Preparing for a Statutory Audit: A Practical Checklist
A smooth audit starts weeks before the auditor arrives. Use this checklist to get records, reconciliations and explanations ready in advance.
CA Ammar Dawoodi 2 min read
An audit goes faster, costs less management time and produces fewer surprises when the groundwork is done before fieldwork begins. Most delays come from the same few gaps: unreconciled balances, missing supporting documents and transactions nobody can explain quickly.
Four to six weeks before
- Close the books for the year and freeze entries for the period under audit.
- Prepare a trial balance and draft financial statements.
- Agree the audit timeline and the list of documents the auditor will need.
Reconciliations to complete
- Bank: every account reconciled to the statement at year end.
- Receivables and payables: ageing schedules, with balance confirmations for significant parties.
- GST and TDS: books matched to returns filed and to the credits reflected online.
- Fixed assets: register updated for additions, disposals and depreciation.
- Inventory: physical count records and valuation working.
Documents to keep ready
- Statutory registers, minutes of board and shareholder meetings
- Agreements for loans, leases and significant contracts
- Invoices and approvals for large or unusual transactions
- Previous year's audit report and any points raised
Explain the unusual before you are asked
Large year-on-year movements, one-off transactions and related-party dealings will draw questions. A short written note for each, prepared in advance, saves days of back-and-forth.
A pre-audit review can identify these gaps early, while there is still time to fix them.
