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Guide · Income Tax

PAN Card Apply Online — New PAN, e-PAN & Form 49A

How to apply for a new PAN card online through Protean (NSDL) or UTIITSL, when to use the free instant e-PAN, the documents you need, the Rs 107 fee and how long each route takes.

Written by
TaxClue Income-Tax Desk
Updated
18 August 2026
Reading time
5 min
Questions
16 answered
  • Updated for 2026
  • CA Reviewed
  • Instant e-PAN Free
Quick Answer

Apply for a new PAN online at Protean (formerly NSDL) — onlineservices.proteantech.in — or UTIITSL (utiitsl.com) using Form 49A (Indian citizens) or 49AA (foreign citizens). The fee is Rs 107 for an Indian communication address (Rs 1,017 if abroad). A digital e-PAN reaches your email in 2-3 working days and the physical card in 15-20 days. If you only need a PAN and have an Aadhaar with a linked mobile, the instant e-PAN on incometax.gov.in is free and allotted in minutes.

Instant e-PAN is the fastest, free route

If you have an Aadhaar linked to a working mobile number and do not already hold a PAN, use Instant e-PAN on the income-tax portal (incometax.gov.in → Instant e-PAN). It is free, paperless and allotted in a few minutes as a valid PDF PAN. You would only pay Rs 107 at Protean/UTIITSL when you also want a physical laminated card.

At a glance

PAN Application Routes — Fee & Timeline

Every common way to get a PAN, with the fee, how long it takes and whether you receive a physical card.

RouteFeeTimePhysical Card
Instant e-PAN (incometax.gov.in, Aadhaar OTP)Free2-3 minutesNo (PDF)
Protean / NSDL online (Aadhaar e-KYC)Rs 1072-3 days e-PAN · 15-20 days cardYes
UTIITSL online (Aadhaar e-KYC)Rs 1072-3 days e-PAN · 15-20 days cardYes
Protean / UTIITSL with document uploadRs 10720-25 working daysYes
Foreign communication addressRs 1,01725-30 working daysYes

Fee for Indian address is Rs 107 (Rs 93 + 18% GST). Timelines are indicative and depend on document verification. Instant e-PAN is a valid PAN, not a lesser one.

What you need

Documents for a PAN Card Application

For a resident individual you generally need proof of identity, address and date of birth, plus a photo and signature. With Aadhaar-based e-KYC, most details are fetched automatically after an OTP, so no scanned uploads are needed for the standard resident path.

RequirementAccepted documentsNotes
Identity proofAadhaar, passport, voter ID, driving licenceAadhaar enables paperless e-KYC
Address proofAadhaar, passport, bank statement, utility billUtility bill within the accepted period
Date of birthAadhaar, matriculation certificate, passport, birth certificateMust match name records
Photo & signatureRecent passport-size photo · signatureUploaded only on the manual (non e-KYC) route
Aadhaar alone may not be enough from April 2026

For new PAN applications on Form 49A, Aadhaar is no longer accepted as the sole supporting document from April 2026 — you may be asked for at least one additional document from the approved list. This is an evolving rule; check the current requirement on the official portal before you apply.

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Step by step

How to Apply for a New PAN Online

  1. 1Choose portalProtean (NSDL) or UTIITSL
  2. 2Select Form 49ANew PAN · Indian citizen
  3. 3Aadhaar e-KYCOTP fetches your details
  4. 4Pay Rs 107Net banking / card / UPI
  5. 5Track statusAcknowledgement no. · e-PAN by email
  • Aadhaar with a linked, active mobile number
  • Correct name spelling as per records
  • Valid email for the e-PAN PDF
  • Address proof for the communication address
  • Photo & signature (manual route only)
  • Acknowledgement number saved for tracking
  • Check you do not already hold a PAN (one per person)
  • PAN-Aadhaar linked after allotment
One PAN per person — and keep it linked to Aadhaar

Holding more than one PAN is not allowed and can attract a penalty — apply for a fresh PAN only if you have never been allotted one. After allotment, PAN-Aadhaar linking is mandatory; an unlinked PAN becomes inoperative. See our PAN-Aadhaar link guide.

Need a correction, reprint or e-PAN download instead of a new PAN?

PAN Correction / Update →
What it costs

PAN Card Fee & When It Applies

The government fee depends only on where your PAN card is to be dispatched — not on which portal you use. Instant e-PAN via the income-tax portal is free.

ScenarioFeeOutcome
Instant e-PAN (Aadhaar-based)FreeDigital PAN PDF only
New PAN · Indian addressRs 107e-PAN + physical card
New PAN · foreign addressRs 1,017e-PAN + physical card abroad
Correction / reprint · Indian addressRs 107Updated / reprinted card

Rs 107 = Rs 93 base + 18% GST for an Indian communication address. Fees are set by the department and revised from time to time; confirm the live amount on the portal.

