Compliance KPIs for Government & Private Contractors

Contractors run the most paper-heavy compliance cycle of any business owner. You execute civil, electrical or mechanical works for CPWD, PWD, ZP, MES, NHAI, MAHAGENCO and private clients, and along the way you wear five compliance hats at once: deductee under 194C, deductor under 194C and 194Q, GST supplier of works-contract service, GST recipient under reverse charge for security and goods transport, and a frequent applicant for CA-certified turnover and bid-capacity certificates.

Miss one return and the next tender locks you out. The KPIs below are written in the order they hit you in a typical month so you can track them month-to-month.

1. Income Tax KPIs

The Income Tax Act 1961 — and the new Income Tax Act 2025 effective 1 April 2026 — keep the same pillars: pay advance tax on time, file an accurate return, and stay clean on cash. The KPIs below are the ones an audit officer pulls up first if your file lands on a scrutiny desk.

KPI / Compliance Item	Threshold & Action	Due Date	Source
Tax audit u/s 44AB	Mandatory if turnover crosses Rs 1 crore. Threshold rises to Rs 10 crore if cash receipts and payments are below 5% each.	30 Sep 2027	Sec 44AB / Sec 63 ITA 2025
Presumptive scheme u/s 44AD	Available if turnover is below Rs 3 crore and cash receipts are under 5%. Profit deemed at 8% (cash) or 6% (digital). Once you opt out, you cannot opt back in for 5 years.	ITR by 31 Jul 2027	Sec 44AD
Advance tax	If your tax liability exceeds Rs 10,000, pay 15% / 45% / 75% / 100% by the four installment dates.	15 Jun, 15 Sep, 15 Dec, 15 Mar	Sec 208–211
ITR filing	ITR-3 for proprietors, ITR-5 for firms and LLPs, ITR-6 for companies. Audit cases get an extra 90 days.	31 Oct 2027 / 31 Jul 2027	Sec 139(1)
Cash receipt cap (269ST)	You cannot accept more than Rs 2 lakh in cash from one person in a day or for a single transaction. Penalty is the same amount on the recipient.	Continuous	Sec 269ST
Cash payment cap (40A(3))	Expense paid in cash above Rs 10,000 per day per vendor is disallowed. Limit rises to Rs 35,000 for goods-carriage payments.	Continuous	Sec 40A(3)
Form 26AS / AIS reconciliation	Match every 194C credit and GST-TDS credit before filing the ITR. Government deductors are notorious for late Form 16A.	Quarterly	Rule 31AA / 114-I

2. TDS KPIs

TDS payments are due by the 7th of the next month (March is 30 April), and quarterly Form 26Q or 27EQ returns drive Form 16 / 16A on TRACES. Late filing of the return alone costs Rs 200 per day under Sec 234E.

KPI / Compliance Item	Threshold & Action	Due Date	Source
194C — Sub-contractors and labour	1% if the payee is an individual or HUF; 2% otherwise. Threshold is Rs 30,000 per bill or Rs 1 lakh aggregate in the FY.	7th of next month	Sec 194C
194Q — Goods purchase	0.1% on purchases above Rs 50 lakh from a single seller, but only if your turnover in the previous FY crossed Rs 10 crore.	7th of next month	Sec 194Q
194I — Site office and equipment rent	10% on plant and machinery rent, 10% on land or building rent, when rent exceeds Rs 2.4 lakh in the FY.	7th of next month	Sec 194I
194J — Architect, structural and project consultants	10% on professional fees above Rs 30,000 in the FY.	7th of next month	Sec 194J
Quarterly TDS return (Form 26Q)	Challan-wise and deductee-wise statement. Late filing alone costs Rs 200 per day under 234E.	31 Jul, 31 Oct, 31 Jan, 31 May	Rule 31A
Form 16A issuance	To every sub-contractor and vendor whose TDS you deducted. Must be downloaded from TRACES.	15 days from return due date	Rule 31

3. GST KPIs

GST is the most data-rich compliance regime — every invoice you raise and every invoice you receive sits on the network. Use GSTR-2B, not 2A, as your reconciliation base from FY 2022-23 onwards.

