Chartered Accountant · ICAI M.No. 153926 · FRN 136869W
Companies: from year one
For a company — the usual startup vehicle — a statutory audit is mandatory from the first financial year, even with zero revenue, and you must appoint the first auditor within 30 days of incorporation. So a startup company’s ‘first audit’ is its very first year, no exceptions.
LLPs and tax audit
An LLP is lighter — a statutory audit only when turnover exceeds ₹40 lakh or contribution exceeds ₹25 lakh. Separately, a tax audit (income-tax) can apply to any structure once turnover crosses the 44AB limits. So a startup can face a statutory audit, a tax audit, both, or (for a small LLP) neither. Confirm the current thresholds.
A worked example
Example: a startup incorporated as a Private Limited company in February with no sales still appoints an auditor and gets a statutory audit for that stub year. A bootstrapped LLP under the limits gets neither audit until it grows. Planning for the audit from incorporation avoids a year-end scramble — and clean audited accounts help at fundraising. Our team can handle your startup’s audits.