COMPANIES (STATUTORY AUDITS) ACT 2018

SCHEDULE 1

SCHEDULE 1

“SCHEDULE 19

Section 1472

Standards Relating to Training and Qualifications for Approval of Individual as Statutory Auditor

1. An individual shall have attained university entrance or equivalent level and then—

(a) completed a course of theoretical instruction,

(b) undergone practical training, and

(c) passed an examination of professional competence which is of at least the standard required in the State for university final or equivalent examination level.

2. (1) The examination of professional competence referred to in paragraph 1 shall be such as guarantees the necessary level of theoretical knowledge of subjects relevant to statutory audit and the ability to apply such knowledge in practice. Part at least of that examination shall be in writing.

(2) The test of theoretical knowledge included in the examination shall include the following subjects in particular

(a) general accounting theory and principles;

(b) legal requirements and standards relating to the preparation of entity and group financial statements;

(c) international accounting standards;

(d) financial analysis;

(e) cost and management accounting;

(f) risk management and internal control;

(g) auditing and professional skills;

(h) legal requirements and professional standards relating to statutory audit and statutory auditors;

(i) international auditing standards as referred to in section 1526;

(j) professional ethics and independence.

3. The examination shall also include at least the following subjects in so far as they are relevant to auditing

(a) company law and corporate governance;

(b) the law of insolvency and similar procedures;

(c) tax law;

(d) civil and commercial law;

(e) social security law and employment law;

(f) information technology and computer systems;

(g) business, general and financial economics;

(h) mathematics and statistics;

(i) basic principles of the financial management of undertakings.

4. (1) In order to ensure the ability to apply theoretical knowledge in practice, a test of which is included in the examination, a trainee shall complete a minimum of 3 years practical training in, amongst others, the auditing of entity financial statements, group financial statements or similar financial statements. A substantial part of such practical training shall be in statutory audit work and at least two thirds of such practical training shall be completed with a statutory auditor or an audit firm approved in any Member State.

(2) All such training shall be carried out with persons who a recognised accountancy body is satisfied possess, to an adequate standard, the ability to provide practical training.”.

SCHEDULE 2

SCHEDULE 2

“SCHEDULE 20

Section 1484

Information required, by Chapter 5 of Part 27, to be Supplied and Entered in Public Register

Statutory auditors

1. In relation to a statutory auditor, the public register shall contain at least the following information

(a) the name and address of the auditor;

(b) the number under which the auditor is entered in that register;

(c) if applicable—

(i) the name and address and the website address (if any) of the statutory audit firm by which the auditor is employed, or with whom he or she is associated as a partner or otherwise, and

(ii) the number under which that statutory audit firm is entered in that register;

(d) the name and address of the recognised accountancy body responsible for the regulation of the auditor;

(e) if he or she is so registered with one or more recognised accountancy bodies, counterpart authorities or third-country competent authorities—

(i) particulars of his or her registration—

(I) as a statutory auditor, with each recognised accountancy body or counterpart authority and the name of each such body or authority, and

(II) as an auditor, with each third-country competent authority and the name of such authority,

and

(ii) the number under which he or she is registered with each such body or authority;

(f) without prejudice to subparagraph (e), with regard to the auditor’s status (if such be the case) as a Member State statutory auditor, the name and address of each counterpart authority responsible, in relation to him or her, for—

(i) approval as referred to in Article 3 of the Audit Directive,

(ii) quality assurance as referred to in Article 29 of the Audit Directive and Article 26 of Regulation (EU) No 537/2014,

(iii) investigations and sanctions as referred to in Chapter VII of the Audit Directive and Articles 23 and 24 of Regulation (EU) No 537/2014,

(iv) public oversight as referred to in Article 32 of the Audit Directive, and

(v) performing the functions provided for in Regulation (EU) No 537/2014 and for ensuring the provisions of that Regulation are applied as referred to in Article 20 of that Regulation.

