The Government of Gujarat has proposed a sweeping revision in the audit fee structure for cooperative institutions across the state. A draft notification issued under Section 168 of the Gujarat Co-operative Societies Act, 1961, seeks to amend the Gujarat Co-operative Societies Rules, 1965, by introducing a new Schedule-A of audit fees, replacing the decades-old framework.
Under the proposed rules, primary cooperative credit societies, multipurpose societies, agricultural credit societies and farmers service societies (PACS, LAMPS) will pay between Rs 2,500 and Rs 30,000 as audit fees, depending on the size of their annual trial balance sheet.
For urban cooperative banks, the slabs will start at Rs 40,000 and go up to Rs 3 lakh, linked to the volume of advances. Urban credit cooperatives, salary earners’ societies and factory workers’ societies will face audit fees ranging from Rs 2,500 to Rs 2 lakh, depending on operational scale.
The draft also prescribes turnover-based audit fees for larger cooperative institutions. For instance, district cooperative milk unions will pay between Rs 60,000 and Rs 20 lakh, while the Gujarat State Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF-Amul) may have to pay up to Rs 20 lakh or actual administrative expenses, whichever is higher.
Housing cooperatives will be charged on a per-member basis-Rs 50 in villages, Rs 100 in nagar palika areas, and Rs 150 in municipal corporation limits, subject to minimum and maximum limits.
Similarly, the Gujarat State Co-operative Land Development Bank will pay fees ranging from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 15 lakh, depending on its working capital. For district and state cooperative unions engaged in educational activities, fees have been set on slabs of income from the Education Contribution Fund, starting at Rs 10,000 for smaller unions and going up to Rs 2 lakh for large state-level bodies. Newly registered unions will be exempt from audit fees for the first five years.
The draft clarifies that District Cooperative Banks, State Cooperative Banks and other central cooperative societies doing credit business are audited by CA firms on NABARD’s approved panel, with fees negotiated directly, hence no new provision is needed for them.
For other categories, including APMCs, fisheries cooperatives, consumer societies, labour cooperatives and farming societies, fresh slabs have also been proposed. Certain exemptions remain, such as newly registered unions (five years) and select farming societies (three years).
The government has invited suggestions and objections from stakeholders within 30 days before finalizing the notification. Once approved, the new audit fee structure will come into force immediately upon its publication in the Official Gazette.
The notification was issued in the name of the Governor by Kuldeep Makwana, Deputy Secretary to Government.
