PAN Card Number Format Explained: What Each Character Means
A PAN (Permanent Account Number) is required for income tax returns, bank accounts, investments and large purchases in India. Its 10 characters follow a strict pattern — which makes typos easy to catch.
The pattern: AAAAA9999A
Take a sample PAN like ABCPK1234F:
- Characters 1–3 (ABC): a letter series from AAA to ZZZ.
- Character 4 (P): the holder type.
- Character 5 (K): for individuals, the first letter of the surname; for others, the first letter of the name.
- Characters 6–9 (1234): a sequence number.
- Character 10 (F): an alphabetic check character.
Holder types (4th character)
| Letter | Holder |
|---|---|
| P | Individual (person) |
| C | Company |
| H | Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) |
| F | Firm / LLP |
| A | Association of Persons |
| T | Trust |
| B | Body of Individuals |
| L | Local authority |
| J | Artificial juridical person |
| G | Government |
| K | Krishi (agricultural) entity |
Checking a PAN
The PAN format validator checks the pattern, tells you the holder type, and works on a pasted list. A frequent catch: a PAN entered for a salary form whose 4th letter is C — a company PAN, not a person's.
Limits
The algorithm behind the last character isn't published, so no offline tool can verify it — the validator checks the format only. To confirm a PAN is genuine and active, use the Income Tax Department's official e-filing portal. And remember that linking PAN with Aadhaar is mandatory for most individuals; check yours on the e-filing site.
Related: Aadhaar number validator.