Why Questioning Forms an Important Part of Internal Audit?

There is a lot that goes into the process of an audit. The auditor acquires and analyses a lot of things before giving out a final report. Apart from looking into the accounts, the client interview also plays a valuable role in the process. An auditor in Kolkata interviews some of the top position holders in the company for insights. But this is not received very well. Auditors are often discouraged from asking too many questions. It is believed to ruin the relationship between the client and the auditor. But is this true?

Questioning Leads to Solution

Well, the reality is far from this statement. Questions are fundamental in an internal audit. The more questions the auditor asks you, the better he or she will understand your company. The auditor is an expert in the field, no doubt. But every company works differently, and the auditor will need real and honest inputs from your side to decode discrepancies if any. You shouldn’t challenge the expertise of an auditor if they ask a lot of questions. Every question is important. The thought of an issue being stupid or irrelevant shouldn’t cross your mind. If, in any case, some items make you uncomfortable, be open about how you feel.

Another tip for you is that when you are answering questions, do not lie. Auditors in Kolkata will know when you lie. They have many tricks rolled up their sleeves to determine whether you are telling the truth. Being dishonest will only put you in trouble. A small mistake will harm your reputation, which is the last thing you want during an audit. Many clients also discover new threads of thought when they are answering questions. Some questions help you in looking at some shortcomings from a different perspective, which makes a massive difference in the long run.

An auditor is strongly familiar to the industry but that strength arises from questioning. As it grants you the option to attain adequate knowledge. So, it is always wise for an auditor to analyse data, interview clients to evaluate the situations and facilitate changes. Questioning makes the process smooth and perfect.

ECONOMIC SURVEY 2020 PLACED IN LOK SABHA TODAY 31ST JAN 2020

ECONOMIC SURVEY 2020
PLACED IN LOK SABHA TODAY 31ST JAN 2020

• Wealth Creation: The Invisible Hand Supported by the Hand of Trust
• Entrepreneurship and Wealth Creation at the Grassroots
• Pro-Business versus Pro-Crony
• Undermining Markets: When Government intervention hurts more than it helps
• Creating jobs and growth by specializing to exports in network products
• Targeting ease of doing business in India
• Golden jubilee of bank nationalisation: Taking stock
• Financial fragility in the NBFC sector
• Privatization and wealth creation
• Is India’s GDP growth rate overstated? No!
• Thalinomics: The Economics of a plate of food in India

• Preface
• State of the Economy in 2018-19: A Macro View 
• Fiscal Developments
• External Sector
• Monetary Management and Financial Intermediation
• Prices & Inflation
• Sustainable Development and Climate Change
• Agriculture and Food Management
• Industry and Infrastructure
• Services Sector
• Social Infrastructure, Employment and Human Development

Long Term Goals That Will Boost Your Small-Scale Business

Small businesses are flourishing in the Indian economy today. You might be experiencing growth or activity might be slow, setting the right goals this year might be the extra push your business needs to establish itself. It is essential to set goals like budgeting, auditing services, cutting expenses or hiring an employee so that you can work on them throughout the year. While most of the small business owners skip this step because they think it isn’t significant enough, this will set you apart in this competitive age.

Setting a goal is practical and motivational, reminding yourself to work harder every day. But what are some goals that will be useful to the business?

Top 6 Goals You Must Accomplish for Your Business

• Decide where you want to see yourself in the coming year. This requires practicality and calculation of the resources available, keeping the condition of the market in mind. This can act as a basic plan of action.

• Make a budget. Don’t compromise on this step. Please don’t make a rough estimate; let it include all the details. Make room for taxes, emergency funds, insurances and employee benefits. You will be amazed at the amount you will be able to save once you know you require capital.

• Get professional help in auditing services. Most small business owners don’t bother about this because the law doesn’t enforce it. This can be a total game-changer. An audit can uncover frauds, act as security to banks and insurance companies, improve efficiency and be helpful while paying taxes.

