Union Budget 2023: PAN card likely to get legal backing as single business ID

Union Budget 2023-24 will likely pave way for the legalisation of the permanent account number (PAN) as a single business identification.The government is reportedly mulling rolling out the legal and operational framework for the adoption of the PAN number.

This will apply to all businesses securing approvals. The new provision will help investors save a lot of effort as they will no longer have to fill in multiple identifications details - there are 20 different IDs including GSTIN, TIN, and EPFO - for accessing the National Single Window System (NSWS) for project-related clearances and approvals. The move is aimed at simplifying rules as demanded by financial institutions and banks. Some banks have asked the government to drop the requirement for PAN since most accounts are already seeded with Aadhaar.