IRD Plans to Issue Business PAN Online to Proprietors

The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) is preparing to issue Business Permanent Account Numbers (B-PAN) online to proprietors of business firms within a year, tax officials said.

The department currently provides personal PANs to individual taxpayers and B-PANs to business entities. Officials said proprietors who hold a National Identity Card will be able to obtain a B-PAN from home without visiting a tax office from next year.

IRD Director General Madan Dahal said the move would end the need for proprietors to visit tax offices to obtain a business PAN. “Although firms can already submit applications online, applicants still have to visit the office for biometric verification,” he told New Business Age. “We are moving ahead with preparations to issue B-PANs fully online to all proprietors who have a National Identity Card within the next year.”

According to the department, personal PANs are already issued online. Those without a National Identity Card still need to visit tax offices to provide biometric data, while cardholders can also obtain tax clearance certificates from home. Dahal said the department plans to make all tax clearance certificates available online from fiscal year 2026/27. Work is currently underway to ensure inter-government data integration under the existing system.

The IRD said the number of PAN holders has been increasing in recent years. As of mid-mid-November 2025, the total number of registered PAN holders had reached 7,182,484. Of the total registered taxpayers during this period, 70.5 percent held personal PANs, while 29 percent had business PANs.

FACELESS AUDIT NOT IMMEDIATELY POSSIBLE

Despite the government’s plan to fully digitise tax audits, Dahal said implementing a “faceless” audit system is not possible immediately without major improvements to the existing system.

“Making tax audits fully faceless would require significant changes to the system, which is not feasible at present,” he said. A faceless audit refers to conducting tax audits digitally without direct physical interaction between tax officials and taxpayers.

He added that audits cannot be made faceless even in the coming fiscal year, as the current system is not suitable. “Introducing a new system and technology will take time,” Dahal said, adding that the department is exploring options for a new system. Once implemented, he said, the plan is to gradually move audits towards a faceless model, where it would not be clear which office is conducting a particular audit.

Dahal said the IRD is giving priority to faceless services to make tax administration more taxpayer-friendly. He noted that tax-related services have already been expanded to local levels, reducing the need for taxpayers to visit tax offices. Services are currently being provided through local governments and Treasury Controller Offices.

According to the department, around two dozen local governments have already begun offering services such as PAN registration and issuance of tax clearance certificates.