What a turnover certificate certifies
Turnover for a period, for a named entity, on a stated basis. That is all, and the limits matter as much as the content.
A properly drafted certificate names four things: the entity and its PAN or GSTIN, the exact period covered, the turnover figure, and the records it was drawn from. Where the figures come from accounts that are not audited, it says so. Where turnover is defined a particular way, it says which way.
What it does not do is express an opinion on your financial statements. That is an audit, and it is a different engagement with different responsibilities. The framework a practising chartered accountant works to when issuing a certificate of this kind is the ICAI Guidance Note on Reports or Certificates for Special Purposes (Revised 2016).
Which turnover figure do you need
This is the question that decides whether your certificate is accepted. Three different numbers can all be called turnover.
| Basis | What it is | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue in the accounts | Revenue from operations as presented in your financial statements | Audited or finalised accounts and the trial balance |
| Aggregate turnover under GST | A PAN-level figure across all your GSTINs, defined in section 2(6) of the CGST Act, which includes exempt and export supplies | GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and GSTR-9 |
| Turnover in the income-tax return | Turnover or gross receipts as reported for tax | Your income-tax return and tax audit report, where one applies |
They diverge for ordinary reasons: exempt supplies, exports, stock transfers between your own registrations, other income treated as a supply, and cut-off differences at the year end. A tender that asks for "annual turnover as per audited financial statements" wants the first. A bank sizing a facility on sales usually wants the first too. A scheme that classifies you as micro, small or medium is working with a turnover concept of its own.
So the first step is always the same: read the exact words the institution used, and if they are ambiguous, ask them. We would rather send one email than issue a certificate that gets returned.
Who asks for one, and what they usually ask for
Four situations account for most requests.
- Tenders and empanelment. Usually "average annual turnover of the last three financial years", against a minimum the tender sets. Three years means three figures and an average, and the certificate should show all four so the evaluator does not have to compute anything. Bid documents also often ask for a net worth certificate at the same time: see net worth certificate for tenders.
- Banks and NBFCs. At sanction, at renewal of a limit, and sometimes mid-year where turnover supports the facility size. Where the lender wants projections and a working capital computation rather than a bare figure, that is CMA data.
- Schemes, subsidies and classification. Applications that turn on size. Under the MSME classification a micro enterprise is up to ₹10 crore turnover, small up to ₹100 crore and medium up to ₹500 crore, with an investment test alongside. See Udyam registration.
- Dealerships, franchises, distribution and foreign buyers. A counterparty sizing you up before it appoints you, where there is no prescribed format at all and the certificate is drafted to the request.
If you are bidding as a micro or small enterprise, one thing is worth knowing. Under the public procurement policy for MSEs, Central Government buyers may relax prior turnover and prior experience criteria for micro and small enterprises, and MSEs get tender sets free and are exempt from earnest money deposit. There is no exemption from performance security. Check the specific tender: the relaxation is permissive, not automatic.
The records the certificate is drawn from
A certificate is only as strong as what sits behind it, and the reader can ask.
For a completed financial year we work from the audited or finalised financial statements, and cross-check the figure against the GST returns for the year and the income-tax return. For the current year, or part of a year, we work from the books and the trial balance, and cross-check against the GST returns already filed and the bank statements. If the GST or income-tax returns are not up to date, see GST filing and income tax return.
Where the figures do not agree across those sources, we reconcile them before signing, not after. A difference between the books and the GST returns is normal, and the certificate can state the basis and the reconciliation. What cannot happen is a figure that no record supports. Where turnover crosses ₹5 crore, that books-to-returns reconciliation is a statutory exercise in its own right: see GSTR-9C.
Can a CA certify turnover without an audit
Yes, and the certificate has to be honest about it.
There is no rule that a turnover certificate can only be issued from audited accounts. Many are needed for a period for which no audit is due, such as the current year to date, or for an entity that has no audit requirement at all. What changes is the wording: the certificate names the records it relied on, and says plainly that the accounts for that period are unaudited where they are.
That distinction is sometimes what the institution cares about. If the tender says "as per audited accounts" then a certificate based on provisional figures will not do, whatever it says on it, and you need to say so to the buyer rather than paper over it. At 27 September 2026 that matters for FY 2025-26, where many entities have not completed their audit yet: for a company, see statutory audit, and where the Income-tax Act applies, tax audit.
