New Delhi, March 27: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on Tuesday informed that the deadline for linking Aadhaar to PAN has been extended till June 30, 2018. The current deadline to link the two documents was  March 31. To recall, this is a fourth extension given by the government for individuals to link their Permanent Account Number (PAN) with their biometric ID (Aadhaar).

The earlier deadlines for linking the two databases in 2017 were July 31, August 31 and December 31, with the last being March 31, 2018. As per reports, the order said the deadline for PAN-Aadhaar linking for filing I-T returns is being extended after "consideration of the matter".

The latest order by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has come in the backdrop of the Supreme Court, earlier this month, directing extension of the March 31 deadline for linking Aadhaar with various other services.

The apex court ordered for the extension in the deadline till the five-judge constitution bench delivers its judgment on petitions challenging the validity of the biometric scheme and the enabling law.

The government has now made quoting of Aadhaar mandatory for filing income tax returns as well as obtaining a new PAN. Section 139 AA (2) of the Income Tax Act says that every person having PAN as on July 1, 2017, and eligible to obtain Aadhaar, must intimate his Aadhaar number to the tax authorities.

The 12-digit Aadhaar is issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and has been made mandatory by the government to avail various services. According to a PTI report, over 16.65 crore PANs, out of the total about 33 crore, have been linked with Aadhaar till March 5, 2018.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 27, 2018 08:57 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).