The taxpayers can now link their Aadhaar card with PAN with just an SMS, the Income Tax department has advertised in leading national newspapers. The advertisement narrates the process of how both the unique identity numbers of an individual can be linked by sending an SMS to either 567678 or 56161. It said linking the two numbers is the key to “seamlessly avail online a world of income tax facilities,” it mentioned.

The IT department has also advised people to visit the official e-filing website of the department to link with the two identities, if there is an identical name in two databases or a minor mismatch.

“Aadhaar can also be seeded into PAN database by quoting Aadhaar in PAN application form for new PAN allotment or by quoting Aadhaar in change request form used for reprint of PAN card,” the advertisement reads.

Earlier this month, the I-T department had launched a new e-facility to link a person’s Aadhaar with the Permanent Account Number (PAN), a mandatory procedure for filing I-T returns now.

The department has hosted a new link on its homepage to link the two unique identities. The link requires a person to punch in his PAN number, Aadhaar number, and the exact name as given in the Aadhaar card. “After verification from the UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India), the linking will be confirmed. “In case of any minor mismatch in Aadhaar name provided, Aadhaar OTP (one-time password) will be required,” the department had said in its advisory to taxpayers and individuals.

The OTP will be sent on the registered mobile number in the Aadhaar database. The government, under the Finance Act 2017, has made it mandatory for taxpayers to quote Aadhaar or enrolment ID of Aadhaar application form for filing of Income-Tax returns

Also, Aadhaar has been made mandatory for applying for permanent account number with effect from July 1, 2017. While Aadhaar is issued by the UIDAI to a resident of India, PAN is a ten-digit alphanumeric number issued in the form of a laminated card by the I-T department to any person, firm or entity.