• Plan a digital marketing campaign. If you are a local, offline business, take a small step and put yourself on the web. Make a website, be on social media and take advantage of the enormous benefits the digital marketing sphere has to offer. These can be done at a basic price these days.

• Outsource jobs. Are there aspects of your business that can be handled by automation? For example, chatbots are an excellent way to provide 24*7 customer service. You can also hire an employee to ease the load if your business requires it. This will help you focus on the other essential aspects of your business.

• Increase margin. One of the most neglected parts of a small business is its margin. Owners often think of ways to expand their businesses and deem it the only way for growth. But, one of the most efficient ways to grow is by improving the margin. Strategize ways to improve your services or switch suppliers to get more margins on the products r services that you offer.

These goals should apply to most businesses, and while others can be done individually, audits should be performed by professionals in the field like S.M. Gupta, who are experts in the field of auditing services and tax. The robust internal structure sets them apart from others. Trusting them will mean never worrying about these services again and focusing on your primary business.

India lacerates Corporate Income Tax by 10%

India lacerates Corporate Income Tax by 10% — It is the brilliant and boldest Move to Stimulate Economy Since1991

On 20 September 2019, Government of India announced the biggest tax cuts (0.7% of FY20 GDP or INR 1.45 tn in value terms) for corporates and rolled back most tax-related amendments made in the Union Budget 2019. This tax cut in the backdrop of challenges on fiscal deficit front and need for a massive boost for government expenditure speaks volumes about the appetite for bold reforms of Modi 2.0.

The measure is expected to improve corporate savings, attract private investment (both Domestic and Foreign Direct Investment), bolster the competitiveness of India as a manufacturing hub, and support domestic demand as tax benefits are passed on to the end-consumer.

Making the announcement, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the new tax rate will be applicable from the current fiscal which began on April 1.
and she also said that the government is working on more steps to revive the sagging economy. When asked if the government is considering rationalisation of the personal income tax rate for putting more money in the hands of people, she said, “One among many things that we are thinking of.”

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth slowed down to more than six-year low of 4.5 per cent in the second quarter of the current fiscal from 5 per cent recorded in the first quarter.

The government has taken several measures during August and September to boost the economy, Nirmala Sitharaman said at the HT Leadership Summit in New Delhi.

B. Corporate Income Tax Rates in India

Government of India now allows corporates to choose between two tax rates highlighted in the table above as Option I and Option II. This step will help everybody transition to lower effective corporate taxation regime without any hiccups and will offer enough flexibility to avail old schemes.

C. Some of the highlights of the recent Direct Tax changes are:

Lower Tax Burden for Corporates: Corporate tax slashed for existing domestic corporates by ~10% (34.94% to 25.17%), inclusive of Surcharge and Cess

Base Corporate Tax rate to be 22% (25.17% including Surcharge and Cess) for existing domestic companies without exemptions/tax holidays

No Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) applicable on such companies

C.Booster Shot for Make in India:

 Domestic companies incorporated after 1 October 2019 to pay a base rate of 15% (17.16%  including Surcharge and Cess) provided they:

• Make fresh investments in manufacturing, related activities such as Distribution and R&D
• Commences operations by 31 March 2023
• Don’t set-up by splitting up, reconstruction, or by using old Plant & Machinery (Old imported machineries are allowed upto 20% of the total value), or by using old building used in past as a hotel or convention centre
• No Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) applicable on such companies

D.Flexibility for Choosing New or Old Rates:

• Companies enjoying tax holidays/incentives resulting in effective corporate tax rates lower than 25.17% can continue to avail these benefits:
• These companies can switch to concessional tax regime (i.e. 22% base rate) after the expiry of tax holiday/exemption period. The option once exercised cannot

E.Improvement in Corporate Profitability:

As per data from CMIE, Corporate profitability in India has dipped from its peak of 7.4% of GDP in FY08 to 2.7% of GDP in FY19. The Corporate Tax Rate cut will

