How to Change Your Name in a PAN Card?

When do you need to change the name on your PAN?

Your PAN record should carry the same name you use for tax, banking and investments. People usually change it for one of these reasons:

• Marriage: you took your spouse's surname, or added it to yours.
• Divorce or widowhood: you want to go back to your earlier name.
• Spelling mistake: the card says "Sunita" but you are "Suneeta".
• Initials: the card shows "R. K. Sharma" and you want "Rajesh Kumar Sharma".
• Legal name change: you changed your name through the Official Gazette, for example after adoption, a change of religion or by choice.
• Mismatch with Aadhaar: PAN–Aadhaar linking or bank KYC fails because the two names differ.

Every one of these goes through the same process. You file a change request on form CR-01 (the correction form for individuals since 1 April 2026) at Protean or UTIITSL. Companies, firms and trusts use CR-02. The full correction process, for every field, is on our PAN correction guide. This page covers only the name.

Why must your PAN name match Aadhaar?

The correction order for CR-01, in force from 1 April 2026, says plainly: the Aadhaar name will be printed on the PAN card. The form now has two name fields. Field 1B takes your name exactly as in Aadhaar. Field 1A takes your full name, split into first, middle and last name.

So if Aadhaar still shows your old name or a wrong spelling, your corrected PAN will show it too. In e-KYC mode, the details you type are checked against Aadhaar, and a mismatch can make authentication fail. To see how far apart your two names are, try our PAN vs Aadhaar name checker.

The order gives this example: Aadhaar shows M.S. KANDASWAMY. Field 1B is written as M S KANDASWAMY, and field 1A as first name MADURAI, middle name SOMASUNDRAM, last name KANDASWAMY.

Which documents prove a name change?

Protean's list of additional documents for corrections asks for a proof of change that shows the name moving from old to new. This is what it accepts:

What else to keep ready

• Proof of PAN: a copy of your PAN card or PAN allotment letter.
• Identity, address and date-of-birth proof: needed for scanned and physical modes. In e-KYC mode, identity and address come from Aadhaar.
• Two recent colour photos for physical mode. The CR-01 order gives 4.5 cm × 3.5 cm with a white background for the paper form; Protean's online acknowledgement asks for 3.5 cm × 2.5 cm. Don't staple or clip them.

Protean's list gives no format for the gazetted officer's certificate. Ask the officer to state your old and new names, and to sign with their seal. A divorce decree is not named in Protean's list, so don't rely on it alone. A Gazette notification is a separate process with its own office and forms.

Should a married woman write her father's or husband's name?

Always the father's name. The CR-01 guidelines say a married woman gives her father's name, not her husband's. Protean's do's and don'ts repeat it: don't write the husband's name in the father's name column. Putting it there is a common reason for trouble.

• The father's name field is mandatory, even if you are not changing it.
• You must choose which parent's name is printed on the card: father's or mother's.
• Your husband's name never appears on PAN. Only your own name changes.

How much does a PAN name change cost?

A name change costs the same as any PAN correction. Protean's correction page lists these fees, including GST:

The Income Tax Department's PAN page adds an e-Sign charge of ₹5.90 for digital applications. You can tick your name, address and other fields in one request. As far as we can see, the fee is per request, not per field. A shop or agent may add a service charge; ask for it separately.

How do you change your PAN name online with Aadhaar e-KYC?

Use this route when Aadhaar already shows your new name. It is the quickest, because nothing is posted. The steps are for Protean; UTIITSL is similar.

1. Open the change request form

   On Protean, go to onlineservices.proteantech.in. Choose the PAN change or correction request option (Protean's page calls it PAN Change Request), and pick Individual. Menu names can change, so follow the labels on screen. On UTIITSL, go to pan.utiitsl.com and choose Apply for Changes/ Correction in PAN Data (CR-01 and CR-02).

2. Enter your details exactly as in Aadhaar

   Type your PAN, name, date of birth, mobile and email. Use the name exactly as Aadhaar shows it now, with initials written out in full where the form asks.

