How to Avail 'instant' PAN Card using Aadhaar?

With the Income Tax Department of the country launching a one-time service for those individuals who do not have a Permanent Account Number (PAN), there seem to be lot of doubt in the minds of the applicants. The PAN card is required by individuals to file income tax returns and with this being the high time for filing the returns, people who do not have the 10-digit alphanumeric number are looking to avail it by the using the ‘new’ service offered by the IT department. As part of the service, applicants can avail an ‘instant’ PAN or e-PAN with the help of the Aadhaar card. The service which has been introduced for a limited period of time is available for free on a first-come-first-serve basis to resident Indians only. It needs to be mentioned that the service can be availed by only individuals who have an Aadhaar card and have previously not had a PAN card in their name. Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), minors, companies, trusts etc are not eligible to avail the service.
The department informed that the instant PAN service was launched keeping in the mind the large number of applications that they had received in the last couple of months. With the last date for filing income tax returns fast approaching, the department with the help of the service was trying to facilitate those seeking PAN cards to file their returns.

How can an individual apply for instant PAN?

• First, the applicant needs to visit www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/home
• Select, ‘Instant e-PAN’ option under the ‘Quick Links’ tab.
• In the next page, select ‘Apply Instante-PAN’
• Read the instructions and click on ‘Next’.
• Next, fill in the details like name, date of birth, gender, Aadhaar details. (The details provided must match the ones mentioned in the Aadhaar card).
• Click on ‘Submit’.

After the application is submitted, Aadhaar e-KYC will be carried out by the authorities. Only after Aadhaar e-KYC is completed, the entire process of e-PAN or instant PAN shall be initiated. It needs to be mentioned that while submitting the application form, applicants who wish to avail instant PAN or e-PAN need to upload a scanned copy of his/her signature on a white paper in not more than 10KB size. Once the application is successfully registered, a 15-digit acknowledgement number will be generated and sent to the applicant on the email address and mobile number provided in the application form. With the help of the acknowledgement number, the status of Instant e-PAN can be checked by the applicant.
Once the instant PAN is alloted to the applicant, he/she will be intimated through an SMS or email. Following which, the instant PAN can be downloaded from the e-filing portal www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/home.

How to download ‘Instant PAN’?

To download instant PAN or e-PAN, The applicant needs to follow the below mentioned steps:

• Visit www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/home
• Click on ‘Instant e-PAN’ under the ‘Quick Links’ Tab.
• On the next page, select ‘Check Instant e-PAN Status’.
• Enter the acknowledgment number and the captcha code
• Click on ‘Submit’.

Points that needs to kept in mind prior to applying for Instant PAN

While looking to avail an instant PAN, there are certain things that the applicant needs to keep in mind. Those are as follows:

• Individuals who already have a PAN must not apply for instant PAN.
• Active mobile number must be linked with Aadhaar to receive the One Time Password (OTP).
• As instant PAN is generated using the particulars available in Aadhaar, it is necessary to update all the details first by visiting the UIDAI website.
• Physical documents are not required to be submitted while applying for an e-PAN.

Difference between SBI’s Insta Savings account and Digital Savings account

State Bank of India, the country’s largest lender offers its customers many benefits. As time has gone by the bank apart from offering other benefits, has allowed its customers to open an SBI account from the comforts of their home. This can be done using the bank’s one-stop YONO app. Individuals can open the Insta Savings account and Digital Savings account that the bank offers using the YONO app.


Here, we take a look at some of the basic differences between both the savings accounts offered by SBI:

