VAT Annual Audit
Preparation and certification of the annual Value Added Tax audit report, and support through departmental audit of the same periods.
Several state Value Added Tax laws require a dealer whose turnover crosses a prescribed limit to get its accounts audited and to file an audit report in the state's prescribed form within the time allowed. The report reconciles the turnover, tax and set-off declared in the periodic returns with the audited books of account, and reports differences, unsupported claims and missing declaration forms — which is precisely where a later assessment will start.
What our VAT audit service covers
Reconciling the year before the department reconciles it for you.
- Checking whether the audit requirement applies to you for the year in each state
- Reconciling turnover in the returns against the audited financial statements
- Verifying schedule classification and rates applied to each category of sales
- Reviewing set-off claimed against purchase records and the state's reduction and retention rules
- Reviewing declaration forms held against concessional interstate sales claimed
- Preparing and filing the audit report in the state's prescribed form within the due date
What the audit examines
The four reconciliations that carry the most risk.
Turnover Reconciliation
Sales as per the audited accounts compared against the aggregate declared in the returns for the year, with every difference explained.
Rate and Schedule Review
Verification that each commodity has been taxed under the correct schedule entry and rate for the whole year.
Set-Off Verification
Testing input tax credit claimed against purchase invoices, supplier compliance and the state's restriction rules.
Declaration Form Review
Matching concessional interstate sales against the forms actually received, and quantifying the exposure on those that are missing.
Our process
From initial consultation to completion.
Applicability Check
Confirming the audit threshold, the prescribed form and the due date in each state.
Reconciliation
Building the turnover, tax and set-off reconciliations against the audited accounts.
Exception Review
Listing differences, unsupported claims and missing forms, and deciding how each is to be reported.
Report Filing
Filing the audit report within the due date and briefing you on the exposures it discloses.
Why the audit report shapes the assessment
What sets our approach apart.
The report is the assessing officer's starting point
Differences disclosed in the audit report are picked up directly in the assessment, so how they are explained in the report matters.
Missing declaration forms become quantified exposure
The audit puts a number on unsupported concessional sales, which is the last practical opportunity to collect the forms.
Late filing carries its own penalty
The penalty for not filing the audit report within the prescribed time is separate from any tax found payable on the audit itself.
VAT audit questions answered
What people ask before engaging us.
Audit report due and the year not reconciled?
We will build the reconciliations, quantify the exposures and file the report on time.
