Technical Guide on GST Audit
The Goods and Services Tax is a trust-based taxation regime wherein a taxpayer is required to self-assess his tax liability, pay taxes and file returns. Thus, to ensure whether the taxpayer has correctly self-assessed his tax liability, the concept of Audit have been incorporated under GST. This involves examination of records, returns and other documents maintained by a GST registered person.
Since GST Audit is the last activity to be done by the tax payers for the financial year 2017-18, this Technical Guide on GST Audit is a written document/attempt to create awareness among the trade/ industry and more importantly among the members to discharge their professional duties. Further, they would be drawing up reconciliation statement as required under Section 44(2) of CGST Act, 2017 in Form GSTR-9C reconciling the figures of the annual return in Form GSTR-9 with the Audited Annual Accounts and certifying the same for those having aggregate turnover over 2 Crores.
An attempt has been made in this guide to cover the areas that are related to the basic principles, policies and special issues pertaining to conduct of a Goods and Services Tax Audit/Certification. This guide may not contain answers to all the problems that may arise in the day-to-day audit work still we tried to cover issues came in our knowledge and in the course of discussion. If something is not covered here in such cases, the GST auditor may have to apply his mind judiciously, keeping in view the intent behind the law, principles and policies.