PAN Card Cancellation

The Permanent Account Number or PAN is a 10-digit number issued to every individual residing in India. It is an important and mandatory document that a person should have. It helps a person to carry out important work like opening a bank account and tax filing, and it also works as an identity proof. However, there can be situations where a person may wish to opt for PAN Card cancellation.

Some reasons among them can be wrong details in the PAN card, loss of the previous card, etc. PAN Card cancellation has become hassle-free and does not require an individual to invest a lot of time in the process. When an individual has more than a single PAN card, it may lead to that person being heavily penalised, or worse, could even be jailed. Since the Government of India has made it mandatory to link one’s Aadhaar with their PAN card, every individual and business entity with more than one PAN issued in their name have been compelled to cancel or surrender their addition PAN cards. This article talks about PAN Card Cancellation with respect to individuals and entities who have more than a one Permanent Account Number (PAN).

Consequences of Additional PAN

When an individual is in possession of more than one PAN card, they may be penalised as per the law set by the Government of India. According to Section 139A of the Income Tax Act of 1961, an individual is only permitted to hold one single PAN card. This section of the Act talks about the eligibility for obtaining a PAN card.

Therefore, an Income Tax Officer has the power to impose a penalty of INR 10,000 on any individual who has more than one PAN card as per Section 272B of the Income Tax Act. However, individuals have been given the opportunity to cancel/ surrender the additional PAN cards by merely visiting the NSDL online portal and complete the Form for PAN corrections. The individual would receive a notification once the Form and payment have been successfully processed.

Additionally, one may even surrender/ cancel their additional PAN card by submitting the PAN Correction Form at their nearest NSDL Collection Centre. Once the Form is duly completed, the same may be sent and paid for to the Assessing Officer of the respective jurisdiction.

Online Cancellation Process

Step 1: Visit the official NSDL web portal.

Step 2: Click on the Services tab and select the option of PAN.

Step 3: Under the Change/ Correction in PAN data, click on the option to Apply.

Step 4: Click on Application Type. From the drop-down menu, click on the Changes or Correction in existing PAN Data/ Reprint of PAN Card (No changes in existing PAN Data) option.

Step 5: From the Category drop-down menu, click on Individual.

Step 6: Fill the given Form with appropriate details and click on the Submit icon. After the Form has been submitted successfully, the request will be registered, and a token number would be generated. This token number would be sent on the Email Address that was provided in the application.

Step 7: It is recommended to take a note of the token number for future references. Continue further by clicking on the Continue with PAN Application Form icon given below the page.

Step 8: The user would be re-directed to a new webpage. On the top of the displayed page, click on the Submit scanned images through e-Sign option.

Step 9: On the bottom left corner of the page, the user will be required to mention the PAN number that they want to retain.

Step 10: Then, the user has to fill the Form with personal details including their contact number.

Step 11: Below the next page, the user would be required to mention the additional PAN cards and the details that they want to surrender. After doing so, click on the Next icon.

Step 12: On the next page, select the appropriate Proof of Identity along with Residence Address and Date of Birth as required.

Step 13: The user would then be required to upload scanned images of their photograph along with authorising signatures and relevant documents. The individual must sign the acknowledgement receipt or must be approved by authorised signatories in order to request for surrender of PAN. For example, a Director is an authorised signatory in the case of surrender of PAN by a Company. On the other hand, for a Partnership Firm/ LLP, an authorised signatory would be a partner.

Step 14: The user will be able to preview their application form once they have submitted their details successfully. The user is required to verify the details and make corrections, if necessary, and proceed to make the payment.

Step 15: The user has to make the necessary payment via Debit Card, Credit Card, Internet Banking or Demand Draft.

Step 16: Once the payment has been successful, the user will be able to download a soft copy of the payment acknowledgement. This payment receipt has to be saved and printed for future references and also, stands as a proof of payment.

Step 17: The user has to send a printed copy of the acknowledgement to the National Securities Depository Limited eGovernment along with two attached photographs of the user.