UDIN, and how the reader verifies your certificate
Every certificate we issue carries a UDIN, an 18-digit Unique Document Identification Number generated on the ICAI portal. It has been mandatory on certificates issued by practising chartered accountants since 1 February 2019.
The reader verifies it themselves. They open udin.icai.org, enter the UDIN with their own name, mobile and email, complete the captcha and declaration, and confirm an OTP. No registration is needed and there is no fee, and the chartered accountant is alerted that a verification has taken place. The UDIN is generated at the time of signing, or within 60 days of it.
For the mechanics in more detail, see our guide to UDIN on a net worth certificate, which applies the same way to a turnover certificate, and the CA certificates hub.
Turnover certificate, audit report or net worth certificate
Three documents that get confused, and institutions sometimes ask for the wrong one.
| Turnover certificate | Audit report | Net worth certificate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it says | Turnover for a stated period, on a stated basis | Whether the financial statements give a true and fair view | Assets less liabilities as at a date |
| Required by law? | No. It exists because an institution asks for it | Yes, where the Companies Act or the Income-tax Act applies | No |
| Period or date | A period: a year, three years, or part of a year | A financial year | A single date |
| Scope of work | Agreed with you, and stated in the certificate | Set by law and the auditing standards | Agreed, with a stated valuation basis |
| Who signs | A chartered accountant in practice | The appointed auditor, or the tax auditor | A chartered accountant in practice |
| Carries a UDIN | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Our page | This page | Statutory audit, tax audit | Net worth certificate |
One practical point. Your auditor's report is evidence of turnover for a completed year, and some institutions will accept the audited accounts themselves instead of a certificate. It is worth asking before you buy a certificate you may not need.
How long it stays acceptable
No statute sets a validity period. The institution reading it decides how recent it has to be.
Tenders usually fix a date: turnover for specified financial years, sometimes certified on or after a given date. Banks work to their own review cycle. So the useful question is not "how long is it valid" but "what date and what period does your document require", and that answer is in the tender or the application form.
Because the period is fixed by the requirement, a certificate issued for one bid is often reusable for another with the same period and no restriction on the certification date. Where a fresh one is needed, it is a fresh engagement.
What we need from you
- The exact wording of the requirement. The tender clause, the bank's email or the application form page. This is the single most useful thing you can send.
- Audited or finalised financial statements for each year in the period, with the auditor's report where there is one
- The trial balance and sales ledger for any current or part year
- GST returns for the period, and the annual return where filed
- Income-tax returns for the years covered, and the tax audit report where one applies
- Bank statements for the period, where the accounts are unaudited
- PAN, GSTIN, constitution documents and the Udyam registration certificate where the request refers to MSME status
- The name, designation and address the certificate is to be addressed to
Fees
Fee on quote after a free review. There is no government fee for a CA certificate, and UDIN generation and verification are free.
| Item | Position |
|---|---|
| Regikart professional fee, turnover certificate | Fee on quote after a free review |
| Government fee | No government fee |
| UDIN generation and verification | Free |
| Net worth certificate, where the same tender asks for one | From ₹1,499 per certificate, see net worth certificate |
| Writing up books for a period that is not yet accounted | See accounting services |
| Audit of a year that has not been audited | See tax audit |
Professional fees exclude GST at 18%. Government fees, where they apply, are paid at actuals to the department and are shown separately. Fees verified on 27 September 2026.
What moves the quote: the number of years or periods certified, whether the accounts for each are audited or have to be compiled, whether a books-to-GST reconciliation is needed, the number of GSTINs, and whether a bespoke format is prescribed by the institution.
Why this is worth getting right
Regikart is a CA and CS firm serving 250+ clients, with offices in Kolkata (head office), Delhi and Bengaluru. This page is reviewed by CA Deepak Jaiswal.
- We read the clause first. Most rejected certificates are rejected on the definition of turnover or on the period, not on the number.
- The figure is cross-checked. Accounts against GST returns against the income-tax return, before signing rather than after a query.
- UDIN on everything, and we say so. The reader can verify the certificate without contacting us.
- The whole certificate set in one firm. Net worth, income, CMA data and the rest, listed on CA certificates.
- We will tell you when you do not need one. If the audited accounts you already hold satisfy the requirement, that is the cheaper answer.