Auditors have rights during the audit. Can an individual auditor carry out a statutory audit? Regulations from the OECD

.
1. Auditing activities are:
1) activities related to enterprise financial management and analysis of economic activities;
2) entrepreneurial activity for independent verification of accounting and financial (accounting) statements of organizations and individual entrepreneurs;
3) activities related to the preparation of financial and tax reporting, accounting of property and business transactions.

2. The main purpose of auditing activities in accordance with the Law “On Auditing Activities” is:
1) studying the results of economic activities and developing proposals for their improvement;
2) drawing up and filling out accounting (financial) statements, tax calculations, conducting business transactions in accounting;
3) expressing an opinion on the reliability of the financial (accounting) statements of the audited entities and the compliance of the accounting procedure with the legislation of the Russian Federation.

3. The external auditor must act in the interests of:
1) all users of financial statements;
2) economic entity;
3) state tax service.

4. For which economic entities an audit is mandatory:
1) limited liability company;
2) representation of a foreign legal entity;
3) an organization with the value of balance sheet assets at the end of the reporting year exceeding 200,000 times the minimum wage established by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

5 . What types of work does an audit firm have the right to carry out under a concluded agreement with an economic entity:
1) provide assistance in maintaining accounting records and conduct mandatory audits;
2) automate accounting and introduce information technology;
3) provide consultations on tax legislation, prepare reports and conduct mandatory audits.

6 . Which service is compatible with conducting a mandatory audit of an economic entity:
1) accounting;
2) legal consultations;
3) restoration of accounting;
4) preparation of tax returns.

7. In the case of a mandatory audit under an agreement with a customer, can an audit firm prepare an accounting policy for it:
1) yes;
2) no.

9. Which service is incompatible with conducting a mandatory audit of an economic entity:

1)maintenance of accounting;
2) consulting on accounting;
3) assessment of investment projects;
4) training of accounting personnel.

10 . When concluding a contract for a mandatory audit, include in it a clause on the mandatory issuance of an audit report:
1) necessary, because if this is not done, the auditor will not take responsibility and express a final opinion on the financial statements;
2) recommended, since otherwise the check may be useless;
3) does not make sense, since the auditor is obliged to do this in accordance with Russian auditing standards.

11. Economic entities that have the organizational and legal form of an open joint-stock company are subject to mandatory annual inspection:
1) with more than one hundred shareholders;
2) with more than a thousand shareholders;
3) regardless of the number of shareholders and the size of the authorized capital.

12. . For organizations of what legal form is an annual audit of accounting (financial) statements required:
1) open joint stock company;
2) open and closed joint stock company;
3) closed joint stock company.

13. Mandatory audit is carried out:
1) auditors who have auditor qualification certificates, under an employment contract with the audited organization;
2) auditors-entrepreneurs without forming a legal entity;
3) audit organizations licensed to carry out auditing activities

14. The concepts of “audit” and “revision”:
1) identical;
2) are different.

15. Audit:

1) function of managing the activities of economic entities;
2) method of implementing non-departmental financial control;
3) the main means of monitoring the activities of business structures.

16. The main purpose of the audit is:
1) correction of all errors in accounting and reporting;
2) identifying fraud and errors in accounting and reporting;
3) establishing the reliability of accounting (financial) statements.
Answer 3

17 . Is there duplication of functions between tax authorities and audit firms:
1) yes;
2) no;
3) another answer.

18 . The need for an audit is caused by:
1) the need to obtain information for management;
2) the dependence of the consequences of decisions made on the quality of information;
3) the need to confirm the reliability and truthfulness of financial statements.

Answer 3
19 . Mandatory audit is:
1) audit by decision of the management of an economic entity;
2) audit by decision of the meeting of shareholders;
3) audit provided for by federal laws, presidential decrees and decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation.

20 . The essence of the audit is:
1) checking accounting and reporting;
2)providing assistance in calculating taxes and consulting on financial and legal issues.

