Single Audit Threshold: When a Local Government Needs One (2 CFR 200.501)

By Web Asset House Studio · October 29, 2026

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How we wrote this: A plain-English summary of 2 CFR 200.501 and 200.512, as published in the current eCFR, checked October 29, 2026. General information, not legal or audit advice; your award terms and agency guidance control.

The threshold

Under 2 CFR 200.501(a)–(b), a non-federal entity that expends $1,000,000 or more in federal awards during its fiscal year must have a single audit, or a program-specific audit where allowed, for that year.

Three things to note:

The test is expenditures, not awards received.
It's measured over your fiscal year.
Under 200.501(e), below $1,000,000 you're exempt from federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in 200.503. But your records must still be available for review by the federal agency, pass-through entity and GAO.

Subaward money counts too. Under 200.501(g), awards expended as a subrecipient are subject to audit, while payments for goods or services as a contractor generally are not.

Program-specific audit (200.501(c))

You may choose a program-specific audit instead of a single audit if:

you spend federal awards under only one federal program (excluding research and development); and
that program's statutes, regulations or award terms don't require a financial statement audit.

When it's due (2 CFR 200.512(a))

Submit the audit, the data collection form and the reporting package by the earlier of:

30 calendar days after you receive the auditor's report(s); or
nine months after the end of the audit period.

If the date falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it moves to the next business day. The Federal Audit Clearinghouse (FAC) is the repository of record. Make copies available for public inspection, and keep protected personal information out of the package.

Get ready

Track federal expenditures by Assistance Listing number across departments.
Keep cost documentation that meets allowable cost rules.
Records generally must be kept three years from the final financial report under 2 CFR 200.334; see SF-425 and closeout.

Sources

Free weekly local-government grant list: if you work with or for a city, county or tribal government, Grant Radar, also from Web Asset House, is a free Monday email of up to ten Grants.gov opportunities open to local governments, each linked to the official listing. You confirm by email first, and every issue has a one-click unsubscribe. See federal grants closing in the next 45 days.