⁷⁸[Audit of accounts of certain persons carrying on business or profession.

⁷⁹44AB. ⁸⁰Every person,—

(a) carrying on business shall, if his total sales, turnover or gross receipts, as the case may be, in business exceed or exceeds forty lakh rupees in any previous year ⁸¹[***]; or

(b) carrying on profession shall, if his gross receipts in profession exceed ten lakh rupees in any ⁸²[previous year; or

(c) carrying on the business shall, if the profits and gains from the business are deemed to be the profits and gains of such person under section 44AD or section 44AE or section 44AF ⁸³[or section 44BB or section 44BBB], as the case may be, and he has claimed his income to be lower than the profits or gains so deemed to be the profits and gains of his business, as the case may be, in any previous year,] ⁸⁴[***]

get his accounts of such previous year ⁸⁵[***] audited by an accountant before the specified date and ⁸⁶[furnish by] that date the report of such audit in the prescribed form duly signed and verified by such accountant and setting forth such particulars as may be prescribed :

⁸⁷[Provided that this section shall not apply to the person, who derives income of the nature referred to in ⁸⁸[***] section 44B or ⁸⁹[section 44BBA], on and from the 1st day of April, 1985 or, as the case may be, the date on which the relevant section came into force, whichever is later :

Provided further that in a case where such person is required by or under any other law to get his accounts audited ⁹⁰[***], it shall be sufficient compliance with the provisions of this section if such person gets the accounts of such business or profession audited under such law before the specified date and ⁹¹[furnishes by] that date the report of the audit as required under such other law and a further report ⁹²[by an accountant] in the form prescribed under this section.

Explanation.—For the purposes of this section,—

(i) “accountant” shall have the same meaning as in the Explanation below sub-section (2) of section 288;

⁹³[(ii) “specified date”, in relation to the accounts of the assessee of the previous year relevant to an assessment year, means the 31st day of October of the assessment year.]]