21. Auditor's task:

1) detect and prevent errors;
2) assist management in preparing financial statements;
3) check the financial statements and express an opinion on their reliability.
Answer 3

22 . Tax services adjust control plans in accordance with the results of audit reports:
1) yes;
2) no;
3) depending on the results of inspections (additional payments to the budget).

23. Is it possible to conduct an audit of state authorities and management bodies, local government bodies:
1) the audit applies only to commercial structures; government bodies are audited by the State Audit Office;
2) yes, this is provided for by the Federal Law “On Auditing Activities”;
3) yes, only the Federal Law “On Auditing Activities” does not provide for this.

24 . Current control over the implementation of economic policy and the quality of enterprise management is:
1) internal audit;
2) external audit.

25 . Mandatory audit is carried out in the following cases:
1) in cases established by law;
2) by decision of an economic entity;
3) on behalf of financial or tax authorities.

26 . The difference between internal audit and external audit is:
1) verification methods;
2) objects of inspection;
3)organization of work and reporting.

27 . Relationship between auditor and client:
1) are based on voluntariness and compensation;
2) determined by the management of the audit firm;
3) determined by the management of the economic entity.

4) Determined by agreement, by agreement of both parties

28 . An initiative audit is carried out by decision:
1) the authorized federal body for state regulation of auditing activities;
2) economic entity.

29 . Can an auditor who is the founder of the company being audited conduct an audit:
1)maybe, if the auditor has a license;
2)maybe;
3) can't.

30 . When conducting an audit, the head of the economic entity being audited is obliged to:
1) limit the range of issues to be considered by auditors;
2) stipulate and establish in writing the terms and procedure for payment of audit services;
3) promptly eliminate violations of the accounting procedure and preparation of accounting (financial) statements identified by the audit.

31 . To carry out auditing activities you must obtain a license:
1) yes;
2) no.

32 . An economic entity is obliged to provide interested parties with:
1) the auditor’s conclusion based on the results of the audit;
2) written information on the results of the inspection;
3) report on the results of the audit.

33 . Indicate for which organizations an audit is mandatory:
1) audit firm;
2) open joint stock company;
3) an entrepreneur without forming a legal entity;
4) limited liability company.

34 . How often is each auditor who has a qualification certificate required to undergo training in advanced training programs:
1) once every two years;
2) during each calendar year, starting from the year following the year of receipt of the certificate;
3) once every three years.

Answer 3
35 . Responsibility for the preparation and content of tax returns and other reporting after an audit is carried out by:
1) audit organization;
2) economic entity;
3) an audit organization and an economic entity jointly.

36 . During an audit, auditors have the right to:
1) obtain from officials of the audited entity oral and written explanations on issues that arose during the audit;
2) involve, on a contractual basis, auditors who provided services for the restoration and maintenance of accounting records to this economic entity to participate in the audit;
3) involve, on a contractual basis, auditors who provided reporting services to participate in the audit.
Answer 1

37 . The audited economic entity has the right to receive from the auditor:
1) information on legal requirements relating to the conduct of an audit;
2) assistance in preparing financial statements;
3) signature on confidentiality.

Answer 3
40. The auditor does not have the right:
1) transfer to third parties the information received during the audit process;
2) keep a copy of the audit report after the audit;
3) consult the client orally.

41 . When conducting an audit, auditors are required to:
1) comply with the labor regulations established by the inspected economic entity;
2) comply with the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation;
3) establish payment for services depending on the achievement of a certain result.

42 . When conducting an audit, the auditor should be guided by:
1) international standards;
2) national standards;
3) any other standards.
Answer 1

43. Why are audit standards (rules) being developed:
1) to assess the quality of the audit;
2) to draw up programs for qualifying exams in the “Audit” section for the right to engage in auditing activities;
3) to determine the extent of the auditor’s responsibility.

44 . During the planning and conduct of the audit, the auditor must demonstrate:
1) professional skepticism;
2) gullibility;
3) faith in the unconditional honesty of the management of an economic entity.

45 . Auditing standards are:
1) uniform requirements for the procedure for carrying out audit activities, design and assessment of the quality of the audit and related services, as well as for the procedure for training auditors and assessing their qualifications;
2) regulatory documents mandatory for all economic entities, including audit organizations;
3) regulatory documents, mandatory only for audit organizations.