• For BSE 500, the effective tax rate in FY19 was 33.7% and it was 31.3% for Nifty 50. The new effective corporate tax rate at 25.17% will bring relief to domestic
• Improved corporate profitability will help achieve:
• Faster break-even for corporate
• Reduction in prices of products in some industries. E.g. FMCG
• Fresh capital expenditure, to tap both domestic and export demand

F.Enhancing India’s Competitiveness as a Manufacturing Destination:

India is one of the most attractive markets for investments owing to large domestic market and fast-improving doing business environment. However, Global MNCs’ decisions are often driven by profitability and they are naturally biased to choose countries with lower tax rates and efficient value chains.

• The new corporate income tax rates in India will be lower than Brazil (34%), Germany (30%), and is like China (25%) and Korea (25%). New companies in India with an effective tax rate of 17.16%% is equivalent to what corporates pay in Singapore (17%).
• It is a well-known fact that global value chain has disrupted owing to the trade conflicts. Several countries in South East Asia have leveraged their lower Corporate Income Tax rates to attract foreign companies. With a 17.16% tax rate, India is well-placed to attract these companies with new vigour.

• “Services firms are expected to be major winners while manufacturing companies in the consumer goods, capital goods and steel sectors will also reap significant benefits as many of them have an effective tax rate of around 30 per cent,” it said.
  When the BJP-led NDA took office, India was ranked 142nd out of 189 countries in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business ranking for 2015, which reflected results from the annual survey undertaken during 2014.

Know The Various Types Of Accountants Before Approaching One

If you are looking for a professional who can advice you on your tax affairs, it’s time you start looking for an accountant in your city. Not only will they help you to make your financial things run smoothly but also spot potential issues and solve them. If you think that you need them only for tax filing, it’s high time you debunk the myth. Approach the right professional and they can provide a host of services.

What Are The Benefits Of Hiring A Chartered Accountant In Kolkata?

Do you know that chartered accountants (CAs) can be a valuable addition to your finance team? Well, hiring a qualified professional can be the key to your business success. Wondering what makes working with a CA so beneficial? Keep reading to learn the key benefits.

Why Do MNCs Prefer Indian Chartered Accountants?

Though any accountant or financial worker can crunch the numbers, this is only the Indian Chartered Accountants (CAs) who have special expertise and undergone special training to become a noteworthy and valued addition to any organisation. Besides businesses, Chartered Accountants also help individuals with their financial issues. But how do they differ from other financial professionals across the world? Well, let’s have a quick look at them.

They Are More Experienced – A person wanting to become a Chartered Accountant has to appear for 3 exams – Common Proficiency Test (CPT), then Integrated Professional Competence Course (IPCC) and finally Chartered Accountancy (CA). After passing 10+2, the students with aspire to become CA have to appear for CPT and after passing the exam, they can appear for IPCC. Once IPCC is cleared, they need to undergo a 3-years Articleship under the supervision of an established CA and during the last 6 months of this, they can appear for Final exam. So you can see the total years of study and thus experience of the CAs in India are more than any CA-equivalent course across the world. So it may be assumed that Indian CAs are more skilled and of course experienced than people from other countries with equivalent qualification.

They Can be Multi-tasker – From basic financial planning to tax filing, from business evaluation to auditing – the Chartered Accountants in India can handle any type of finance related jobs efficiently without requiring you to hire any other professional from the same field. Be it a start-up, an established firm/organisation or an individual – a reputed chartered accountant Kolkata can help any client, irrespective of their niches. Chartered Accountants also assure that your assets are safe from any legal issues. They give you a clear picture in the business and keep you safe from any type of legal risks.

They can Handle Different Projects at a Time – Indian Chartered Accountants are quite efficient in handling more than one project at a time. Such projects may belong to an individual, firm or multiple clients. During the course of Articleship, they learn how to handle multiple projects at a time and that surely makes them a pro as they become a licensed chartered accountant Kolkata.

