INDIA – Foreign Nationals Exempted from Aadhaar Card Requirement
On 11 May 2017, the Indian Ministry of Finance issued a notification exempting certain taxpayers, including foreign nationals, from the requirement to obtain an Aadhaar card.
As we reported in our alert of 25 April 2017, Aadhaar is a 12-digit unique identification number issued on a card by the Indian government to every individual resident of India.
Effective 1 July 2017, the Finance Act 2017 made it mandatory to quote an Aadhaar number to file income tax returns (ITR) or to apply for or renew a PAN (Permanent Account Number).
However, Notification No.37/2017 exempts foreign nationals from this requirement.
A foreign national will continue to require a PAN (Permanent Account Number) to submit their income tax return (ITR).
Action Items
- Foreign national taxpayers in India can continue to submit their tax returns supported by a PAN (Permanent Account Number), and do not need to obtain an Aadhaar card.