Audit & Assurance · Income Tax Act

Tax Audit mandated by the Income Tax Act.

Audit of accounts for businesses and professionals crossing prescribed turnover or gross receipts thresholds — conducted by ICAI-registered Chartered Accountants with Form 3CA/3CB and comprehensive Form 3CD reporting.

Section 44AB of the Income Tax Act requires businesses and professionals whose income or turnover crosses prescribed thresholds to have their accounts audited by a Chartered Accountant and to furnish the audit report — along with the detailed Form 3CD — before the due date of filing the income tax return. The tax audit is a separate and additional requirement from the statutory audit conducted for company law purposes.

The tax audit report — in Form 3CA for entities already subject to a statutory audit, or Form 3CB for others — must be accompanied by Form 3CD, which is an extensive statement of 44 particulars covering income computation, deductions claimed, TDS compliance, loans, payments to related parties, speculative transactions, and much more. Errors in Form 3CD attract penalties and can trigger scrutiny assessments.

At Beyonte Compliances, we conduct tax audits with the same rigour we bring to statutory audits — cross-checking the Form 3CD particulars against the books, reconciling with GST returns and TDS data, and filing the audit report on the income tax portal well before the 30 September deadline.

What Our Tax Audit Covers

Applicability Assessment

Determining whether your entity crosses the turnover threshold (₹1 crore for business; ₹50 lakh for professionals; ₹10 crore where cash transactions are below 5%) and whether the presumptive taxation scheme applies.

Form 3CA / 3CB Preparation

Preparation and signing of the appropriate audit report form — Form 3CA where a statutory audit is already conducted, Form 3CB for other entities — with all required certifications.

Form 3CD — All 44 Clauses

Detailed verification and reporting across all 44 clauses of Form 3CD — covering turnover, income computation, deductions, payments to related parties, TDS, deemed dividends, speculative transactions, and more.

GST & TDS Reconciliation

Reconciliation of turnover reported in Form 3CD with GST returns (GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B) and TDS returns — minimising the risk of notices arising from data mismatches.

Disallowance Review

Identification of expenses likely to be disallowed — cash payments above ₹10,000, payments to related parties without adequate documentation, provisions not meeting tax deductibility tests.

Presumptive Taxation Review

Assessment of whether the entity is eligible for and correctly applying Sections 44AD, 44ADA, or 44AE — and whether a tax audit is triggered by opting out of the presumptive scheme.

Income Tax Portal Filing

Filing of the signed audit report and Form 3CD on the income tax portal, linked to the assessee's PAN — with filing acknowledgement shared promptly.

Multi-Year & Revised Audit Support

Assistance with tax audits for multiple assessment years, revised Form 3CD filings where errors are discovered, and representation support in case of audit-related queries.

Our Process

Threshold & Applicability Check

Confirming whether a tax audit is required based on your turnover, nature of business, cash transaction ratio, and whether presumptive taxation applies.

Books Review & Data Collection

Collection of trial balance, ledgers, GST returns, TDS data, bank statements, and all information required to complete the 44 clauses of Form 3CD accurately.

Clause-by-Clause Verification

Systematic verification of each Form 3CD clause against the books — identifying disallowances, non-compliances, and items requiring disclosure or clarification.

Draft Report Review

Sharing the draft Form 3CD with your team for review and confirmation before finalisation — ensuring no material facts have been missed or misstated.

Filing Before 30 September

Signing and filing of the tax audit report on the income tax e-filing portal well ahead of the statutory deadline, with acknowledgement shared promptly.

Why It Matters

✓Avoids the 0.5% of turnover penalty for non-compliance with Section 44AB

✓Accurate Form 3CD minimises the risk of scrutiny assessments

✓GST and TDS reconciliation prevents income mismatch notices

✓Filed well before the 30 September deadline — no last-minute risk

✓Identifies disallowable expenses before return filing

✓Co-ordinated with statutory audit where both apply to the same entity

✓Clear documentation for all 44 Form 3CD clauses

✓Experienced team handles multi-year and revised audit requirements

Frequently Asked Questions

For a business, the threshold is ₹1 crore of turnover. However, if cash receipts and payments are each below 5% of total receipts and payments respectively, the threshold is ₹10 crore. For professionals, the threshold is ₹50 lakh of gross receipts. These thresholds are assessed for each financial year separately.

The tax audit report — Form 3CA/3CB along with Form 3CD — must be filed on the income tax portal by 30 September of the assessment year (i.e., 30 September following the end of the financial year). For taxpayers subject to transfer pricing, the deadline may be 31 October.

Non-compliance with Section 44AB attracts a penalty of 0.5% of turnover or gross receipts, subject to a maximum of ₹1.5 lakh. Additionally, failure to file the tax audit report by the due date can affect the validity of deductions claimed and may attract scrutiny.

Yes. The statutory audit and tax audit are separate requirements under different statutes. If a company crosses the Section 44AB turnover threshold, a tax audit is required in addition to the Companies Act statutory audit. In such cases, Form 3CA (rather than Form 3CB) is used, as the accounts are already audited. We handle both audits under one co-ordinated engagement.

Yes. Where the same firm is eligible to conduct both audits, we handle the statutory and tax audit under a co-ordinated engagement — reducing duplication of fieldwork and ensuring consistency between the two reports.

File your tax audit report on time, every time.

Talk to our team about a thorough, deadline-safe tax audit and Form 3CD preparation for your business or practice.