Diligence runs in a predictable order, and knowing the order lets a seller prepare the next stage while the current one is being reviewed. The whole thing is four to twelve weeks for a private company, and the variation is almost entirely in how ready the file was on day one.
Get quotes to sell my business
Weeks one and two: the list and the room
The buyer's advisers send a request list, the seller populates a data room, and the first questions come back within days of the first documents landing. A seller with a prepared package finishes this stage in a week; one starting from nothing spends a month and answers questions about why the file is incomplete.
Weeks three to six: the streams
Financial diligence rebuilds the earnings from source data. Legal reviews the contracts, the corporate record and the litigation. Tax checks the filings and the exposures. Commercial talks to the market and sometimes to customers, with your permission. Each produces questions, and the questions get more specific as they go, which is a sign of progress rather than of suspicion.
Weeks six to twelve: findings, drafting and closing
A red flag report or an early findings call surfaces anything that could change the price. The purchase agreement is negotiated in parallel, with the diligence findings feeding the warranties, the indemnities and the escrow. Then confirmatory work on anything outstanding, and closing. The last two weeks are almost always about disclosure schedules.
Questions people ask about M&A due diligence process
Can the due diligence process steps overlap?
They do, and they should. Legal and financial run in parallel, and the purchase agreement is drafted while diligence continues.
What causes the longest delays?
An incomplete file, a slow seller, and third parties: landlords, licensing authorities and lenders all move on their own timetables.
When is the due diligence process in mergers and acquisitions finished?
Technically at signing, though confirmatory diligence between signing and closing is common where there is a gap between the two.