Government studying views against quoting PAN beyond Rs 1-lakh spend

NEW DELHI: The government today said it was examining representations from various quarters, including MPs, against the proposed mandatory quoting of PAN for sale or purchase in excess of Rs 1 lakh.

"Government has received representation against the proposed regulation for mandatory disclosure of PAN number for transactions of Rs one lakh and above," Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha said in a written reply in Lok Sabha.

He said such representations have been received from various persons including Members of Parliament, Members of Legislative Assemblies, Trade & Industry Associations and others.

"These representations are under examination," Sinha said.

He was replying to a question on whether the government has received complaints against the new regulation for mandatory disclosure of Permanent Account Number (PAN) for cash transaction of Rs 1 lakh and above.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in 2015-16 Budget had said as measures to deal with the problem of domestic black money, quoting PAN would be made mandatory for all sale and purchase of over Rs 1 lakh.

"Quoting of PAN is being made mandatory for any purchase or sale exceeding the value of Rs 1 lakh. The third party reporting entities would be required to furnish information about foreign currency sales and cross border transactions," Jaitley had said.

As of July 19, the tax department has alloted 22.94 crore PANs.