A penalty of Rs. 10,000 will be levied for furnishing incorrect Aadhaar number.
As per the latest amendment of the Income Tax Act, 1961, as presented in the Finance Bill 2019, individuals can submit their Aadhar card in lieu of Permanent Account Number (PAN Card). This step was undertaken to make it easier for individuals to pay income tax. The PAN-Aadhaar interchangeability came into effect from September 2019.
Individuals who are using their 12-digit Biometric ID Aadhaar number in lieu of the Permanent Account Number (PAN) need to be aware of a new penalty imposed by the Income Tax Department. In case you quote an incorrect Aadhaar number, you might have to pay a hefty fine of Rs. 10,000. This is applicable in cases where you are using Aadhar card number in lieu of PAN and where quoting PAN is mandatory, according to the income tax department rules.
Aadhaar, which is issued by Unique Identification Authority of India, has stated that the fine is not imposed by UIDAI, but by the Income Tax Department of India. As per Section 272B of the Income Tax Act, 1961, in case of default in complying with provisions relating to PAN, the amount of penalty is Rs. 10,000 per default. Since September 2019, the penalty has been extended to Aadhaar too. A few instances where PAN-Aadhaar interchangeability is applicable are - filing of income tax returns (ITR), opening of bank account, demat account and buying mutual funds, bonds, worth more than Rs. 50,000.
As per the new income tax rules, an individual will be subject to a fine if:
- He/She submits an invalid Aadhaar number in lieu of PAN
- He/She fails to provide either your PAN or Aadhaar in specified transactions
It is important to know that simply giving your Aadhar card number is not accepted. If you are required to authenticate your biometric identity, then any failure to do so will also lead to a fine. Also, the fine is not only subjected to individuals. Banks, financial institutions, etc. can be fined if they fail to ensure that the PAN or Aadhaar are duly quoted and authenticated. In case you submit two wrong Aadhaar numbers in separate forms, you will be fined Rs. 20,000.
