Govt makes Aadhaar verification mandatory for PAN card applications, extends income tax filing deadline

Existing PAN holders will have to link their Aadhaar numbers by December 31.

Non-compliance with this rule may lead to the deactivation of the existing PAN.

Aadhaar verification will also be mandatory for booking Tatkal tickets.

Starting July 15, two-factor authentication, which will include a one-time password that will be sent to the registered mobile phone, will be required for all ticketing, online or in-person.

The Indian Railways is also expected to implement a minor increase in ticket prices. This hike may range from 1 paisa per km for non-AC coaches to two paise for AC coaches.

Meanwhile, the CBDT has also extended the Income Tax Returns filing deadline from July 31 to September 15. This will provide salaried individuals with an additional 46 days to complete filings.

However, those with documentation ready can stick to the older schedule and, therefore, avoid possible website glitches and errors that usually crop up as the deadline nears and people rush to complete ITR filing.

Credit Card changes

The State Bank of India is discontinuing its air accident insurance offered when using select premium cards, such as SBI Elite, Miles Elite, and Miles Prime, to purchase air tickets. The public sector bank is also expected to introduce a new minimum amount due or MAD (for monthly bills) calculation.

HDFC and ICICI Bank, meanwhile, will also revise charges on select transactions.

For HDFC, a one per \cent transaction fee will be capped at Rs 4,999 per transaction, and will be applied if a card is used to pay rent or spend over Rs 10,000 on online skill-based games.

Utility payments for over Rs 50,000 monthly using an HDFC card will also levy the abovementioned fee. The exception in this case is for insurance transactions.

For ICICI Bank, the first five transactions at its ATMs will be free. After that, a charge of Rs. 23 will have to be paid per transaction to withdraw cash. Non-financial transactions will continue to be free.

If ICICI Bank customers use non-bank ATMs, the number of free transactions is limited to three for metro cities and five in smaller cities and towns. Beyond this, one will have to pay Rs 23. and Rs. 8.5 per transaction, respectively.

For transactions on international ATMs, the bank will charge Rs. 125 per cash withdrawal, Rs. 25 for non-financial transactions, and a 3.5 percent currency conversion fee.