• The Insta Savings account which SBI offers can be opened and operated only by a single person while the digital savings account can be operated both on a single and joint basis. It needs to be mentioned here that the YONO app enables the individual to open the account on a single basis, which can be later changed to joint account by visiting an SBI branch.
• The Insta savings account offers customers the facility of ‘instant account activation’. This facility ensures that the individual who opens the account need not visit the bank branch for activating the account. As for digital savings account, the applicant is required to go to an SBI branch for activating the account.
• As per State Bank of India, applicants who open an insta savings account are offered a free RuPay debit card. While to those who open a digital savings account, the bank issues a personalised platinum debit card.
• The bank offers customers who avail the digital savings account the option of converting their account into a salary account. However, no such facility is provided to customers who avail the Insta savings account.
• Customers who open either of the two accounts offered by the bank i.e the digital savings account or the insta savings account need not maintain a certain amount of average balance in a bid to avoid penalty charges. The offer has been provided to the customers by the bank till the end of the current financial year i.e 31 March 2019.
• SBI offers the applicants who open digital savings account the option of cheque book facility. If the customers wish to use the facility, they would be required to pay applicable charges. The facility is not provided under the insta savings account offered by the bank.
• Both the accounts offered by the bank can be opened by resident Indians who are above 18 years of age. It needs to be mentioned that while opening both accounts, the applicant is required to provide a mandatory nomination.
• While opening both the accounts, the applicants are not required to submit physical copies of the acceptable documents as the accounts are opened on a paperless basis.
• Applicants who wish to open either of the two bank accounts using the YONO app need to provide information mentioned on their Aadhaar card and PAN card. They need to provide the card numbers of both the documents either through the YONO app or through the website for availing the accounts offered by the bank.
• The bank has stipulated an aggregate end of day balance of up to Rs.1 lakh and total annual transactions of up to Rs.2 lakh in the case of Insta Savings account. While for the digital savings account, the bank has restricted cash withdrawal to a maximum of Rs.1 lakh using the Platinum debit card. To withdraw money in excess of Rs.1 lakh, users of digital savings account would need to visit the bank branch and carry out the transaction using the Green Channel Counter (GCC).

Get More Than 9% on These Fixed Deposits in 2018

It is possible to earn 9% and more on your fixed deposit (FD) this year. Yes! You heard that right. There are many small finance banks that offer a very high rate of interest. Let us take a look at some of them here:

• Fincare Small Finance Bank is one of the most highest paying banks as far as fixed deposits are concerned. The banks pays 9.50% per annum to senior citizens who invest money from 24 months 1 day to 36 months. For the same tenure, regular deposit holders will be able to get up to 9% per annum. 

Given below are the highest interest paying tenures for Fincare Small Finance Bank:

• Another bank that pays up to 9.50% per annum interest for regular deposit holders below the age of 60 years is Mahaveer Bank. A rate of 9.50% per annum can be earned for holding a deposit anywhere from above 2 years to 5 years. 

Given below is the updated table of Mahaveer Bank FD rates:

• Mahaveer Bank pays up to 10% per annum on fixed deposits for a tenure that ranges from more than 2 years to 5 years, making it one of the most lucrative investments for people in this age group.

• Ujjivan Small Finance Bank pays a rate of 8.00% per annum on deposits that are kept in the bank from 1 year to 2 years.

Given below is the updated table of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank FD rates:

• Senior citizens who invest in Ujjivan will be able to get paid at the rate of 8.50% per annum.

• ESAF Small Finance Banks pays 7.50% per annum to senior citizens for an investment duration of 1093 days to 1819 days and 1821 days to 3652 days. For the same duration, regular deposit holders will get paid at the rate of 7.00% per annum.

• Suryoday Small Finance Bank pays those who are 60 years and above an interest rate of 9% per annum for a time frame of more than 24 months to 36 months and 8% per annum for above 36 months to 60 months.

• Regular depositors will get paid  8.75% per annum for 24 months to 36 months and 7.75% per annum for above 36 months to 60 months.

Things to know about small finance bank FDs:

• The interest rate paid is generally much higher, making it a well-paying investment.

• The risk associated with this type of investment is definitely higher than other type of investment classes.

• The features and benefits that are offered by small finance banks are very similar to that given out by other/regular banks.

• Many of these banks offer the facility to open and close a time deposit online in a matter of seconds.

• With mobile banking, opening a time deposit in such a type of a bank has become more and more easier.

• Online banking and net banking facilities can also be used for premature closure or for premature withdrawal.

• Loan or overdraft can be taken against the term deposit easily just like other bank FDs.

