30 March 2023
A private limited company incorporated in the year 2018, has not appointed first auditors till date. It has also not conducted AGM, nor it has adapted its Financial Statements. Now, my query is how to appoint first auditors and if appointed upto what period will he hold his office. And also, can an auditor be appointed to conduct statutory audits for prior years. If so, kindly provide me with a course of action to be followed for appointment and Filing of Annual Return
30 March 2023
As per the Companies Act, 2013, it is mandatory for every company to appoint its first auditor within 30 days of incorporation. Since your company has not appointed its first auditor till date, it is necessary to appoint an auditor as soon as possible. To appoint the first auditor, the company must hold an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) and pass a resolution to appoint the auditor. The auditor appointed shall hold office until the conclusion of the first Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the company. Since the company has not conducted any AGM, it is necessary to conduct the first AGM as soon as possible, where the audited financial statements for the year ending on 31st March 2019 will be presented. The company can then appoint the auditor for the subsequent financial year (2019-20) and onwards. In case the company wants to appoint an auditor for the previous years, it can do so by passing a resolution in the EGM and filing the necessary forms with the Registrar of Companies (ROC). The auditor appointed shall conduct the audit of the financial statements for the relevant year(s) and file the necessary forms with the ROC. The following is the course of action to be followed for the appointment of the auditor and filing of annual returns: Hold an EGM and pass a resolution to appoint the first auditor. File Form ADT-1 with the ROC within 15 days of the appointment of the auditor. Conduct the first AGM and present the audited financial statements for the year ending on 31st March 2019. Pass a resolution to appoint the auditor for the subsequent financial year(s) in the AGM. File the necessary forms with the ROC for the appointment of the auditor for the subsequent financial year(s). Prepare and adopt the audited financial statements for each financial year and file the necessary forms with the ROC for each financial year. File the annual return with the ROC within 60 days from the date of the AGM.
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