1. Applicability:
- Assessee carrying on any business where Total Sales or Turnover or Gross receipts exceeds Rs.60 lakhs.
- Assessee carrying on profession where gross receipts exceeds Rs.15 lakhs.
- Assessee carrying on business referred to u/s 44AD/AE/AF/BB/BBB and declaring lower income than prescribed
2. Audit: The audit shall be conducted by an accountant as explained u/s 288 of the Income Tax Act.
3. Specified date for filing of report: September 30th of relevant assessment year.
5. Other points:
- Turnover: Turnover or receipts considered for declaration of presumptive income u/s 44AD/AE/AF shall not be considered for determining the prescribed turnover limit u/s 44AB.
- Agents: In case of agents, this section is applicable only if the gross commission exceeds Rs.40,00,000.
- Shipping business and operating aircrafts: This section does not apply to persons who derived income referred u/s 44BBA and 44B.
6. Consequences of non-compliance:
- Defective return: If the audit report obtained u/s 44AB is not filed along with the return of income then the assessing officer may treat the return as defective return.
- Penalty u/s 271B: Failure-
- To get accounts audited
- To obtain an audit report as required u/s 44AB
- To furnish the said report before the due date, then the assessee is liable to pay a penalty @ 0.5% of the gross turnover or receipts or Rs.1,00,000 whichever is less, subject to section 273B.
- Situations considered as reasonable cause for non-filing of Audit Report u/s 44AB :
- Resignation of tax auditor
- Bona fide interpretation of the term ‘Turnover’ based on expert advice
- Death or Physical inability of the partner in charge of accounts
- Labour problems such as strike, lock out for a long period
- Loss of books of accounts by theft, fire etc. beyond the control of the assessee
- Non-availability of accounts on account of seizure
- Natural calamities, commotion etc.