They Are Advisor and Consultant – As already discussed, a person becomes a licensed Chartered Accountant only after years of studying, passing difficult exams and doing strict Articleship for as long as 3 years. During this period of studying and practicing, they literally become master of different finance services. And that comes handy as they become licensed. They use their expertise, knowledge and experience to handle any type of financial difficulties of their clients. They also give them proper advice and direction on dealing efficiently with economic matters.

So you can see how hiring a chartered accountant Kolkata ensures peace of mind that you can expect only from a highly trained, educated and experienced professional. Go ahead and hire a chartered accountant to handle all financial issues related to you, your business and your asset.

What to Look for when Choosing an Auditor

The key to building a strong, healthy and long-term relationship with an auditor is trust. In fact for a business, an auditing firm is almost like a business partner. They are someone businesses work with for years so they become almost an integral part of the business and its success. And as such, it is utmost important to select the auditor wisely. This is something that shouldn’t be considered to be easy and light.

To ensure which auditor you want to choose for your company requires you to go through a tedious assessment procedure as it directly involves your business’ financial stability. The stakes in choosing the best auditor for your company is quite high and thus some tips are compiled here so you can follow them to ensure the best hiring.

Transparent Communication – Good and transparent communication is absolutely important for a win-win audit and auditor relation. A good auditor will always allow you to communicate easily and freely. They are likely to entertain any question you ask and will try to reply satisfactorily. Accounting is quite tricky, drab and complicated subject for the non-accounts people. So make sure your chosen auditor explains everything in a lucid and non-technical way so you can understand.

Industry Experience – An auditor must have required industry experience. They must make you understand things with references of their existing clients similar in scope and nature to your company. The world of accounting is a changeable one. You can ask them how they manage to go with the tide while staying on top of new assertions by modifying and updating themselves. They must be able to communicate any changes with their clients in an understandable manner. A dependable auditing firm will surely have their own plan to cope with accounting amendments.

Market Reputation – This is essential that you consider the reputation of the firm or the individual auditor during the hiring process. You can always ask them for references and accordingly call the references and request to share their experience with that firm. Ask the auditor about the awards they have received for outstanding financial statements. Awards are the means for weighing up the auditor’s reputation and worthiness.

Fees – Though this shouldn’t be considered as a qualifying criterion while hiring the right auditor, fees they charge influence the selection process. To get the best rate against the best services, you may collect a few bids from different auditors to check if the potential auditor’s rate is really competitive. But while comparing the bids, make sure you not only compare the price but also other important factors. Some auditors may charge a multi-year fee at a reduced rate against a single year fee. You may accept such an offer as this would be beneficial for both the parties. But if your company is in a growth period or at the threshold of substantial changes, this arrangement may not be suitable for you.

While hiring an auditor in Kolkata, these are some important factors that you may consider to ensure the right selection.

Some Essential Nitty-gritty Related To Tax Planning

If tax planning is your last minute job, it is very likely that your budget and personal finance will be a mess owing to your tax habit. To avoid this, you should start planning for your taxes well in advance. Invest small amount of money in a prominent tax saving instrument on a regular basis throughout the year in lieu of a large, one time investment at the last second.

Importance of Tax Planning

Well there are a number of benefits of planning your tax methodically. Let’s have a look.

• Saves Your Income – As you already know, tax evasion is a serious crime. But tax avoidance is not. So you can always avoid tax paying by making use of possible tax deduction as well as tax exemption.
• Ensures Right Investments – Tax planning helps you make the correct investment in different legitimate financial products as well as tax saving instruments. But it all should be done on the basis of your risk profile that saves your income from income tax.
• Lets the Loan Saves Tax – Taking a home loan helps you significantly save on tax.
  Guarantees peaceful retirement – Your tax planning helps you use tax saving instruments to ensure significant savings. It also lets you invest in financial products that in turn ensure that you have sufficient money for retirement.

