee through e-Pay Tax under Other Receipts (500).
- 4
If the payment does not show yet, wait up to 4 to 5 working days.
- 5
Submit Link Aadhaar again and verify with the OTP.
- 6
Check View Status until it shows your PAN is linked.
Questions people ask
How do I link my PAN with Aadhaar?+
On the Income Tax e-filing portal, open Link Aadhaar from Quick Links and pay the Rs 1,000 fee through e-Pay Tax. Once the payment shows (allow up to 4 to 5 working days), submit Link Aadhaar again with your PAN, Aadhaar and name as on Aadhaar, and verify with the OTP.
How do I check my PAN-Aadhaar link status?+
On incometax.gov.in, open Link Aadhaar from Quick Links, choose View Status, enter your PAN and Aadhaar and tap View Link Aadhaar Status. No login is needed.
What is the fee to link PAN with Aadhaar now?+
Rs 1,000, which the portal fills in when you pay through e-Pay Tax under Other Receipts (500), as of 29 October 2026. Exempt people who choose to link also pay it.
What if it says payment details are not found?+
The portal checks your payment before it accepts the link request. If it cannot find it yet, it advises waiting 4 to 5 working days after paying, then submitting again.
What happens if my PAN is not linked with Aadhaar?+
It becomes inoperative: no tax refund, no interest on refunds for that period, and tax deducted or collected at higher rates, until it becomes operative again. This does not apply if you are exempt.
How long does it take for an inoperative PAN to become operative?+
Within 30 days of linking your Aadhaar, after paying the Rs 1,000 fee.
Do NRIs need to link PAN with Aadhaar?+
Not if you are a non-resident under the Income-tax Act; the portal lists non-residents as exempt. If your PAN still shows as inoperative, UTIITSL asks you to send proof of your NRI status, with supporting documents, to your jurisdictional assessing officer.
Is a new PAN linked with Aadhaar automatically?+
Yes. The e-filing portal says that for new PAN applicants, the link is made automatically when they apply.
Is DigiSafe connected with the Income Tax Department?+
No. DigiSafe is a private app. Link your PAN and Aadhaar only on the Income Tax e-filing portal.
Where this comes from
Official sources, dated.
Every official detail on this page comes from the pages listed here, last checked on 29 October 2026. Fees, rules and links can change after that date. DigiSafe is a private app, not connected with these offices, and cannot guarantee them, so check the official page before you pay or rely on them.
- 1Income Tax e-filing: Link Aadhaar user manualincometax.gov.in
- 2Income Tax e-filing: Link Aadhaar FAQsincometax.gov.in
- 3CBDT: Circular 3 of 2023 on inoperative PAN (PDF)incometax.gov.in
- 4CBDT: Notification on making PAN operative within 30 days (PDF)incometax.gov.in
- 5Income Tax e-filing: Refund status user manualincometax.gov.in
- 6Income-tax Act, 2025 (Gazette, PDF)egazette.gov.in
- 7PIB: Income-tax Act, 2025 in force (1 Apr 2026)pib.gov.in
- 8PIB: PAN-Aadhaar linking and inoperative PAN (28 Mar 2023)pib.gov.in
- 9Protean: PAN downloads (Aadhaar seeding request form)tinpan.proteantech.in
- 10UTIITSL: PAN servicespan.utiitsl.com
- 11UIDAI: Updating data on Aadhaaruidai.gov.in
