A GST Tax Audit is the detailed examination of a registered taxpayer's records, returns, and other documents to verify the correctness of turnover declared, taxes paid, input tax credit (ITC) availed, refund claimed, and overall compliance with the CGST Act, 2017, the IGST Act, 2017, and the respective State GST Acts read with the CGST Rules, 2017. The GST law recognises three principal forms of audit — departmental audit under Section 65, special audit under Section 66 (ordered by the Commissioner and conducted by a nominated Chartered Accountant or Cost Accountant), and internal / management audit done voluntarily by the taxpayer — apart from the self-certified reconciliation requirement in Form GSTR-9C under Section 44. Each has its own trigger, scope, procedure, and consequence, and each demands deep technical expertise combined with investigative rigour to navigate successfully.
A Chartered Accountant plays a central role across the GST audit ecosystem — as the professional who prepares audited financial statements that feed into GSTR-9 / 9C, as the adviser who designs internal GST audit frameworks for large groups, as the person nominated by the Commissioner under Section 66 to conduct a special audit and submit Form ADT-04, and as the representative defending the taxpayer through a Section 65 departmental audit that begins with ADT-01 intimation and culminates in ADT-02 findings. Whether the engagement is pre-emptive (internal health-check before a departmental visit), concurrent (during an ADT-01 audit), or remedial (responding to adverse findings in ADT-02 and follow-on SCN under Section 73 / 74), the CA's role is to ensure that every position taken is technically defensible, consistently supported by books, and documented to withstand scrutiny for years.
Our "CA for GST Tax Audit" engagement provides end-to-end Chartered Accountant-led services — covering statutory GSTR-9 / 9C preparation and sign-off, pre-audit internal reviews and risk mapping, complete defence through Section 65 departmental audits, conduct of Section 66 special audits as nominated auditor, and seamless continuity into post-audit SCN, adjudication, and appellate proceedings — so that your GST audit is handled with the technical depth, procedural discipline, and documentary strength that large, complex, or high-exposure taxpayers genuinely need.
Annual return and self-certified reconciliation statement filings under Section 44 with full books tie-out.
End-to-end defence through departmental audit from ADT-01 intimation to ADT-02 findings response.
Conduct of special audits as nominated CA / CMA and defence of taxpayers subjected to Section 66 orders.
Pre-emptive internal audit to surface risks before any departmental audit or notice arrives.
Co-ordinated audit handling for large groups with multiple GSTINs across states and entities.
Industry-focused audit support where the technical issues are unique and precedent-sensitive.
Consolidated annual return capturing outward, inward, ITC, and tax details under Section 44.
Self-certified reconciliation of audited financials with GSTR-9 for prescribed taxpayers.
Intimation of departmental audit under Section 65 served at least 15 working days before start.
Final audit report communicating findings, discrepancies, and proposed demand to the taxpayer.
Commissioner's direction to the taxpayer to get records examined by a nominated CA / CMA.
Report submitted by the nominated auditor to the Commissioner under Section 66.
Post-audit pre-show-cause intimation of tax ascertained with option to pay under Rule 142(1A).
Formal SCN under Section 73 / 74 issued post-audit where issues remain unresolved.
Year-wise diagnostic of GST positions, reconciliation gaps, and high-risk transactions.
End-to-end management of the audit process — data room, officer coordination, and daily issue tracking.
Structured reply to ADT-02 findings and seamless handover to SCN / appellate proceedings.
Annual return preparation with full tie-out of outward, inward, tax, ITC, and RCM workings.
Self-certified reconciliation statement connecting audited financials with annual GST returns.
Internal audit-style review to surface risks, plug gaps, and rehearse defence before any ADT-01.
Full defence through departmental audit — ADT-01, on-site management, ADT-02 reply.
Conduct of special audits as nominated CA and defence of taxpayers subjected to special audit.
DRC-01A / DRC-01 reply, adjudication hearings, and appellate continuity after audit findings.
Focused review of ITC eligibility, blocked credits under Section 17(5), and refund positions.
Multi-GSTIN, multi-state, and sector-specialised audit engagements led by senior CAs.
Departmental audit intimation has arrived and on-site verification is imminent — defence setup needed.
Commissioner has directed a special audit by a nominated CA / CMA under ADT-03.
Turnover has crossed the self-certified reconciliation threshold requiring professional-grade GSTR-9C.
Large groups with cross-charges, ISD, and inter-company flows needing consolidated audit treatment.
Significant ITC, blocked credits, or capital goods positions that need defensible documentation.
Heavy export, SEZ, or refund profile where scrutiny of LUT, FIRC, and IGST refunds is expected.
Earlier ASMT-10, DRC-01A, or DRC-01 exposure requiring pre-emptive audit-style cleanup.
Pre-transaction GST due diligence where clean audit trails directly impact valuation and indemnities.
Defining scope — statutory GSTR-9C, pre-audit, Section 65 defence, or Section 66 conduct.
Master data pull, period-wise reconciliation of books with returns, and issue identification.
Issue-wise position paper with legal analysis, quantum, and recommended defence strategy.
On-site audit management, officer coordination, and daily issue-tracking during audit.
ADT-02 / ADT-04 reply, DRC-03 strategy, and seamless escalation to SCN / appeal if needed.
Partner with our Chartered Accountants for end-to-end GST tax audit services — GSTR-9 / 9C, Section 65 defence, Section 66 special audit, and post-audit SCN continuity — under one roof.
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