Essentially, the laws regarding compulsory quoting of Aadhaar and linking to PAN only apply if you are a resident as per the Aadhaar Act There is a lot of confusion among people regarding who is eligible to obtain Aadhaar as amendments in the last budget have made financial life without one difficult.The budget presented in February this year made amendments in law vide Section 139AA in the Income Tax Act. As a consequence, from July 1, 2017, it has become mandatory to quote your Aadhaar number or Aadhaar enrolment ID (in case you have applied for Aadhaar but not received it) while filing your income tax return and when applying for PAN. It has also become mandatory to link your Aadhaar with your existing PAN even if you don't file your ITR.The question arises who is eligible to apply for Aadhaar? Are Non-resident Indian (NRI) or Foreign nationals living in India also eligible to apply for Aadhaar?The Aadhaar Act, 2016 states, "Every resident shall be entitled to obtain an aadhaar number by submitting his demographic information and biometric information by undergoing the process of enrolment. doing banking transactions above Rs 50,000, getting benefits under government social security, subsidy schemes etc.Section 139AA of the Income Tax Act states that every person who is eligible to receive Aadhaar number must quote the same while filing his income tax return.

Source: Economic Times August 10, 2017 04:18 UTC