NEW DELHI: The Income Tax Department today launched an app that allows entities track TDS, pay taxes and apply for permanent account number (PAN).
It will also help people link their 12-digit biometric identifier Aadhaar with PAN card.
The mobile app 'Aaykar Setu', launched by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, literally means taxpayer's bridge and will be available in Android phones.
"This is a very important step forward by the CBDT
and the principle reason being technology as a very powerful tool
becomes an enabler. (With the app) most of the work the assessee can
discharge without any external help sitting at home," the minister said.
The app is in the series of actions taken by
the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to provide better taxpayer
services and reduce grievances.
The new initiative is a step by the I-T
department to directly communicate with the taxpayers on a range of
multiple informative and useful tax services aimed at providing tax
information at their fingertips.
This is the first mobile app by the CBDT and can be downloaded by giving missed calls to 7306525252.
The CBDT will also activate the option of filing tax returns using the mobile app in the coming months.
The module compiles various tax tools, live
chat facility, dynamic updates, and important links to various processes
within the I-T department in a single module.
The taxpayers will also be able to receive
regular updates regarding important tax dates, forms and notifications
on mobile numbers registered with the ITD.
All taxpayers who wish to receive such SMS alerts are advised to register their mobile numbers in the Aaykar Setu module.
"The app reduces the physical interface
between assessing officer (AO) and assessees. Physical interface has
many unintended consequences - it is time consuming and can lead to
improprieties," Jaitley said.
The tax department, he said, has endeavoured to reduce interface and a lot of it has already happened.
"It has become far more convenient. Secondly, it also makes compliance far more easy."
"It also helps us in improving the image of
the department. For the reason that one of the not so acceptable alibis
given by those who don't comply is we don't comply because the
harassment that compliance involves. Not that this reason has much
reason in it, but today this reason gets eliminated more the interface
is reduced," he said.
Jaitley said an external audit must be done to
see how much of the interface has been reduced and which are the other
areas where it can be done.
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