PAN (Permanent Account Number)स्थायी लेखा नम्बर
A PAN is the taxpayer identification number issued by Nepal's Inland Revenue Department. Every employee needs a personal PAN for the tax withheld from their salary to be credited to them, and every employer needs a business PAN to deposit it.
Also called: PAN Nepal, personal PAN, PAN number, sthayi lekha number
Key facts
- Issued by
- Inland Revenue DepartmentThrough the taxpayer portal and IRD offices.
- Employee needs
- Personal PANSo withheld tax is credited to them.
- Employer needs
- Business PANTo deposit tax and file returns.
- Used in
- eTDS reportingEach employee's PAN identifies their withheld tax.
Why an employee without a PAN is a payroll problem
Tax withheld from salary is deposited against the employer's business PAN but reported against each employee's personal PAN. Without a personal PAN, an employee's withheld tax cannot be attributed to them, so it does not show against their name when they need proof of tax paid.
This is the reason a PAN belongs on the joining checklist rather than being chased later. Collecting it after several months of payroll means going back and correcting returns that have already been filed.
Personal PAN and business PAN
- A personal PAN identifies an individual taxpayer. A salaried employee needs one, and it stays with them across employers.
- A business PAN identifies the company. It is what payroll deposits and files under, and it is separate from any VAT registration.
- Neither substitutes for the other. An employee cannot be reported under the company's PAN.
What HR should hold on file
- The PAN number itself, verified against the employee's PAN certificate rather than typed from memory.
- A copy of the certificate in the employee's document record.
- A check at onboarding that the name on the PAN matches the name payroll will report under.
PAN (Permanent Account Number), answered
Yes, for salary tax to be credited to them. Withheld tax is reported against the employee's personal PAN, so without one the deduction cannot be attributed to that individual.
A personal PAN identifies an individual taxpayer and follows the person between employers. A business PAN identifies the company and is what payroll deposits tax and files returns under.
In eTDS reporting. Each employee's withheld tax is listed against their PAN, which is how the deduction is credited to that person's tax record.
- Income Tax Act 2058 registration provisions, and Inland Revenue Department taxpayer registration guidance.
This page explains general practice in Nepal. It is not legal or tax advice, and statutory figures are revised from time to time. Check the current Act, rule or notice before acting on it.
Related terms
- Inland Revenue Department (IRD)आन्तरिक राजस्व विभागThe Inland Revenue Department is Nepal's tax administration, responsible for income tax, VAT and excise. For payroll it is the body that publishes the tax slabs, issues PANs, receives monthly withholding deposits and defines the eTDS format.
- eTDSइ-टीडीएसeTDS is the Inland Revenue Department's electronic format for withholding returns. It reports, employee by employee and against each personal PAN, how much tax the employer withheld and deposited for the period.
- TDS (Tax Deducted at Source)स्रोतमा कर कट्टीTDS is income tax withheld by the employer from an employee's salary each month and deposited with the Inland Revenue Department on the employee's behalf. It is calculated on annual projected income and spread across the year, not charged month by month in isolation.
- Employee Onboardingकर्मचारी भर्ना प्रक्रियाOnboarding is everything between an accepted offer and a new employee being productive: paperwork, identifiers, access, equipment, introductions and the first pieces of work. It is a process with owners and dates, not a first-day checklist.
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