Statutory Audit Fee Estimator — Indicative Cost by Turnover, Entity & Complexity
This free tool gives an indicative statutory audit fee range for an Indian company or LLP. Enter your turnover band, entity type, city class and the complexity factors that apply, and it returns a low, base and high estimate anchored to the ICAI Committee for Capacity Building of Members in Practice recommendatory minimum scale of fees. The ICAI scale is a guideline only — the actual fee is always a matter of agreement, excludes GST and out-of-pocket expenses, and can vary widely with firm reputation. Built and reviewed by Chartered Accountants at Patron Accounting LLP; it runs entirely in your browser.
Estimate Your Statutory Audit Fee
Indicative only. The ICAI scale is recommendatory, not binding. This is a planning estimate, excludes GST and out-of-pocket expenses, and is not a quotation. The actual fee is a matter of agreement after scoping.
How to Use the Statutory Audit Fee Estimator
This tool is built for company directors and finance teams who need a realistic budgeting figure for the statutory audit before approaching firms, and for founders comparing quotes that look very different.
- Select your turnover band. Turnover is the single biggest driver of the ICAI recommended scale.
- Choose entity type and city class. ICAI recommends fees separately for Class A, B and C cities; entity type adjusts the base.
- Set the audit firm positioning. A small or medium practitioner prices near the ICAI scale; a Big Five firm carries a large reputation premium.
- Tick the complexity factors. Group consolidation, Ind AS, branches, inventory, first-year audit and weak controls each add a loading.
- Estimate. You get a low–high range and a mid-point, anchored to the ICAI recommendatory scale.
CA Tip: Use the mid-point for budgeting and the high end for board approvals. Audit fees in India have barely risen in real terms over the last five years, so a quote far above the high end usually signals either Big Five positioning or a genuinely complex engagement worth discussing.
How Statutory Audit Fees Work in India
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, through its Committee for Capacity Building of Members in Practice, publishes a Revised Minimum Recommended Scale of Fees. It lists indicative fees for a company audit scaled by turnover, with separate columns for Class A, Class B and Class C cities, and different rows for small, medium and large companies.
Statutory audit itself is mandated by the Companies Act 2013, administered by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. Crucially, the ICAI fee scale is recommendatory only. ICAI itself states that members are free to charge varying rates depending on the nature and complexity of the assignment and the time involved, that GST is collected separately, and that the actual fee charged in individual cases is a matter of agreement between the member and the client. There is no direct penalty for charging below the scale, and firms routinely do so, especially in competitive tenders.
| Turnover Band | Indicative Company Audit Anchor (Class A, SMP base) |
|---|---|
| Up to ₹1 crore | Lower lakh range |
| ₹1 – ₹10 crore | Low-to-mid lakh range |
| ₹10 – ₹50 crore | Mid lakh range |
| ₹50 – ₹100 crore | Upper lakh range |
| Above ₹100 crore | Scale base plus negotiable premium |
The estimator translates these bands into an indicative range. It is anchored to the ICAI guidance but deliberately expressed as a range, because the single biggest determinant of the final number — firm positioning and engagement complexity — is negotiated, not tabulated.
City Class and the Reputation Premium
ICAI recommends fees separately for three city classes. Class A cities are Delhi, Greater Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Pune, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad. Class B and Class C cover progressively smaller cities and towns with lower recommended fees.
The Firm Positioning Premium
The biggest swing in the final fee is not the city — it is which firm signs the report. Independent analysis of auditor remuneration shows Big Five firms typically charge a signalling premium of 100 to 500 percent over what a small or medium practitioner would charge for the same company, because financial statement readers and IPO markets value the brand. The estimator models this through the firm positioning factor.
CA Tip: A startup heading toward an IPO often migrates to a Big Five auditor regardless of size. If that is on your roadmap, budget for the premium early — switching auditors close to an IPO is far more expensive and disruptive than planning for it. See our guide on how to evaluate a statutory audit firm.
What Pushes the Audit Fee Up
Beyond turnover and firm choice, specific engagement characteristics drive the fee, because they drive the hours and the risk. The estimator's complexity factors map to the cost drivers auditors actually price for.
| Driver | Why It Raises the Fee |
|---|---|
| Group / consolidation | Multiple entities, inter-company eliminations, CFS |
| Ind AS reporting | Fair value, financial instruments, larger disclosures |
| Multiple locations / branches | Travel, additional sampling, more controls testing |
| Inventory-heavy operations | Physical verification, valuation, cut-off procedures |
| First-year audit | Opening balance verification, system understanding |
| Weak internal controls | More substantive testing, larger samples |
| Regulated sector (NBFC, etc.) | Sector reporting, regulator-specific procedures |
For an actual scope and fee, our team conducts statutory audits and statutory audits for private limited companies across India, and assists with the appointment of auditor formalities.
Important — How to Read This Estimate
This estimator is a planning aid, not a quotation, and not professional advice. Three points matter most:
- The ICAI scale is recommendatory. It is a guideline issued by the ICAI for general information, explicitly not binding. Members may charge more or less, and the actual fee is a matter of agreement.
- The number excludes GST and expenses. GST is collected separately wherever applicable, and travelling time and out-of-pocket expenses are chargeable in addition.
- Real fees vary widely. The same company can receive quotes that differ by several multiples depending on firm positioning, scope and risk appetite. A range is realistic; a single number is not.
Note: The binding statutory audit fee for your company can only be determined after a scoping discussion and an engagement letter. Use this estimate to budget and to sense-check quotes, then confirm with a Chartered Accountant. For statutory audit applicability and related checks, see our CARO 2020 Self-Assessment and IFC Framework Readiness tools, with audit oversight by the NFRA and the law available via India Code.
Want an Actual Statutory Audit Fee Quote?
Patron Accounting LLP gives fixed-fee statutory audit quotations tailored to scope — for Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, Gurugram and pan-India clients.