How is this different from my existing ITR + GSTR accountant?
An ITR-and-GSTR assignment usually begins with period-end totals. This engagement begins with the underlying customer cash trail, HUID movement, inventory, margin-scheme eligibility and statutory exception logs. The same monthly close then supports PMLA reporting, s.269ST review, GST returns, BIS reconciliation and the eventual s.44AB audit. Your existing accountant can continue bookkeeping; the responsibility matrix prevents duplication and identifies who prepares, reviews, files and signs each output.
What does a Principal Officer under PMLA actually do daily?
The Principal Officer is the jeweller’s nominated management-level official responsible for the reporting process under the PML Rules. Daily work means ensuring customer and transaction records reach the review system, escalating unusual patterns, protecting confidentiality around STR consideration and resolving missing data. The formal CTR cycle is monthly under Rules 3 and 8, but the control cannot operate only once a month.
Do I have to physically be in your office in Vizag?
No. Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam engagements can run through secure document exchange, scheduled video reviews and a defined shop-side data owner. Physical attendance is arranged when the onboarding diagnostic, stock verification scope or control design requires it. Routine GSTR, CTR-support and exception reviews do not require a monthly office visit.
Can the same firm act as our tax auditor and PMLA Principal Officer?
The Principal Officer should be an appropriately nominated management-level official of the reporting entity; an external CA firm ordinarily supports the process rather than replacing that internal responsibility. A firm may separately accept the s.44AB audit only after evaluating professional independence, self-review threats and the bookkeeping work it performs. We allocate preparation, internal approval and audit roles only after that assessment; one engagement does not mean one person signs every document.
What if we already have a monthly retainer with an in-house accountant?
The in-house accountant can remain the source-book owner. We agree a responsibility matrix covering cash capture, customer aggregation, HUID tagging, GST preparation, TCS, PMLA review, stock counts and audit schedules. We review the control outputs and return structured exceptions instead of recreating the books. This preserves operational continuity while adding statutory review and an evidence trail.
Is the BIS reconciliation genuinely quarterly or annual?
HUID capture must occur with the underlying purchase, stock and sale movement; it cannot be reconstructed reliably only at year-end. Quarterly is the formal reconciliation cadence in this engagement, not a statutory claim that BIS prescribes one universal quarterly return for every jeweller. Exceptions affecting a sale or inspection are escalated when identified, and the annual close uses the four quarterly reconciliations.
What’s the fee structure?
The engagement is priced as a retainer band based on turnover, outlet count, transaction volume, accounting-system quality, stock complexity and whether records need reconstruction. Tax audit, exceptional catch-up work, physical attendance and specialist assignments are scoped transparently in the engagement letter. We do not publish a single rupee figure because a ₹5 crore single-outlet jeweller and a ₹200 crore multi-location jeweller do not present the same review load.
How fast is onboarding — can I start next month?
Usually, yes, if management nominations, FINnet access, BIS records and transaction data are made available promptly. The first step is a two-hour diagnostic, followed by a dated gap map and responsibility matrix. A clean record can enter the next monthly cycle; missing customer aggregation, HUID or opening-stock data may require a catch-up phase before the first complete reporting close.
