Statutory Audit Interview Questions [2026]

This post lists the statutory audit interview questions candidates report being asked for statutory audit roles at Big 4 firms and mid-size CA firms in India. You get 21 real questions grouped by audit concepts, Ind AS, articleship experience, and HR rounds, plus the exact list of Standards on Auditing that interviewers expect you to revise before the interview.

Table of Contents

• Core Audit Concepts in Statutory Audit Interview Questions
• Ind AS and Financial Reporting in Statutory Audit Interview Questions
• Articleship Experience and Practical Statutory Audit Interview Questions
• Internal Controls, CARO, and HR Statutory Audit Interview Questions
• What Interviewers Test with Statutory Audit Interview Questions
• How to Prepare for Statutory Audit Interview Questions
• FAQs on Statutory Audit Interview Questions

Core Audit Concepts in Statutory Audit Interview Questions

The actual reported questions, reworded slightly, each followed by the shape of a strong answer.

1. Going concern (case study based)

• Going concern: usually given as a case study. What would you do?

Start with management’s 12-month assessment under Ind AS 1, then test indicators like recurring losses and loan defaults. Under SA 570, a material uncertainty means an unmodified opinion with a separate paragraph if disclosure is adequate, otherwise qualified or adverse.

2. Audit sampling: how do you determine sample size?

• Audit sampling: how do you determine the sample size?

Tolerable misstatement, expected misstatement, assessed risk, and population size drive it: higher risk or lower tolerance means a larger sample (SA 530).

3. Fundamental assumptions of accounting

• What are the fundamental accounting assumptions?

Going concern, consistency, and accrual; departure from any must be disclosed.

4. Materiality: how do you decide it?

• Explain the concept of materiality. How would you decide materiality for an engagement?

Sample strong answer: the magnitude of a misstatement that could influence users’ decisions. Auditors typically use a benchmark such as 5% of profit before tax, adjusted with judgment. Qualitative factors count too.

5. Overall materiality vs performance materiality

• How is overall materiality different from performance materiality?

Overall materiality applies to the statements as a whole; performance materiality is set lower at the account level so their aggregate stays below overall materiality.

6. Analytical procedures during the audit

• What analytical procedures are performed during an audit?

Trend and ratio analysis, and reasonableness tests such as payroll against headcount, required by SA 520 at planning and overall review.

7. Audit assertions

• List the audit assertions related to financial statement line items.

Transactions: occurrence, completeness, accuracy, cut-off, classification. Balances: existence, rights and obligations, completeness, valuation and allocation, classification. Disclosures: occurrence, completeness, classification and understandability, accuracy and valuation.

8. Audit risk

• What is audit risk?

The risk of an inappropriate opinion on materially misstated statements: inherent risk, control risk, and detection risk, the last managed through the nature, timing, and extent of procedures.

9. Audit opinion (case study based)

• Audit opinion: usually given as a case study. Which opinion would you give?

First decide whether the statements are misstated or evidence is lacking, then whether the matter is pervasive: unmodified, qualified, adverse, or disclaimer.

10. Subsequent events

• Subsequent events: the treatment under both Ind AS and the Standards on Auditing.

Ind AS 10: adjusting events are adjusted for, non-adjusting events disclosed if material; SA 560 covers events up to the report date, plus events found before issuance.

Ind AS and Financial Reporting in Statutory Audit Interview Questions

11. Components of consolidated financial statements

• What are the components of consolidated financial statements (CFS)?

The consolidated balance sheet, profit and loss, statement of changes in equity, cash flow statement, and notes, under Ind AS 110.

12. Concept of diluted EPS

• Explain the concept of diluted EPS.

Ind AS 33: basic EPS adjusted for dilutive potential shares (convertibles, ESOPs, warrants); anti-dilutive instruments excluded.

13. Ind AS 115: scope and the five-step model

• What is the scope of Ind AS 115? Explain the five-step model.

Covers revenue from contracts with customers, excluding leases, insurance, and financial instruments. Five steps: identify the contract and performance obligations, determine and allocate the transaction price, and recognise revenue as obligations are satisfied. Expect audit follow-ups on cut-off and variable consideration.

14. Ind AS 116: finance lease accounting and exemptions

• How is a finance lease accounted for under Ind AS 116? What are the exemptions?

The lessee recognises a right-of-use asset and lease liability at the present value of payments; short-term leases (12 months or less, no purchase option) and low-value leases are exempt.

15. Ind AS 109: financial asset and financial liability measurement

• How are financial assets and financial liabilities measured under Ind AS 109?

