What to do to Manage Aadhaar, PAN, Voter Id, Passport and Other Official Documents After the Death of the Hold

It is Important to understand how to manage a deceased person's financial documents so that they do not become vulnerable to wrongdoing or scams. There is a proper way to handle a deceased person's official documents and government IDs such as PAN card, Aadhaar card, VoterID card, passport, and so on. These documents are extremely important, so you must understand how long you must keep them after the holder's death and how you can surrender these IDs and documents to the respective governing institutions. Here's what you should do with a deceased person's PAN, Aadhaar, passport, and so on:

Aadhaar:

The Aadhaar card is one of the most important documents in the country because it serves as both identity and address proof. It is mandatory to quote or provide a copy of the Aadhaar number in various places, such as when applying for LPG subsidies, scholarship benefits, or subsidy benefits from the government, opening EPF accounts, filing ITRs, and so on. Because Aadhaar is intended to be a unique identification number, the number exists even after the holder's death. At the moment, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the body in charge of Aadhaar, is not linked with state death registries, which means that Aadhaar is not automatically updated to reflect the holder's death.
Aadhaar is also not required for death registration or obtaining a death certificate. This is why it is critical for family members to ensure that the deceased holder's Aadhaar card is not misused. While UIDAI does not have a process for deactivating or cancelling a deceased person's Aadhaar card, the deceased person's biometric credentials can be locked using the mAadhaar app or the UIDAI website. This will help to prevent the deceased person's biometric authentication from being abused.

PAN Card

The PAN card, or Permanent Account Number card, is one of the most important financial documents in the country. It is a required record for a variety of purposes, including bank accounts, demat accounts, the filing of the deceased's income tax return (ITR), financial transactions, and so on. Even after a person's death, the PAN must be kept on file until all accounts requiring the PAN are closed. When filing ITRs, the PAN must be retained until the tax return is filed and processed by the I-T department.
Remember that the tax department has the authority to reopen assessments for up to four years, including the current assessment year. Once all tasks related to closing bank accounts, demat accounts, income tax returns, and so on have been completed, the representative or legal heir can surrender the deceased person's PAN to the income tax department. To do so, write an application requesting surrender to the assessing officer (AO) whose jurisdiction the PAN is registered under.
The letter should include the reason for surrendering (i.e., the holder's death), the deceased's name, PAN, and date of birth, as well as a copy of the death certificate. It should be noted that surrendering the deceased's PAN is not mandatory, which means there is no penalty if the deceased's PAN is not surrendered. You may keep it if you believe it will be needed as proof for any future purpose. If you believe there is no need for it and that it could be abused, you can return it to the tax department.

Passport

The passport, like the Aadhaar card, has no provision for surrender or cancellation upon death. There is also no procedure in place for notifying the appropriate authorities. However, once the passport has expired, it is automatically rendered invalid. It is best to keep this document until it is no longer valid because it may come in handy as address proof in the future.

Driving License

While there is no provision for surrendering or cancelling a deceased driver's licence, each state governs the issue, suspension, and cancellation of driver's licences separately, so it is advisable to confirm the state-specific regulations in this regard before doing anything. You can cancel the registration by going to the relevant RTO office. You can also confirm the state-specific procedure for transferring a vehicle registered in the name of the deceased to someone else's name.
All important documents of the deceased holder must be kept in a secure location so that they are not misused by scammers, fraudsters, or other miscreants for something that could later land the deceased's family in trouble.

Voter Id

In the case of voter ID, the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, provide for cancellation upon death. The deceased's legal heir should go to the local election office. According to the Electoral Rules, Form No. 7 must be completed and submitted along with a death certificate to cancel a person's name from the voters list due to death.