PAN Card Rejection – Common Reasons & How to Avoid Them?

The Permanent Account Number(PAN)  system was enabled by the Income Tax Department in the year 1972 to have a unique identification for all the eligible taxpayers of the country. These eligible taxpayers include individuals, Hindu Undivided Family (HUFs), companies, trusts etc. All of them can apply for a PAN card to keep track and record their financial transactions and file their Income Tax. However, there may be situations when the Income Tax Department can reject the PAN application form for various reasons. Therefore, an applicant must duly fill out their PAN application form. Let us look at a broader view of reasons for the rejection of PAN and how to avoid it. 

What is PAN?

PAN stands for Permanent Account Number. A PAN is issued by the Income Tax Department, Government of India, to identify various country taxpayers. PAN is a unique identification number containing both alphabets and numbers. This 10 digits alphanumeric number is assigned to Indian taxpayers, whether persons or companies, with a motive to store all tax-related information against a single PAN number. The motive behind introducing PAN was that only one tax-paying entity can have a single PAN number. 

Structure of PAN

Understanding the structure of PAN is very important. The 10 digits combination of alphabets and numbers says a lot. 

• The first 3 characters are derived from English alphabetic series ranging from ‘AAA’ to ‘ZZZ’. 
• The fourth character is an alphabet which helps to identify the status of the PAN holder. It can be any one of the following- 

• A – Association of Persons

• B – Body of Individuals

• C – Company

• F – Firms

• G – Government

• H – Hindu Undivided Family

• L – Local Authority

• J – Artificial Judicial Person

• P – Individual

• T – Association of Persons for a Trust 

• The fifth character is an alphabet denoting the initial character of the PAN card         holder’s last name. 

           •The next four digits are numbers ranging from 0001 to 9999.

•  The last character is an alphabetic check digit.

How to apply for PAN

The Income Tax Department has authorized the following to issue PAN cards- 

• UTI Infrastructure Technology and Services Limited (UTIITSL)  
• National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL)  

A PAN can be applied in both online and offline ways-

How to apply for PAN Offline

1. Get the 49A application form (in case of an Indian resident) or 49AA application form (in case of a Non-Resident Indian or a foreign company) from the service centres set up by the UTIITSL or NSDL.
2.  Fill out the form as required.
3. Individual applicants need to fix two recent coloured photographs of size 3.5 cm x 2.5. cm. 
4. Attach the required documents such as proof of Identity, Address and Date of Birth. 
5. Submit the processing fee which can also be paid via demand daft. 
6. Enclose the application form and photocopies of your documents in an envelope.
7. On the envelope, remember to mention the ‘APPLICATION FOR PAN-N-Acknowledgement Number’.
8. Send it to the given address. 
9. On approval, PAN will be dispatched within 15 days. 

How to apply for PAN Online

1. Visit the official website of UTIITSL or NSDL.
2.  Select the type of application and choose your category. 
3.  Provide the required documents as name, DOB, photograph, signature etc. 
4.  Enter the Captcha and agree to the ‘Terms and Conditions’. 
5.  Click on submit. 
6. Then you will be directed to a new page where you will get an acknowledgement number.
7. Fill the required details. 
8. Submit the details and pay the processing fee. 
9. Your application will be submitted and on approval, PAN will be issued to you. 

PAN Application Rejection

We have looked at the process to apply for PAN. PAN application is a simple and convenient process. It can be applied by the eligible taxpayers both online and offline. But there may be several instances when a PAN application can get rejected. The primary reason for such rejection may be incorrect information or documents provided in the PAN application form.  

Common Reasons for PAN Application Rejection

The main reasons for PAN application rejection are- 

Mistake in PAN application form- 

 A PAN application form consists of two variants Form 49A and Form 49AA. Both these forms require various information which needs to be filled out carefully. The applicant must fill out different fields like name, age, Date of Birth, address, contact number, e-mail ID and other personal details. 

Applicant’s mistake in filling out incorrect or wrong information in these forms can lead to the rejection of a PAN application. For example- the difference in the spelling of the name as filled in the form and as mentioned in the identity proof, can reject the form. Hence,  all the instructions should be followed, and the form should be filled with utmost care to avoid rejections. 

Mistake in Supporting Documents- 

Sometimes the supporting documents, such as the identity or address proof or any other documents sent to the PAN department along with the PAN application form, may not be legible. Therefore creating a reason for PAN application rejection. 

There may be two cases which can cause issues with supporting documents and due to which the PAN department will not accept it. These are- 

Unclear prints of the document. If the documents are not clearly printed, then the department can reject the application form. 

Attaching not the required documents. In cases when an applicant attaches another document which was not required and the applicant did not furnish the documents which were required, then the PAN will get rejected. 

 Incorrect Signature

the applicant has to sign the PAN card application form, signing in places outside the given area can lead to rejection of the PAN card application form. 

How to avoid PAN application rejection

The following should be kept in mind to avoid rejection of the PAN application form.- 

Provide full name- PAN department has made it compulsory to provide the applicant’s full name. Hence, any initials if mentioned in the name field of the PAN application form can reject it. So, applicants need to be very careful when filling in their names in the form. For example- if an applicant’s name is Anil Kumar Singh then he should not fill it as Anil K Singh or A.K. Singh, instead, should write his full name. 

Use Black ink- The department allows only Black ink while filling out the PAN application form. In case of usage of blue ink or any other color ink, the PAN application form will directly get rejected. This point is to be remembered only while applying for PAN offline. In Online applications, the color of ink does not matter. 

Proper Signature- The applicant should provide a proper signature at all the required places. If the signs at any other place than it is required, it can lead to the rejection of PAN. Also, if the sign does not match with the valid document or if there is overwriting in the signature, the PAN will get rejected. So, be careful while signing the form. 

Don’t forget to mention STD and ISD Codes- The applicant should mention proper STD and ISD Codes while filling their landline number in the PAN application form. In case of filling the mobile number, remember to mention the country code. Only correct information in this field can accept the form. 

Mention PIN Code- Mentioning the correct PIN code in the PAN application form can avoid the reason for its rejection. An applicant should double-check it before submitting the form. 

Provide Valid Supporting Documents– All valid supporting documents should be provided while submitting the PAN application form. The three types of documents are address proof, identity proof and date of birth. In case of online application, remember to  upload these documents. 

Scanned Photographs- The PAN application form requires two passport-size photographs to be attached on it. The applicant should get two recent passport-size photographs with correct size. In case of Online application, the photograph should be neatly scanned and then uploaded to avoid any rejection in the form. 

Final Words

PAN or Permanent Account Number, is one of the most important documents required by all the taxpayers of the country. It helps to store and record the financial transactions of the individuals, HUFs, trusts, associations etc. Also, it is needed at the time of filing ITR, opening a bank account, purchasing jewelry, starting a business etc. PAN can be applied by all the eligible taxpayers of the country either online or offline. The PAN application process contains a few easy steps to be followed. However, at times there may be cases of PAN application rejection, and it can happen due to reasons like providing false or incorrect information or not providing correct documents. Various dos and don’ts are provided while filling out the PAN application form. The applicant should read all the instructions carefully before filling out the form to avoid rejection. 

Frequently Asked Questions