   You'll know it worked when a token number appears on screen. Note it down; it lets you come back and finish later.

3. Choose e-KYC and tick the Name box

   Continue to the form and choose the paperless e-KYC & e-Sign mode. Say whether you want a printed card. Tick the box next to Name and enter the new name. Fill your father's name even though it isn't changing.

   If you forget to tick the box: the name won't change, even if you typed the new one. Check every tick before you pay.

4. Pay the fee

   Pay online using one of the options the portal shows. See the fee table. Want a new photo or signature too? e-KYC uses your Aadhaar photo and can't take a new signature, so see changing your PAN photo or signature.

5. Sign with your Aadhaar OTP and save the acknowledgement

   Enter your Aadhaar number and the OTP sent to your Aadhaar-linked mobile. This signs the form.

   You'll know it worked when you can download the acknowledgement PDF with a 15-digit acknowledgement number.

   If the OTP doesn't arrive: your mobile may not be linked with Aadhaar. Update your Aadhaar mobile at an Aadhaar centre, or use the documents route below.

How do you change your PAN name with scanned or posted documents?

Use this route if Aadhaar still has the old name, if you have no Aadhaar, or if you can't get an Aadhaar OTP. Scanned images with e-Sign cost the paperless fee. Posting papers costs the physical fee. You can also fill a paper CR-01 at a PAN centre.

1. Start the request and choose a document mode

   Open the same change request as above. Choose the e-Sign scanned-images mode to upload documents, or the physical mode to post them.

2. Tick Name and fill in the new name

   Enter the new name in full, without titles. Write your father's name in the father's name field, and choose which parent's name prints on the card.

3. Attach the proof of change

   Select your proofs from the lists. Add the proof of change from the documents table, a copy of your PAN, and proof of identity, address and date of birth. Upload clear scans if you chose scanned images.

   If your proof shows only the new name: it may not prove the change. Add a document that links both names, such as a marriage certificate or Gazette copy.

4. Pay and save the acknowledgement

   Pay online. Download the acknowledgement with its 15-digit number.

   You'll know it worked when the acknowledgement PDF and payment receipt reach your email.

5. Sign and send

   For scanned images, finish with e-Sign; nothing is posted. For physical mode, print the acknowledgement, paste two photos, sign across the left one only (not the right one), and post it with self-attested copies to Income Tax PAN Services Unit, Protean eGov Technologies Limited, 4th Floor, Sapphire Chambers, Baner Road, Baner, Pune 411045. If your acknowledgement prints a different address, use that one. Write "APPLICATION FOR PAN – N-" and your 15-digit acknowledgement number on the envelope. On UTIITSL, follow the address or PAN centre the portal shows.

   Papers must reach Protean within 15 days of applying online. Use speed post or a tracked courier and keep the receipt.

What happens after your PAN name is changed?

Track the request with your acknowledgement number on the site you used; see PAN application status. No fixed time is promised, and posted papers add time. When it's approved:

• Same PAN number: only the name in the record changes.
• New e-PAN by email, and a card by post if you paid for one. The e-PAN is a digitally signed electronic PAN. You can also download the e-PAN free for about a month, then for ₹8.26.
• PAN–Aadhaar link: check your link status on the e-Filing portal. If linking failed earlier because the names differed, try again now.
• Bank and investments: give the new e-PAN to your bank, demat broker, mutual funds and insurer so their KYC shows the new name.
• Employer: share it with HR so your TDS (tax deducted from salary) records match.
• e-Filing: log in and check that your profile shows the new name.

What can go wrong, and how do you fix it?

Bottom line

Get the new name into Aadhaar first, because PAN now prints the Aadhaar name. Then file CR-01 on Protean or UTIITSL with paperless e-KYC: ₹101 with a card or ₹66 for e-PAN only. Write your father's name, keep your PAN number, and update your bank afterwards. For help, call Protean on 020-27218080 or UTIITSL on 033-40802999.