The Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICMAI) is making a case for cost accountants to be included as qualified professionals to conduct tax audits under the new Income Tax Bill. This proposal faces opposition from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, emphasizing that tax audits should remain the domain of chartered accountants.

Cost accountants are equipped to conduct tax audits, a senior official of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICMAI) said on Thursday, making a case for treating such professionals as accountants under the provisions of the new Income Tax Bill, amid opposition from the chartered accountants' body.

Top institutes representing company secretaries and cost accountants this month approached the government to include their members as accountants under the I-T bill. Any such move would allow them to conduct lucrative tax audits that are currently undertaken by chartered accountants alone.

However, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India president Charanjot Singh Nanda on Wednesday opposed this demand. Audits, including tax-related ones, should be the sole preserve of chartered accountants, as they are trained mainly to handle these tasks, he added.

However, the ICMAI, which has about 1,00,000 members, has submitted a memorandum to the Select Committee of the Lok Sabha, seeking the accountant status. The committee is examining the Income Tax Bill, 2025.

"The demand for inclusion in the definition of accountants is backed by our expert knowledge through CMA (cost and management account) curriculum that extensively covers all areas of income tax, GST, accounts, banking, finance, cost and management accounting, auditing, IT, among others," ICMAI president Bibhuti Bhusan Nayak told reporters on Thursday.

Cost accountants, he stressed, are recognised as 'internal auditors' under the Companies Act 2013. This indicates they have adequate knowledge of internal controls, risk management and accounts and finance.

Cost accountants are also allowed to conduct statutory financial audits under various state laws, Nayak added.

On Wednesday, ICAI chief Nanda, however, had asserted that audits are the forte of chartered accountants. “We also study cost accountancy and other issues (such as Companies Act compliance) as part of our courses. But we don’t claim expertise in those things. We are trained predominantly in audits,” Nanda had said.

Also, there is no bar on anybody conducting tax audits provided they have cleared the CA examination.

Source - economictimes.com

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