Home » Learn » Income Tax » Income Tax Jurisdiction

Income Tax Jurisdiction

When a taxpayer is filing an income tax return online, there is a need to be aware of the Income Tax ward and the Income Tax circle. The same information is required for applying a new PAN. Being aware of this jurisdictional information is beneficial since the role of jurisdiction is vital for any correspondence from the Income Tax Department. The Income Tax Department issues intimations, notices and other orders to the taxpayers in the addresses based on their jurisdiction. If the taxpayers have to file applications offline, they are bound by the legal obligation to approach a Jurisdictional Assessment Officer. In this article, we briefly discuss the procedure for finding a taxpayer’s income tax jurisdiction.

AO Code

The Ao Code or the Area Jurisdiction of Income Tax Department comprises of:

Area Code: Area code is the area in which the tax payer’s jurisdiction is located.

AO Type: AO type signifies the type of Assessing Officer (AO) a taxpayer comes under. In the case of AO Type C, the taxpayer is categorised under a ‘circle’ and for AO Type W, it is a ‘ward’. When a taxpayer receives in income more than Rs. 10 lakh, the taxpayer is categorised as ‘Circle’.

Range Code: Range code denotes the Income Range that a taxpayer belongs.

AO Number: AO number denotes the Assessing Officer who has been assigned to a particular ward where the taxpayer falls under.

The details of the jurisdiction provide the name of the building of the Assessing Officer with the email ID. For any tax disputes that have to be handled in person, these details allow the taxpayer to connect the right officer at the appropriate location.

Finding Income Tax Jurisdiction

There are two methods to find the Income Tax Jurisdiction.

Method I

Step 1: Visit the official website

The user has to log in to the official website of the Income Tax Department.

Step 2: Know your PAN

The user has to click the link ‘Know Your PAN’.

Step 3: Enter the Details

The following details have to be entered in the text box.

• Name of the PAN Cardholder – The surname, middle name and the first name of the PAN Cardholder has to be entered in separate columns.
• Status of the PAN Cardholder – The user has to choose any of the following from the drop-down list. Individual / HUF/ Association Of Persons/ Body of Individuals/ Company/ Government/ Artificial Juridical Person/ Local Authority/ Firm/ Trust.
• Select the Gender
• Date oF birth (DD/MM/YYYY)
• Mobile number

Step 4: Click Submit

Once all the details are filled, click the ‘Submit’ option.

Step 5: OTP

The registered mobile number receives an OTP that has to be entered.

Step 6: Submit 

Once the OTP is entered, the user has to click again ‘Submit’.

The following details will be furnished.

• PAN of the Applicant

• First name

• Middle name

• Surname

• Whether the applicant is an Indian Citizen or not

• Jurisdiction

• Remarks – Whether the PAN is Active/ Inactive.

By following the steps mentioned above, the jurisdiction of the income tax assessee can be ascertained.

Method II

Step 1: Log in to the website

The user has to login to the Tax E-Filing site.

Step 2: Click My Profile

The user has to go to ‘Profile Settings’ and then click on ‘My Profile’.

Step 3: PAN Details

The user has to click on PAN details, where the following information is displayed.

1. PAN
2. Name
3. Date Of Birth
4. Gender
5. Category
6. Address
7. Status
8. Whether an Indian Citizen?
9. Following Jurisdiction details:

• • • Area Code
    • AO Type
    • Range code
    • AO Number
    • Jurisdiction
    • Building Name
    • Email ID