India-UK Free Trade Agreement: Exciting Opportunities for Chartered Accountants

India and the United Kingdom (UK) have formally signed the free trade agreement (FTA) in London on Thursday, to increase two-way trade to $112 billion by 2030. The agreement was signed by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds, in the presence of both the Prime Ministers.

The India-UK FTA ensures duty-free access for almost 99% of India’s exports to Britain. The FTA will cut tariffs on most products that are traded between India and the UK. The recent trade will open doors for exciting opportunities for professional services, especially in accounting and auditing.

With this FTA, Indian and UK accounting firms will work more closely together to offer services across borders. The Chartered Accountants can now widen the reach of their services to the UK market in Accounting and Bookkeeping, Tax Advisory, Internal Audit, Financial Consulting, etc.

Professionals must note that statutory audit rights, which include signing audit reports for companies, are not granted under the FTA. These rights depend on the local regulations and licensing requirements.

A Professional Services Working Group is also being set up to work on mutual recognition of qualifications (MRQs), so that in the future, Indian CAs may get recognised more easily in the UK.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is also planning to design an online certificate course on overseas outsourcing services for the UK. This will help CAs to meet UK accounting standards so that they can give their services according to such standards.