Beware fake-fee and middleman sites

Only Protean (onlineservices.proteantech.in), UTIITSL (utiitsl.com) and the income-tax portal (incometax.gov.in) are official. Sites charging several hundred rupees extra for a "fast PAN" are unofficial resellers — the actual government fee is Rs 107 for an Indian address, and the instant e-PAN is genuinely free.

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Sources
  1. Apply for PAN: incometax.gov.in (Instant e-PAN)
  2. Protean (ex-NSDL): onlineservices.proteantech.in
  3. UTIITSL: utiitsl.com
  4. Income-tax dept — Apply for PAN & Form 49A / 49AA

Disclaimer: This guide is general information based on the law and notifications in force when it was last updated. It is not professional advice for your case — rates, thresholds and due dates change, so check the current position with the official source before you act on it.

People also ask

PAN Card Apply — Frequently Asked Questions

Short, direct answers to the 16 questions readers ask most on this topic.

Apply through Protean (formerly NSDL) at onlineservices.proteantech.in or UTIITSL at utiitsl.com. Select "New PAN - Indian Citizen (Form 49A)", complete Aadhaar-based e-KYC (or upload documents), pay the Rs 107 fee for an Indian address and submit. You get an acknowledgement number to track the application. The e-PAN reaches your email in 2-3 working days and the physical card in about 15-20 days.

Both are official and the fee is the same (Rs 107 for an Indian address). Protean (formerly NSDL) and UTIITSL both offer Aadhaar e-KYC for paperless applications. Choose either; the PAN issued is identical. For a PAN with no physical card at all, the free instant e-PAN on incometax.gov.in is the quickest route.

Form 49A is the PAN application for Indian citizens, companies and other Indian entities. Form 49AA is for foreign citizens and foreign entities. You pick the correct form at the start of the online application, and the required documents differ between the two.

Yes. With Aadhaar-based e-KYC the entire application is online and paperless — you verify identity with an OTP and no physical documents are couriered. The instant e-PAN on the income-tax portal is fully online too. Only the manual document-upload route may occasionally require you to send signed forms.

Yes. Instant e-PAN is free on the income-tax portal (incometax.gov.in → Instant e-PAN). Enter your Aadhaar, verify with the OTP sent to your Aadhaar-linked mobile, and a valid e-PAN PDF is allotted in minutes. Conditions: your Aadhaar must have a mobile number linked, and you must not already hold a PAN.

An e-PAN is a fully valid PAN and can be used for all tax, banking and KYC purposes. The physical laminated card is optional. If you want the physical card, apply through Protean or UTIITSL and pay Rs 107; the instant e-PAN itself remains free.

Instant e-PAN via Aadhaar on the income-tax portal is allotted in about 2-3 minutes. A regular online application through Protean/UTIITSL with Aadhaar e-KYC delivers the e-PAN by email in 2-3 working days and the physical card in roughly 15-20 days. The manual document route can take 20-25 working days.

The e-PAN PDF is emailed to your registered email after allotment. You can also download it again from the Protean or UTIITSL portal using your acknowledgement number and date of birth, or regenerate the instant e-PAN from incometax.gov.in. See our PAN card download guide for the exact steps.

For a resident individual: identity proof (Aadhaar, passport, voter ID or driving licence), address proof (Aadhaar, passport, bank statement or utility bill), date-of-birth proof (Aadhaar, matriculation certificate, passport or birth certificate), plus a photo and signature on the manual route. With Aadhaar e-KYC most details are auto-filled after OTP verification.

From April 2026, Aadhaar is no longer accepted as the sole supporting document for a new PAN on Form 49A — you may be asked for at least one additional document from the approved list. This is an evolving requirement, so check the current rule on the official portal before applying.

Rs 107 (Rs 93 plus 18% GST) when the communication address is in India, and Rs 1,017 when the address is outside India. The same fee applies to a new PAN and to corrections or reprints. The instant e-PAN on the income-tax portal is free.

Because they are unofficial resellers adding a service margin. The genuine government fee is Rs 107 for an Indian address, and the instant e-PAN is free. Apply only on the official portals — Protean (onlineservices.proteantech.in), UTIITSL (utiitsl.com) or incometax.gov.in — to avoid overpaying.

Yes, PAN-Aadhaar linking is mandatory. An unlinked PAN becomes inoperative, which can block ITR filing, attract higher TDS and disrupt banking KYC. If you obtained your PAN via Aadhaar e-KYC or instant e-PAN it is usually already linked; otherwise link it on the income-tax portal.

No. One person may hold only one PAN; holding more than one can attract a penalty. If you already have a PAN, do not apply for a new one — request a correction or reprint of the existing PAN instead. Apply for a fresh PAN only if you have never been allotted one.

Use the correction/change request on Protean or UTIITSL (Form CSF) to update your name, date of birth, address, photo or signature, or to reprint a lost card. The fee is the same Rs 107 for an Indian address. See our PAN correction / update guide for the full process.

Yes. PAN is the primary identifier for income-tax filing, so you need a PAN (and it should be linked to Aadhaar) before filing your ITR. Once allotted, you can register on the income-tax portal and file your return — our ITR filing service can handle it end to end.