The recent revamp of the TRACES (TDS Reconciliation Analysis and Correction Enabling System) portal has led to widespread technical glitches, with taxpayers and professionals reporting significant difficulties in registering and accessing their accounts. A key issue that has emerged is the system-generated error stating that the entered PAN is not linked with the provided TAN.

Users attempting to register a TAN—particularly in the case of companies and LLPs—are being prompted to update PAN details through a “TAN Change Request Form” on the Protean (formerly NSDL) portal. This requirement has raised serious concerns among professionals, as PAN and TAN are already allotted simultaneously by the Income Tax Department at the time of incorporation and are reflected in the Certificate of Incorporation itself. Historically, no separate linking process was required.

The error message displayed on the portal reads: “The entered PAN is not linked with the provided TAN. Please update the PAN details associated with the entered TAN by submitting a ‘TAN Change Request Form’ on the Protean portal.” This has created confusion and additional compliance burden, especially when the linkage is inherently established at the time of issuance.

Due to this apparent technical flaw in the revamped system, several users have been unable to complete TAN registration or even log into existing accounts for over 10 days. This has disrupted routine TDS compliance activities, including return filing, correction statements, and certificate downloads.

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Tax professionals have termed the situation as avoidable harassment, emphasizing that system upgrades should enhance user experience rather than create procedural roadblocks. The issue has also sparked criticism on social media platforms, with stakeholders urging the authorities to take immediate corrective action.

A formal request has been raised to the Income Tax Department to urgently address and resolve the glitch, restore seamless access to the TRACES portal, and clarify whether any additional compliance is indeed required for PAN–TAN linkage.

The incident highlights the growing need for robust testing and stakeholder consultation before implementing major technological overhauls in critical tax administration systems.

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