KPI / Compliance Item	Threshold & Action	Due Date	Source
Works-contract classification	Treated as a supply of service under Sec 2(119) CGST. Rate is 18% in most cases, 12% for certain affordable housing supplies and 5% for some specified government works.	Continuous	Notification 11/2017-CT(R)
GSTR-1 (outward supplies)	Monthly if turnover above Rs 5 crore; QRMP with monthly IFF if at or below Rs 5 crore.	11th / 13th of next month	Sec 37 CGST
GSTR-3B (tax payment)	Monthly or quarterly under QRMP. Tax in non-filing months goes through PMT-06.	20th / 22nd / 24th of next month	Sec 39
GSTR-2B → 3B reconciliation	Input credit is allowed only if the invoice appears in your GSTR-2B and the supplier has filed GSTR-1.	Before each 3B	Sec 16(2)(aa)
GSTR-7 / 7A — government TDS	Government departments deduct 2% GST TDS (1% CGST + 1% SGST) on contracts above Rs 2.5 lakh. Accept the credit on the portal every month or you lose it.	Monthly	Sec 51 CGST
E-way bill	Required for any movement of goods worth more than Rs 50,000 to site (steel, cement, machinery).	Before each movement	Rule 138
E-invoicing	Required if your aggregate turnover crossed Rs 5 crore in any FY since 2017-18.	On every B2B invoice	Rule 48(4)
GSTR-9 / 9C	Annual return if turnover above Rs 2 crore. Reconciliation statement if turnover above Rs 5 crore.	31 Dec 2027	Sec 44

4. Profession tax (Maharashtra)

Profession Tax is a state levy run by the Maharashtra Goods & Services Tax Department. There are two registrations and most businesses need both — one for the owner, one for the staff.

Registration	Who needs it / what you pay	Due date	Source
PTEC (Enrolment)	For the proprietor, partner, director, LLP or company. Flat Rs 2,500 per year for most non-salaried professions and businesses.	30 June	MahaGST PT Act 1975
PTRC (Registration)	For employers paying salary above Rs 7,500 p.m. (male) or Rs 25,000 p.m. (female). Slabs: Rs 175 p.m. for Rs 7,501–10,000 (male); Rs 200 p.m. plus Rs 300 in February if salary exceeds Rs 10,000. Annual ceiling Rs 2,500 per employee.	Last day of the next month	MahaGST PT Rules

5. Bookkeeping and the filing system

Section 44AA of the Income Tax Act and Section 35 (read with Rule 56) of the CGST Act set the bookkeeping baseline. For most non-professional businesses, books are required if income is above Rs 2.5 lakh or turnover above Rs 25 lakh in any of the three preceding years.

Minimum books to keep

• Cash book, bank book, journal and ledger — daily, on accrual basis (Sec 145 read with ICDS).
• Sales register and purchase register — invoice-wise, with HSN/SAC and GST.
• Stock register — opening, receipts, issues, closing. Mandatory under CGST Rule 56(2).
• Bills, vouchers, e-way bills and delivery challans behind every entry.
• Fixed asset register, block-wise, with the date the asset was put to use.
• TDS / TCS certificates downloaded from TRACES.
• Tender file with copies of every bid submitted, plus the bid-capacity, turnover, work-experience and solvency certificates issued by your CA.
• Site-wise measurement books and running-account bills with retention vs released split.
• Material reconciliation register — issued vs consumed vs balance at site.

How long to keep them

• Income Tax: 6 years from the end of the relevant Assessment Year (Sec 149). For reopened or search cases, up to 10 years.
• GST: 72 months from the due date of the annual return for the year (CGST Sec 36).
• Companies and LLPs: 8 financial years (Sec 128 Companies Act 2013 / corresponding LLP rules).

6. Sector-specific compliance traps

The four mistakes our team sees most often when we take over books from another firm:

7. Annual compliance calendar (FY 2026-27)

Month	Compliance milestones
April	TDS payment for March (30 Apr); GSTR-1 / 3B for March; PT employee deduction.
May	Q4 TDS return Form 26Q (31 May); Form 16A; SFT-005 / 61A (31 May).
June	Form 16 to employees (15 Jun); Q1 advance tax (15 Jun); PTEC payment (30 Jun).
July	Q1 TDS return (31 Jul); ITR for non-audit cases (31 Jul); QRMP option last month.
August	Routine GSTR-1 / 3B; e-invoice review.
September	Tax audit report u/s 44AB (30 Sep); Form 10B / 10BB (30 Sep) for trusts; Q2 advance tax (15 Sep).
October	Q2 TDS return (31 Oct); ITR for audit cases (31 Oct); GSTR-9 prep starts.
November	ITR for transfer-pricing cases (30 Nov).
December	Q3 advance tax (15 Dec); GSTR-9 / 9C filing (31 Dec).
January	Q3 TDS return (31 Jan); books reconciliation for FY closing.
February	Stock-take preparation; PT special slab (Rs 300 in Feb).
March	Q4 advance tax (15 Mar); Annexure V for GTAs (31 Mar); books closure; year-end TDS.