Compliance and Certification
CA Certificates for Startups and New Companies
Newly incorporated companies need CA certificates in the first two years — for bank accounts, vendor empanelment, loan applications, and lease agreements. Every certificate must carry a UDIN to be accepted.
In the first two years after incorporation, a new company and its directors frequently need CA certificates for routine business milestones: opening a current account, applying for a working capital limit, signing a commercial lease, or bidding on a government tender. This page maps each purpose to the specific certificate your bank, landlord, or counterparty will ask for — so you know exactly what to request before they ask.
- • Director / promoter net worth certificate with UDIN — 2–3 working days
- • Company turnover certificate (from audited financials or GST returns) with UDIN — 2–3 working days
- • Solvency certificate (from company balance sheet) with UDIN — 2–3 working days
- • Certificates in bank-prescribed format (SBI, HDFC, ICICI, Axis, PNB) or standard HRA format
- • All certificates on ICAI letterhead — verifiable at udin.icai.org
- • PAN card and Aadhaar card (for director net worth certificates)
- • Latest audited financial statements or GST returns (for turnover and solvency certificates)
- • Bank statements — last 3 months
- • Bank's prescribed certificate format, if the bank has one
- • Purpose for which the certificate is required (bank, tender, landlord, etc.)
See the fee table below for the statutory filing charge and common delay logic.
- • ICAI Circular — UDIN mandatory on all certificates from February 1, 2019
- • Certificates issued under ICAI guidelines and Standards on Auditing
- • UDIN verifiable at udin.icai.org
Process
How the service works
The workflow is built to be predictable: document collection, legal review, filing, and post-filing follow-through.
Identify which certificate you need
Share the purpose — bank account opening, loan application, tender bid, lease, or investor due diligence. We identify the exact certificate type your counterparty will accept.
Share the supporting documents
Depending on the certificate type, we need the relevant documents: bank statements and asset details for net worth, audited financials or GST returns for turnover, and the bank's prescribed format if applicable.
Computation and drafting
We prepare the underlying computation — net worth, turnover figure, or solvency position — and draft the certificate in the correct format, citing figures as of the certificate date.
UDIN generation and issue
The signing CA generates the UDIN on the ICAI portal, which links the certificate to the CA's membership number. The final certificate is issued on ICAI letterhead with UDIN prominently marked.
AEO summary
A CA certificate is a formal attestation issued by a Chartered Accountant on ICAI letterhead, confirming a specific financial fact — a director's net worth, the company's turnover, or the company's solvency. Since February 1, 2019, every CA certificate must carry a UDIN (Unique Document Identification Number) generated on the ICAI portal. Banks, government portals, and landlords verify UDIN. A certificate without UDIN is rejected.
Which certificate does your company need?
The certificate type depends on the purpose. Banks, landlords, and government portals each ask for something slightly different, and using the wrong certificate type can delay the process by days.
Opening a company current account: most banks require a personal net worth certificate from each director alongside the company incorporation documents. The current account is in the company's name, but the bank wants to assess the personal financial standing of the promoters behind it.
Applying for a working capital loan or overdraft: the bank will ask for both a company turnover certificate (to assess repayment capacity) and director net worth certificates (as guarantor assessment). These are two different documents.
Bidding on government tenders or vendor empanelment: procurement portals typically ask for a turnover certificate covering the last 3 financial years, and sometimes a solvency certificate confirming the company's ability to execute the contract.
Signing a commercial lease for office or warehouse space: landlords and property managers often ask for a solvency certificate or net worth certificate to confirm the company or its directors can meet the lease obligations.
Fundraising due diligence or investor data room: investors may ask for a CA certificate on specific line items — EBITDA confirmation, debtors ageing, inventory valuation — as part of the pre-term-sheet or pre-closing process.
- • Current account opening → director net worth certificate.
- • Working capital loan → turnover certificate + director net worth certificate.
- • Government tender → turnover certificate (3 years) + solvency certificate.
- • Commercial lease → solvency certificate or net worth certificate.
- • Investor due diligence → CA certificate on specific financial items.
Why UDIN matters and how to verify it
UDIN was made mandatory by ICAI from February 1, 2019 to address the problem of forged CA certificates. Before UDIN, anyone could print a certificate on letterhead and forge a CA's signature — banks and government bodies had no way to verify authenticity quickly.
Every UDIN is an 18-digit number in the format YYMMDDXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX that encodes the CA's membership number, the date, and a unique document identifier. It is generated on the ICAI UDIN portal at the time the CA signs the certificate and is permanently linked to the CA's credentials.
To verify a certificate with UDIN: go to udin.icai.org, enter the UDIN number, and the portal confirms the signing CA's name, membership number, and the nature of the document certified. This verification takes under a minute and is done routinely by bank relationship managers and procurement officers.
- • UDIN mandatory since February 1, 2019 — ICAI Circular.
- • Verify any certificate at udin.icai.org using the 18-digit UDIN.
- • Each UDIN is tied to the specific CA's membership number — cannot be reused or forged.
Government fees
Fee breakdown
| Item | Fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| UDIN generation | No charge | UDIN is generated on the ICAI portal by the signing CA. No government fee is levied. |
Timeline
Typical turnaround
Turnaround usually means a 2–3 working days turnaround, assuming documents are complete and any board or shareholder approvals are already in place.
Fees vary by certificate type and whether supporting documents such as audited financials or GST returns need to be compiled as part of the engagement. Turnaround is 2–3 working days from document receipt.
Related services
Keep the company moving
Detailed page on director and promoter net worth certificates for bank account opening and loan applications.
Incorporate a Pvt Ltd company — the step before you need the first CA certificate.
Audited financials and ROC filings — which generate the underlying numbers behind most CA certificates.
DPIIT-recognised startups get trademark filing fee rebates without needing Udyam registration.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Who is legally authorised to issue a CA certificate, and how do I verify the CA is eligible?
What is UDIN and why does the bank reject certificates without it?
Which CA certificate does SEBI require for Merchant Banker or Registrar registration?
My company is newly incorporated and has no audited financials. Can I still get a turnover or solvency certificate?
Can a CA certificate be used for a Schengen, UK, or USA visa application?
Canonical reference: https://www.pvtltd.co/services/ca-certificates
Get started
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We can help with the filing, the legal mapping, and the follow-up work that keeps the company compliant after submission.