PAN mandatory for central excise registration

Permanent Account Number (PAN) has been made mandatory for private firms seeking central excise registration.

The registration will now be given within two days of filing online applications, as per the new simplified rules formed by the Finance Ministry "to improve the ease in doing business in manufacturing".

Applicants seeking registration shall mandatorily quote PAN of the proprietor or the legal entity being registered in the application form, a Finance Ministry order said.

"Government departments are exempted from the requirement of quoting PAN in their online application. Applicants other than government departments shall not be granted registration in the absence of PAN," it said.

Applicant shall also quote his or her e-mail address and mobile number in the application form for communication with the department, it said, adding that the communication with assessee is being made electronic to reduce transaction time.

The registration in central excise envisages filing of application online, submission and examination of documents, verification of premises, submission of verification report, generation of registration certificate and dispatch of its signed copy, among others.

Under the new simplified procedure, once duly completed application form is received online, registration would be granted within two working days and issued online without any examination of the documents and verification of documents or premises before the grant of registration, thus initiating "trust based" registration, the Ministry order said.

The registration is needed to pay central excise duty charged on goods produced within the country.