PAN card Aadhar card link status: How to check if your PAN is linked and what to do if it isn’t

As December 31, 2025, draws closer, the Income Tax Department has once again urged PAN card holders to finish the compulsory PAN-Aadhaar linking. Those who fail to meet the deadline risk having their PAN become inoperative. The department has cautioned that an unlinked PAN cannot be used for important financial and tax-related activities, prompting taxpayers to complete the process before the year-end deadline.

How to link PAN with Aadhaar

Taxpayers can link their PAN and Aadhaar by following these steps:

• Visit the income tax e-filing portal and log in
• Go to the profile section and click on ‘Link Aadhaar’
• Enter PAN and Aadhaar details and choose ‘continue to pay through e-pay tax’
• Select the relevant assessment year and choose ‘Other Receipts’ as the payment type
• The payable amount will be pre-filled; click continue
• Generate the challan and pay via the bank website
• After payment, complete the linking process on the e-filing portal

How to check PAN–Aadhaar link status

To check whether your PAN is linked with Aadhaar:

• Visit the income tax e-filing portal
• Click on ‘Link Aadhaar status’
• Enter PAN and Aadhaar details
• Submit to view the status on the screen
• What to do if PAN and Aadhaar details do not match
• If there is a mismatch between PAN and Aadhaar details, taxpayers can:
• Visit the UIDAI portal to correct Aadhaar details
• Update PAN details through Protean (NSDL) or UTIITSL
• Opt for biometric verification at authorised PAN service centres if issues continue

What happens if you fail to link PAN-Aadhaar by December 31

According to the Income Tax Department, PAN holders who fail to link Aadhaar with PAN within the stipulated timeline will not be able to use their PAN for financial and tax-related activities. This includes filing income tax returns and carrying out transactions that require PAN details.

PAN Aadhaar linking deadline and late fee

The last date to complete PAN–Aadhaar linking is December 31, 2025. Taxpayers who have not completed the process so far must pay a late fee of ₹1,000 before proceeding with the linking.

However, there is some relief for a section of PAN holders.

Who is exempt from the ₹1,000 penalty?
PAN holders who obtained their PAN card after October 1, 2024, using an Aadhaar enrolment ID are exempt from paying the late fee. They can complete the PAN–Aadhaar linking free of charge until the deadline.

Income Tax Department's rule about PAN Aadhaar linking

The department has reiterated that linking PAN with Aadhaar is mandatory for eligible PAN holders.

“For existing PAN holders, who were allotted PAN on or before 01-07-2017 it is mandatory to link PAN with Aadhaar. The Link Aadhaar service is available to individual taxpayers (both registered and unregistered on e-Filing Portal),” the official income tax website read.

Aadhaar verification already mandatory for new PANs

For new PAN applicants, Aadhaar-based verification is already compulsory at the time of application. This move has reduced the need for a separate PAN–Aadhaar linking process later.

With just days left before the December 31, 2025 deadline, the Income Tax Department has urged taxpayers not to wait until the last moment. Completing the PAN–Aadhaar linking on time can help avoid penalties and ensure uninterrupted access to essential financial and tax services.