18 August 2008
The Central Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has increased the ceiling on the number of tax audit assignments that a chartered accountant can accept in a financial year either as partner or proprietor.
The ceiling on tax audit has been increased from 30 to 45 per chartered accountant/per partner. Each partner can undertake 45 tax audits.
MAXIMUM NUMBER OF COMPANIES FOR AN AUDITOR Section 224 (1B) places a ceiling on the number of audits of public companies which a Chartered Accountant not in full time employment, or a firm of Chartered Accountants, can conduct.
(a) A person can be appointed as an auditor, who is not in full-time employment elsewhere, of a maximum of 20 companies as described below (b) Where some companies have paid-up capital of or more than 25 Lacs, a person can be appointed as auditor of only 20 companies out of which not more than 10 companies can have paid up capital of or exceeding Rs. 25 Lacs. (c) In a firm of auditors, total number of 20 companies shall be for every partner of the firm who is not in full-time employment elsewhere.
As per the fourth proviso added to sub-section (1B) by the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2000, private companies have been excluded from the existing ceiling of 20 audits per partner and sub-ceiling of 10 audits for companies having a paid up capital of Rs. 25 Lacs or more. Thus, apart from 20 audits of public companies, an auditor may conduct audit of private companies without any ceiling.
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