Taxpayers covered under Section 44AB of the Income-tax Act 1961 must complete their tax audit by 30 September 2026, with specific thresholds applying based on turnover and cash transactions, while navigating new filing processes for assessment year 2026-27.
Tax audit deadlines for assessment year 2026-27 are approaching, and the key cut-off remains 30 September 2026 for taxpayers covered by Section 44AB of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Under that provision, businesses and specified professionals must have their accounts examined by a chartered accountant, who then uploads the tax audit report on the income tax e-filing portal on the taxpayer’s behalf.
The rule applies to businesses with turnover or gross receipts above Rs 1 crore, although that threshold rises to Rs 10 crore if cash receipts and cash payments each stay within 5% of the relevant totals. For specified professionals, the limit is gross receipts above Rs 50 lakh. Tax audit can also be triggered in certain presumptive taxation cases, including Section 44AD and Section 44ADA, where income is declared below the prescribed rate or the higher thresholds tied to low cash transactions are not met.
Tax queries and other specialist tax guides have also noted that the September 30 deadline applies to assessment year 2026-27, while the new tax year framework under the Income-tax Act, 2025 uses different filing dates for later periods. That distinction matters because taxpayers may otherwise confuse the assessment year deadline with the later tax year reporting cycle.
The filing process itself runs through the e-filing portal. The taxpayer first assigns the chartered accountant under the “Authorised Partners” section, the auditor accepts the assignment, prepares the report in the relevant form, uploads it in JSON format and verifies it with a digital signature certificate. Once submitted, the report appears in the taxpayer’s worklist for acceptance and e-verification, after which the filing is complete and an acknowledgement is generated.
Disclaimer: This article is intended to inform and educate, not to recommend or endorse any financial product, investment or strategy. Please consider your own financial circumstances and seek professional advice where appropriate before making financial decisions.
