On Monday, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the government was preparing to launch PAN 2.0. Prime Minister Narendra Modi chairs the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), authorising the
Income Tax Department’s PAN 2.0 project.

The initiative aims to make the permanent account number a “common business identifier” for all government organisations’ digital platforms. The decision is consistent with the central government’s Digital India plan.

The existing PAN card will remain valid under the PAN 2.0 initiative, and you will immediately receive an electronic version of the card at your email address without the need to apply for it.

According to the tax department on Tuesday, those who want a physical card must apply and pay Rs 50 if they live in the nation.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes stated that if existing PAN holders want to correct/ update their existing PAN details, such as email, mobile, or address, or demographic details, such as name, date of birth, etc., they can do so free of cost after the PAN 2.0 Project commences.

PAN holders can use the Aadhaar-based online facility to update/correct their email, mobile number, and address for free until the PAN 2.0 project is implemented, according to a set of FAQs released a day after the cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA) approved a Rs 1,400 crore project.

The department also stated that QR codes will be included in the project, however the technology has already been implemented to confirm PAN and other parameters.

All PAN and TAN-related services, which are currently hosted on three different portals (e-filing portal, UTIITSL, and Protean e-Gov), will be moved to the income tax department portal as part of the upgrade project, and will provide end-to-end services, including application, allotment, online validation, linking with Aadhaar, and updates.

The CBDT stated that the entire procedure will be paperless. In accordance with the Budget 2023 declaration, the government has chosen to use PAN as the “common business identifier” for all digital systems of selected government entities.

Although having more than one PAN is unlawful, some entities and people continue to break the law, and the government expects that once the initiative is implemented, it will be simpler to detect such instances. The country now has a database including 78 crore PANs and 73.3 lakh TANs.

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