Statutory audit firms and audit firms approved in another Member State

2. In relation to a statutory audit firm, the public register shall contain at least the following information

(a) the name and address of the audit firm;

(b) the number under which the audit firm is entered in that register;

(c) the legal form of the audit firm;

(d) the primary contact person in the audit firm and contact details;

(e) the address of each office in the State of the audit firm and the website address (if any) of the audit firm;

(f) the name of every individual employed by or associated as partner or otherwise with the audit firm who is approved as a statutory auditor under Part 27;

(g) the number under which that individual is entered in the register;

(h) the name and address of the recognised accountancy body responsible for the regulation of the audit firm in the State;

(i) the names and addresses of the owners of, or as appropriate, shareholders in, the audit firm;

(j) the names and addresses of the directors, or other members of, as appropriate—

(i) the board of directors,

(ii) the board of management, or

(iii) other administrative or management body,

of the audit firm (but where the audit firm comprises a partnership with no management structure, the provision of the address of each individual named, under subparagraph (f), as partner suffices);

(k) if applicable, the fact of the audit firm’s membership of a network and either—

(i) a list of the names and addresses of member firms and affiliates of the network, or

(ii) an indication of where such information is publicly available;

(l) if the audit firm is so registered with one or more counterpart authorities or third-country competent authorities—

(i) particulars of the firm’s registration—

(I) as a statutory audit firm, with each counterpart authority and the name of the authority,

(II) as an audit firm, with such third-country competent authority and the name of such authority, and

(III) as an audit firm approved in another Member State, who has registered in accordance with Article 3a of the Audit Directive,

and

(ii) the number under which the firm is registered with each such authority;

(m) without prejudice to subparagraph (l), with regard to the audit firm’s status (if such be the case) as a Member State statutory audit firm, the name and address of each counterpart authority responsible, in relation to it, for—

(i) approval as referred to in Article 3 of the Audit Directive,

(ii) where the audit firm is registered in the public register of another Member State pursuant to Article 3a of the Audit Directive and the State is its home Member State—

(I) the fact that the firm is so registered, and

(II) the name of the host Member State and the counterpart authority in the host Member State,

(iii) quality assurance as referred to in Article 29 of the Audit Directive and Article 26 of Regulation (EU) No 537/2014,

(iv) investigations and sanctions as referred to in Chapter VII of the Audit Directive and Articles 23 and 24 of Regulation (EU) No 537/2014,

(v) public oversight as referred to in Article 32 of the Audit Directive, and

(vi) performing the functions provided for in Regulation (EU) No 537/2014 and for ensuring the provisions of that Regulation are applied as referred to in Article 20 of that Regulation;

(n) where the audit firm is registered in the public register pursuant to Article 3a(3) of the Audit Directive with the State as its host Member State—

(i) the fact that the firm is so registered, and

(ii) the name of the home Member State and the counterpart authority in the home Member State.

Third-country auditors and third-country audit entities

3. (1) In relation to the case provided by section 1573 of the registration of a third-country auditor or third-country audit entity, the public register shall contain at least the information specified in the provisions of paragraph 1 or, as the case may be, 2 (as, in either case, those provisions are applied by subparagraph (2)).

(2) The provisions of paragraph 1 or 2, as the case may be, apply for the purposes of this paragraph save so much of them as are inapplicable in the case of a third-country auditor or third-country audit entity, as appropriate.

(3) Third-country auditors or third-country audit entities so registered shall be clearly indicated in the register as such and not as statutory auditors or audit firms.

Individual identification number and storage of information in electronic form

4. (1) There shall be assigned an individual identification number to each individual, firm and entity that is being entered in the public register, being—

(a) in a case where the information entered in respect of the individual or firm is that provided under section 1485, the number notified under subsection (2)(b)(i) of that section to the Registrar,

(b) in any other case, such individual identification number as, subject to subparagraph (2), is determined and allocated by the Registrar,

and references in paragraphs 1 and 2 to the number under which any of the foregoing persons is entered in the register shall be read as references to that identification number.

(2) Instead of its allocating a number for the purposes of subparagraph (1)(b) that has been determined by it, the Registrar may—

(a) in specifying under any provision of Part 27 the form in which information is to be notified to it for registration (and the provision concerned of that Part does not itself provide for the notification of such a number), include in that specification a requirement that the form, as completed, includes an identification number allocated to the subject of the notification by the notifier of the information, and

(b) if the number so provided in that form is satisfactory for the purpose of distinguishing the subject from other registrants, allocate, for the purposes of subparagraph (1)(b), that number so provided.

(3) The information contained in that register shall be stored in electronic form and be capable of being accessed by members of the public by electronic means.

Definition

5. In this Schedule, ‘address’, in relation to an individual, firm or entity, means the individual’s, firm’s or entity’s usual business address.”.