I am a Non Resident Indian (NRI) who has been outside India for the past seven years. I do not have an Aadhaar card as I have not been able to travel to India for the past two years because of Covid. What will happen to my investments in India because of the order that the permanent account number (PAN) must be linked to an Aadhaar card?
—Souvik Kumar
Section 139AA of the Income Tax Act 1961 stipulates that any person who has been assigned a PAN and is eligible to receive an aadhaar number must provide their aadhaar number to the income tax authority.
Failure to comply will result in the PAN becoming inoperable up to the date on which the Aadhaar number is disclosed or linked. The deadline for linking Aadhaar to PAN has been extended to September 30th.
However, according to notification number SO (E) 1513 dated May 11, 2017, the Government of India exempted the following groups of people from the provisions of Section 139AA: people residing in the states of Assam, Jammu and Kashmir and Meghalaya; Non-residents according to the income tax law; Seniors from 80 years; and foreign citizens.
The main condition for liberation is that the persons have neither the aadhaar number nor the aadhaar enrollment ID.
If a person already has an aadhaar number, the above exception may not apply.
In your case, you can notify banks or other financial institutions that hold your investments in India of the above notification and request an exemption to avoid administrative problems. You can also apply for an Aadhaar card after your arrival in India and link it to the PAN.
It is also recommended that you update your profile on the Income Tax Department’s e-filing portal as a “non-resident”.
Sonu Iyer is a tax partner and head of HR at EY India.
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