Classification follows the business model and SPPI test: amortised cost, fair value through OCI, or fair value through profit or loss, with the expected credit loss model for impairment.

16. Capitalisation of borrowing costs

• When is interest on a loan taken for construction of a fixed asset capitalised?

Under Ind AS 23, borrowing costs directly attributable to a qualifying asset are capitalised while activities are in progress, pausing during extended interruptions.

17. Amortisation vs impairment, and indicators of impairment

• What is the difference between amortisation and impairment? What are the indicators of impairment?

Amortisation spreads an intangible’s cost over its life; impairment (Ind AS 36) writes it down when recoverable amount falls below carrying amount. Indicators: external (market declines, rising rates) and internal (obsolescence, restructuring).

18. Recent amendments in financial reporting, including Schedule III

• What are the recent amendments in financial reporting, including those to Schedule III?

Candidates report questions on the Schedule III amendments: ageing schedules, Benami property disclosures, crypto holdings, and ratio disclosures. Revise the latest MCA notifications first.

Articleship Experience and Practical Statutory Audit Interview Questions

Interviewers spend the most time here, since your answers reveal what you actually did.

19. Audit procedures for important areas (most asked for this role)

• What audit procedures would you perform for important areas?

Be specific: cash and bank (reconciliations, confirmations, surprise counts), fixed assets (physical verification, vouching additions), revenue and inventory (cut-off, observation), receivables (ageing, confirmations), payables (supplier confirmations, unrecorded liabilities), payroll (headcount reconciliation, statutory deductions).

20. How did you perform these in your articleship?

• How did you perform the following during your articleship: audit of cash and bank balance, audit of fixed assets, audit of revenue/inventory, audit of trade receivables, audit of trade payables, audit of payroll expense?

The credibility round: one real engagement per area, what you did, one issue you found. If exposure was thin somewhere, say so.

21. Limited review experience

• Have you been part of a limited review of any company?

A limited review (SRE 2410) gives moderate assurance through inquiry and analytical procedures, unlike an audit’s reasonable assurance. Describe the procedures if you have done one; otherwise explain the distinction.

Internal Controls, CARO, and HR Statutory Audit Interview Questions

Internal controls testing, with example, including IFC reporting

• How do you test internal controls? Give an example. What is IFC reporting?

Sample strong answer: take purchase-to-pay: test the maker-checker control on orders, match GRNs to invoices, and check dual authorisation above a threshold. Under Section 143(3)(i), the auditor reports on the adequacy and operating effectiveness of internal financial controls.

CARO 2020 major amendments

• What were the major amendments introduced by CARO 2020?

Benami property proceedings, revaluation of PPE and intangibles, loans to promoters and related parties, whistle-blower complaints, and the audit-trail requirement for accounting software.

HR questions

• Why statutory audit?
• Why this organisation?
• Are you comfortable working to strict deadlines?

Connect “why statutory audit” to your articleship’s breadth of exposure. For “why this organisation”, name something specific: client portfolio or sector strength. For deadlines, cite a busy-season filing you met.

What Interviewers Test with Statutory Audit Interview Questions

Three things: depth in materiality, going concern, and audit risk; the Ind AS-SA link, where strong interviewers pick topics needing both standards; and honesty about articleship.

How to Prepare for Statutory Audit Interview Questions

1. Read the key SAs: 200, 240, 265, 500, 501, 560, 570, 700, 701, 705, 706. Know each one’s objective.
2. Master Ind AS 115, 116, 109, 36, 23, 33, 10: one core principle and one audit procedure each.
3. Prepare three articleship stories: one area you know deeply, one issue you found, one deadline you met.
4. Revise CARO 2020 clause by clause.
5. Rehearse your 90-second “tell me about yourself”: it steers the whole interview.

For company-specific context, check the latest Standards on Auditing on ICAI’s official website.

FAQs on Statutory Audit Interview Questions

Is CARO 2020 still asked in statutory audit interviews?

Yes, alongside newer MCA and Schedule III changes. Check for later amendments before your interview.

How technical is the partner round?

Partners test judgment over definitions: going-concern and opinion case studies, your view on a tricky Ind AS treatment, and a difficult client situation.

What if my articleship was mostly in tax, not audit?

Be upfront, then show preparation: the SA list, the key Ind AS, and whatever assurance work you did. Firms hire for trainability.

Next step: browse more real interview experiences in our Interview Prep section, and use the free Study Timetable Generator to plan your revision of the Standards on Auditing and Ind AS.