The final call

For those who are willing to take a slight risk, the results can be quite rewarding if you invest in small finance bank term deposits.

Everything You Need to Know About FD Overdraft

So, you need some money. As simple as that. What can you do? Take a loan. Why not take an overdraft against your Fixed Deposit (FD). Yes! The good old FD will come as a saviour in times of a financial crisis. All term deposit holders are eligible to take a personal loan using their term deposit as a collateral. A loan can thus be availed without any hassle for up to 90% of the deposit amount. 

What are the benefits of taking a loan/overdraft against a term deposit?

Easy and hassle-free: When it comes to availing credit against your own time deposit, the whole process becomes more simple. It is quite simple to apply for this facility and some banks even offer the facility to do it online. All customers have to do is to submit the documentation.

Less time consuming for approval: Compared to the time and effort taken to apply for a traditional loan, the process involved in taking a loan/overdraft is much more speedier. The loan approval process is pretty fast and there is no long wait involved. In most cases, this loan will be granted in less than 24 hours

Lesser interest rate: Probably one of the advantages of this facility is that the rate at which the loan is granted is much lesser that what is offered to other loans. For instance, if you are getting paid around 6.00% per annum on the term deposit, you will have to pay an additional 1% to 2% interest rate for the loan. This is much lesser when compared to other loans, for which the rates range from 16% to 24% per annum.

No need to break FD: The best part about this type of loan is that there is practically no need to close or break the term deposit that you hold. The deposit holder will be able to take a loan and also earn interest on the deposit at the same time. This is one of the advantages that customers can gain from holding a time deposit and taking a loan on it as well.

With a lot of technological developments that are taking place, overdraft can now be taken even by applying online. For example, those who hold a State Bank of India (SBI) FD, can avail a loan/overdraft through the SBI YONO app. In this case, the customer does not have to go to the bank branch physically and can go and loan/overdraft will be granted online at the click of a button. Here are some important things to know about the SBI overdraft facility:

• All those who have what is called a single account will be able to take a loan or an overdraft through the YONO app
• As of now, those who hold a joint account with bank will not be able to avail this particular facility
• The minimum loan amount that will be granted is Rs.25,000, while the maximum is Rs.5 crore
• Only an interest rate of 1% more will be charged for taking a loan this route
• As of now, there are no processing charges involved in this type of loan facility that is granted by the SBI
• Those who are taking this loan can get up to 90% of the deposit amount as a loan

PF Withdrawal Online by Providing IFSC Code, UAN Details

One can easily withdraw money from their Provident Fund (PF) account online by providing IFSC code, Universal Account Number (UAN), mobile details and PAN card.

After the introduction of the online Employee Provident Fund (EPF) facility, withdrawing money from PF accounts has become a much simpler, hassle-free and convenient process. Before the launch of this facility, it used to take several months for employees to get their PF money. PF can be withdrawn under 3 categories: Full Withdrawal, Partial Withdrawal, and Pension Withdrawal Benefit. The withdrawal request can be made through the UAN website. It is necessary to have Aadhaar linked with the EPF account to avail this facility without any hassle.

After the PAN-Aadhaar linkage, it is now mandatory to link PF with Aadhaar

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has now made it mandatory to link Aadhaar with the Universal Account Numbers (UAN) of provident fund members.

After attending a Tiranga Yatra organised by the EPFO, Bandaru Dattatreya, the Union Labour and Employment Minister said that the UAN, apart from Aadhaar, must also be linked with bank account, IFSC code and mobile number as well.

TDS - Tax Deducted at Source for Non-resident Indians

Non-resident Indians battle many challenges in India and high tax deduction at source is just one among them. TDS can be annoying considering the innumerable taxes that we all deal with already. When tax is deducted at source, it becomes a mandatory method of collecting taxes and makes the taxpayer feel choked and pushed against a wall. Moreover, income tax is deducted in the way of TDS for an entire year in advance and later tax returns are claimed which is a tedious process for both Indian nationals and NRIs.

What is TDS?

TDS stands for Tax Deducted at Source. It is an indirect tax collecting method followed in India according to the Income Tax Act, 1961. Managed by the Central Board of Direct taxes, TDS, falls under the Indian Revenue Services.