Considerable Factors for Tax Planning

 

Should you buy endowment life insurance plan for getting tax deduction?

An endowment life insurance policy often charges high premium. An endowment plan ensures both insurance and savings. So you have to pay high premium to get the benefits of insurance and savings. And this ensures that you will be benefited financially on survival and your successors at your death. With such a plan you can expect to get a meager 5% to 7% while most of the premium amount is swallowed as the charge for the plan. On the other hand, if you buy a term life plan that is available against a lower premium in comparison to an endowment plan, you won’t get any benefit on survival. Both the plans offer tax benefits under section 80C. For getting tax benefits, online tax consultant Kolkata suggests that you go for low premium term life plan at an early age and make necessary financial arrangements for your family in case you die untimely.

Is it required to invest in tax saving instruments as per your risk profile?

Your risk profile plays the most important role as it comes to making investments in tax saving instruments. Both ELSS (Equity Linked Savings Scheme) and PPF (Public Provident Fund) give you tax benefit under Section 80C. If you want to keep your primary investment save while earning interest on it, you can invest in a PPF or a 5-year tax saving FD (Fixed Deposit). But if you invest in an ELSS, you should be prepared for taking of risk of stock market crash or down. Though it ensures high return on investment, it involves tremendous risk.

These are just a few important things you should know about tax planning in India. If you want to keep yourself financially stable, you should plan your tax in advance.

Everything You Need To Know About Hiring GST Consultants In Kolkata

With the Goods and Services Tax (GST) being rolled out on July 1, 2017, are you scouting for reliable consultants who can advise you on the technical aspects of the tax? Do you think it’s high time you gear up and assess the probable impact of the Goods and Services Tax on your business? Read on then to check out everything you need to know about availing services from the specialists!

Businesses of all shapes and sizes are going to be impacted with the implementation of GST, the largest indirect tax reform in India. Taxes like Sales Tax, Central Excise Duty, State VAT, Purchase Tax, Entertainment Tax, Luxury Tax and several other indirect taxes have now been replaced by the GST. While it’s true that the GST aims to simplify the entire indirect taxation process, certain gaps still exist in the procedures. Availing assistance in the preparatory work for GST can thus be a wise decision!

Need For Availing Services From GST Consultants In Kolkata

With the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax, the taxation system in India has now become destination based. This has impacted diverse aspects of businesses like- the supply chain, the cash flow, profitability, sourcing and the enterprise resource planning. Thus, planning in advance can bring forth a good opportunity to the companies for evaluating and realigning their business objectives and models.

By hiring GST consultants in Kolkata who can advise and teach them about the laws and procedures of implementing the Goods and Services Tax, businesses can gain a competitive advantage over their competitors. Moreover, these professionals can even assist you in renewing your IT systems while coping up with the new tax structure.

Benefits Of The Goods And Service Tax To Business And Companies

1. Both state and the central GST will be applicable on the manufacturing cost. Not only will this benefit customers if the prices come down, but it will even lead to more consumption, thus helping companies gain more businesses.
2. As per the Goods and Services Tax system, all taxes levied by the central and state government will be put together and merged into a single taxation system. This will do away with the earlier multiple tax system and bring in the concept of one common market for all.
3. Under the Goods and Services Tax system, the burden of taxes will be divided equally between services and manufacturing through a lower tax rate.
4. The tax will be levied only at the company’s destination unit and not at various points (from the manufacturing units to the retail outlets).
5. With uniformity of tax structures and rates, GST has ensured that indirect tax rates and structures are common across the country. Irrespective of the place where the business is done, tax rates for companies throughout the country is neutral.
6. Relaxation in the transaction expenses of doing business will gradually lead to an improved competitiveness for the company in the industry.
7. With a seamless tax credit system throughout the country, there will be a nominal cascading of taxes. This removal of cascading will reduce the hidden costs of doing any business in India.

So what are you still waiting for? Quickly find a leading consultant and start availing some exemplary services to enjoy the benefits of GST!