Step 18: Before the receipt is sent out; the envelope has to be labelled under Application for PAN Cancellation along with the Acknowledgment Number.

Step 19: Post the signed acknowledgement (along with the Demand Draft if that payment option was chosen) to the address below.

NSDL e-Gov at ‘Income Tax PAN Services Unit,
NSDL e-Governance Infrastructure Limited,
5th Floor, Mantri Sterling,
Plot No. 341, Survey No. 997/8,
Model Colony, Near Deep Bungalow Chowk,
Pune – 411 016

Surrendering PAN of Deceased

Once a PAN card holder passes away, the relatives of the deceased individual are required to write a letter to the Income Tax Officer who presides over the respective jurisdiction. The letter must comprise of the reason for surrender (here, it is the death of the PAN card holder) and the death certificate of the deceased. Other vital information such as the Name, PAN Card Number, Date of Birth and so on are to be mentioned in the letter. The same process of surrendering PAN card is applicable in the case of the demise of Non-Indian Residents and Foreign Nationals as well.

Surrendering PAN of Company/ Firm/ Partnership

Step 1: Visit the official NSDL web portal.

Step 2: Click on Application Type. From the drop-down menu, click on the Changes or Correction in existing PAN Data/ Reprint of PAN Card (No changes in existing PAN Data) option.

Step 3: For Category, select the option of Company, Firm or Partnership and proceed with filling the Form online.

Step 4: In Form 49A, enter the PAN that has to be cancelled in Item 11 of the Form.

Step 5: Submit the completed Form and print out the acknowledgement. The user is required to send the same along with the necessary documents to the NSDL Office Address mentioned on the Form.

Step 6: Once the request has been processed, the user would receive a notification indicating the same.

Surrendering Current PAN

It is always recommended that an Indian citizen not to surrender or cancel their PAN card as it serves as a valid identity proof. However, in the case of Foreign National who are leaving the country and who would not be paying any taxes to the Indian Government, the PAN card would not be of any use. Such individuals may write an application to the Income Tax Assessing Officer of their respective jurisdiction in order to surrender their PAN card. They would be required to mention the reason for the surrender in the application. This would lead to the cancellation of the relevant PAN card. After this, the same could be surrendered to the tax officer by the respective PAN card holder.

FAQs

How to apply for PAN cancellation?

If an individual must cancel their PAN Card due to unforeseen circumstances, they can do so via one of the following two methods:
Online cancellation – To cancel a PAN card online, the assessee must go to the Income Tax Department of India’s official website and fill out an online form with the essential information, following the instructions on the form. If an individual has been issued two PAN cards by mistake, they can cancel one of them by completing the ‘PAN Change Request’ form. In such circumstances, they must list the PAN Card that is currently in use on the top of the form, as well as the additional one in item. Along with the cancellation form, the assessee must submit the PAN card that he or she wishes to cancel.
Offline cancellation – An individual can ask for PAN cancellation by writing a letter with all necessary facts and submitting it to the assessing officer’s office in the relevant jurisdiction. If the assessee wishes to cancel duplicate PAN cards, they must submit a letter specifying the PAN card to be cancelled as well as the one they wish to keep. It is critical to retain a copy of the IT Department’s acknowledgement letter, which will serve as documentation that the new PAN was submitted.

What is an ‘Assessing Officer Code’ and how to find it?

An assessing officer is in charge of an assessee’s assessment during the filing of tax returns. Assessing Officer Codes are assigned to the assessee’s region of jurisdiction for the purpose of tracing the range of the assessee’s individual IT return. When applying for or cancelling a PAN card, the Assessing Officer Code is required. To find out an individual’s area-specific Assessing Officer Code, go to the IT Department’s official portal and look for it under the ‘Services’ page.

Can one cancel their existing PAN Card?

A PAN Card can no longer be cancelled. It is also strongly encouraged not to revoke or surrender an existing PAN Card, as it serves as a valid form of identification and is required for any financial activities. If someone wants to cancel their current PAN Card, they must go to the Assessing Officer in their jurisdiction and submit a letter seeking the cancellation.

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