TDS norms for Indian Nationals

Indian nationals enjoy low TDS rates compared to NRIs. Salary, interest on securities, land rent and any other income earned by Indian Nationals who possess Permanent Account Number (PAN) is taxable at about 10% of the amount earned. Whereas, income earned through lotteries or any other games of that sort is taxed at 30%.

TDS norms for NRIs

More often than not, in many articles nowadays you might read about the whooping TDS rates for Non-resident Indians. TDS rates for NRIs ranges from 10% to 30%. Apart from general taxable income like salary, rent or interest on securities, NRIs are taxed for various other income categories like earnings under National Savings Scheme, repurchase of Mutual Fund and royalty income.

Changes made to NRI tax norms in Budget Meeting 2016

Addressing high TDS rates for NRIs, The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) reformed the taxation norms which now allows NRIs to avail lower tax rates under Section 206AA of the Income-Tax Act. CBDT has included a new rule, section 37BC, according to which non-residents can claim TDS benefits even without submitting their PAN. Previously, residents had to submit PAN under section 206AA to avail any tax benefits. In Budget Meeting, 2016, Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister confirmed that PAN is not mandatory for non-residents to enjoy tax benefits. In his speech, Jaitley addressed the 7 pillars which will support India’s economic growth and tax reforms to reduce compliance burden was one among them.

Saudi Indian Business Network (SIBN) recently conducted a lively debate with experts in the taxation industry to explain the budget meeting in layman’s terms. During the debate Vijay Soni, treasurer, SIBN, spoke about taxation policies in India and rationalization of TDS for NRIs without PAN. Echoing him, CA, S. C. Lekhwani, a senior practitioner from India joined the debate via video conferencing and explained the taxation provision for NRIs and foreign investors in India. After years of debating and procrastinating, The Government of India has ruled in favor of the NRIs which is definitely a good news for all the non-resident Indians out there.

Reaping the profit out of compound interest

Did you know you compound interest can help you increase your savings? Yes, it can do wonder by adding to your existing savings. Compound interest can help you earn more than what you invested initially and fulfill your long term savings goals by providing higher and assured returns.

So, what is compound interest?

It is a kind of interest on interest; an addition of interest to the principal amount of your deposit.  Compound interest which is added to the principal amount of your deposit or a loan, helps a loan or a deposit grow at a faster pace. Compound interest is calculated on the initial principal amount as well as on the accumulated interest of a deposit or a loan. This addition of interest to the principal as well as accumulated interest of the previous years  is known as compounding. The compounding frequency determines the interest you will receive on your deposits. The higher the frequency of compounding, the higher the compound interest is.

Compound interest rate is particularly beneficial for investing in fixed deposits. By using a compound interest calculator, you can calculate the compound interest on your deposit or a loan.

How compound interest helps you earn more:

You can be rich gradually by investing at compound rates of interest. The compounding rate of interest may work for you in the following ways:

Start your investments early:  When your start your investments early in your career at compound rate of interest, the possibility is very much there that it will add to your returns. So don’t wait, make your as early as possible to add more value to you your investment

Invest regularly:  Make it a habit to make regular investments. In the initial years, you may not be able to see the difference. But if you keep on investing at compound interest rates, you will see the difference. Investments giving lower returns in the initial stages may produce higher returns in the long run. Always, it’s important to look at the bigger picture, not short term goals. Besides, a proper asset allocation plan will also help you add more value to your savings  by managing the risk factors. A well – thought out asset allocation plan always helps in long term wealth generation.

Stay invested for a longer time: It is very important to be patient and keep your investments intact for a longer time.  The magic of compounding works only when you invest your savings for a longer duration. Do not withdraw or touch your savings, unless you really need them. Let them remain invested for a longer time and grow. Although, you will witness slow progress in the initial stage, it will pay off in the long run.

So, if you are intending to earn more profit from compounding rate of interest, invest regularly and invest for a longer duration. Make your investments at the early stage of your life and give time to your investments. Definitely, compounding will show its magic and double your returns.