Validation of Unique Document Identification Number (UDIN) by ICAI portal during Tax Audit Reports

• The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) in its endeavour to make certain that all clients who obtain any certificate from Chartered Accountants (CAs) are in no manner forged, has introduced a unique concept of - Unique Document Identification Number (UDIN).
• It has been mentioned that financial documents/ certificates are often attested by 3rd person misrepresenting themselves as CAs, thus deceiving the authorities and stakeholders.
• The ICAI, in the gazette notification dated August 2, 2019, had made a generation of UDIN from ICAI website which is mandatory for every kind of certificate/tax audit report and some other attests made by their members as required by numerous regulators. The UDIN provided for the audit reports/certificates submitted by the CA in the e-filing portal shall be validated online with the ICAI.
• In line with the ongoing initiatives of Income Tax Department, the Income-tax e-filing portal has completed its integration with ICAI portal for the validation of UDIN generated from ICAI portal. Income-tax e-filing portal had already factored quoting of UDIN wef April 27, 2020, for the documents which are certified/attested in compliance with the Income Tax Act, 1961 by a CA.

Suppose for any reason, a CA is not able to generate UDIN before submission of an audit report/ certificate. In that case, the Income-tax e-filing portal permits such offer, subject to the CA updating the UDIN developed for the form within 15 calendar days from the date of form submission in the Income-tax e- filing portal. If the UDIN for the audit report/ certificate is not updated within 15 days provided for the same, such audit report/ certificate uploaded shall be considered as an invalid submission.

In conclusion, the Unique Document Identification Number (UDIN) introduced by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) aims to prevent forged financial documents/certificates. Integration with the Income-tax e-filing portal ensures validation of UDIN, making it mandatory for audit reports and certificates. CA's are required to generate and update UDIN within the specified time frame to ensure valid submissions.

Protect the authenticity of your financial documents with the Unique Document Identification Number (UDIN) system. For more details, mail us at info@manishanilgupta.com

Disclaimer:The information provided in this blog is for general purposes only and should not be considered as professional advice