Audit and Assurance Services
Uncovering Value Beyond the Balance Sheet.
Overview
At SCORE, an audit is not a box-ticking exercise — it is a diagnostic deep-dive into your business. Our partner-led approach goes beyond financial statements to examine the systems, controls, and processes that drive your numbers. We employ a risk-based methodology that focuses attention where it matters most, delivering clarity, confidence, and a roadmap for improvement.
Who this service is for
Audit and assurance work is for companies that need an independent view of their financial statements, their controls, or both. That includes private companies that have crossed the statutory audit threshold, groups with branches or subsidiaries, businesses whose lenders ask for audited accounts, and promoters preparing for investment. We also work with NGOs and trusts that need a clean audit trail for donors and regulators.
Every engagement is partner-led. The partner who signs the report is involved in planning, sits through the difficult discussions and presents the findings to your board. You are not handed to a junior team once the proposal is signed.
What we do
Statutory Audit
Internal Audit
Tax Audit (3CD)
IFC Testing
How the engagement works
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Scoping and risk assessment
We meet your finance team, read the previous year's file and identify where misstatement or control failure is most likely. The audit plan and timetable are agreed before fieldwork starts.
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Understanding the business and its controls
We walk through revenue, purchase, payroll and treasury cycles and document the controls you rely on. Most of the practical improvements are found at this stage, not in the final report.
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Fieldwork and testing
Samples are tested against source documents, third-party confirmations are sent and balances are verified. Queries are raised as they arise rather than saved for a closing list.
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Reporting
You receive the signed financial statements, the auditor's report and a management letter that separates significant deficiencies from housekeeping points.
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Follow-up
We track the management letter points with your team and, where you want, re-test the fixes before the next audit cycle begins.
What you can expect
You finish the audit with more than a signed report: a clear list of what changed, what needs fixing and who owns each action. That record is useful at the next board meeting, in a lender's due diligence and in the following year's audit.
Frequently asked questions
Who needs a statutory audit in India?
Every company registered under the Companies Act must have its accounts audited every year by a chartered accountant in practice, whatever its turnover. Private companies, small companies and one person companies all need an audit; only the reporting exemptions differ by class.
How long does an audit take?
For a single company with clean books, fieldwork usually takes one to two weeks and the file closes four to six weeks after the trial balance is ready. Groups with several locations take longer, so we agree a timetable at planning and track it every week.
What is the difference between a statutory and an internal audit?
A statutory audit gives an opinion on the financial statements for shareholders and regulators. An internal audit reviews processes and controls for management, covers operational risk and can be scoped to any cycle. Many clients run both, with internal audit feeding the statutory risk assessment.
What documents do you need to begin?
We ask for the previous audited accounts, trial balance, general ledger, bank statements, statutory registers, board minutes, major contracts, GST and TDS returns, and the fixed asset register. A checklist goes out at kick-off and we work from your accounting system rather than printouts.
Can you audit a company with branches in several states?
Yes. A central team covers the head office and coordinated visits cover the branches, using one sampling method and one set of working papers. Where a visit is not practical, we use agreed procedures with local professionals and review their papers before relying on them.
Do you provide IFC testing separately?
Yes. Internal financial controls documentation and testing can be a standalone engagement for companies that need a control opinion under the Companies Act, or part of the statutory audit. We map each significant process to its risks and test the controls the company actually relies on.
How do you protect audit independence?
We do not provide bookkeeping or management functions to audit clients, and we rotate the engagement team where the rules require it. Any other service is approved by the board and assessed against the independence requirements before we accept it.
Can you help before the audit starts?
Yes. A pre-audit review looks at reconciliations, provisions, related-party disclosures and revenue cut-off while there is still time to correct them. Clients who do this usually see fewer adjustments and a shorter audit, and it is a useful test of whether the file is ready before the auditor asks for it.
Do you audit NGOs and trusts?
Yes. We audit trusts, societies and Section 8 companies, including FCRA-specific audits where foreign funds are involved. The work covers the same assertions as a company audit, with additional reporting on restricted funds, project utilisation and donor conditions. We also prepare the utilisation certificates donors usually ask for.
Talk to the partner who will run this engagement.
A short call is usually enough to say whether we are the right fit.