46 . What guarantees compliance with audit standards in the process of auditing activities:
1) high level of audit quality and reliability of results;
2) independence of the audit organization;
3) the possibility of increasing the price of audit services.

47. What are the abbreviated names of international auditing standards:
1) GAAP;
2) ISA;
3) IAG.

Answer 2
48. Auditing activities in the Russian Federation are regulated by:
1) the state;
2) public professional audit organizations;
3) contracts for the provision of audit services.
Answer 1

49 . The following persons are allowed to be certified for the right to engage in auditing activities:
1) having a higher technical education and 5 years of work experience as an auditor;
2) having a higher economic education and 3 years of work experience in the specialty;
3) having a secondary specialized (economic or legal) education and work experience as an auditor of at least 5 years.

50. The development of auditing standards is entrusted to:
1) the authorized federal body for state regulation of auditing activities;
2) educational and methodological centers according to the list approved by the President of the Russian Federation.
Answer 1

51. State regulation of auditing activities in the Russian Federation is carried out by:
1) professional audit associations;
2) Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation;
3) Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation.
Answer 3

52 . The authorized federal body for state regulation of auditing activities was created and operates under:
1)President of the Russian Federation;
2) Government of the Russian Federation;
3) Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation;
4) State Duma.

Answer 2
53 . Individual entrepreneur:
1) cannot engage in auditing activities;
2) can engage in individual auditing activities after registration as an entrepreneur;
3) can engage in auditing activities after receiving a certificate, license and registration as an individual entrepreneur;
4)can conduct a mandatory audit after receiving a certificate, license and registration as an individual entrepreneur only.
Answer 3

54 . The procedure for certification for the right to carry out auditing activities is approved:
1) an authorized federal body;
2) The Government of the Russian Federation;
3) professional audit associations.

55 . The auditor, having carried out the audit and handed over the audit report to the client, refused to provide him with information about the regulations on which the observations and conclusions were based. He referred to the fact that this work was not covered by the audit contract. Rate his actions:
1) this condition must be provided for in the contract;
2) The Federal Law “On Auditing Activities” does not give the client the right to receive such information;
3) the auditor is obliged to provide the client with such information.

56 . An open joint stock company has been operating for two years. So far, the number of shareholders is less than 100. Is it subject to the requirement to conduct a mandatory audit if management does not need the services of auditors:
1) yes;
2) no;
3) at the discretion of the management of the joint stock company.

57 . An economic entity invited an auditor to verify the accuracy of the report for the reporting period. Does the auditor have the right to contact the client for information beyond the reporting period:
1) the auditor checks only what the client requests;
2) yes, this is decided by the auditor based on the circumstances of the audit;
3) if the auditor did not undertake such obligations, this should not be done.

58 . In a controversial situation, the degree of guilt and responsibility of the auditor to the client is determined:
1) by court;
2) by agreement between the auditor and the client;
3) tax office.

59 . When taking inventory of cash from the cashier, an audit revealed a shortage of a large amount of cash. Auditor actions:
1) remove the cashier from work and issue a negative audit report;
2) assess the materiality of the “Cash” item in the financial statements and, depending on this, make decisions on the audit report;

3) give a negative conclusion and transfer the materials to law enforcement agencies.

60. In the contract for the audit, the parties, at the insistence of the audit firm, recorded the following clause: “The auditor and the audit firm do not bear financial responsibility for the reliability of the audit report.” Assess the situation:
1) if the client does not object, everything is correct;
2) the responsibility of auditors is determined by the contract, therefore, everything is correct;
3) this is contrary to current regulations.

The rights that auditors have can be divided into two groups.

1. The right to conduct audits with the issuance of an official

auditor's report. This right is available to individuals - certified auditors. If they conduct independent audit activities and have received an audit license, auditors must have a certificate of state registration of business activities and be included in a special state register of auditors.

• 2. Rights in relations with the client:
  • -auditors have the right to independently determine the forms and methods of verification;
  • - carry out a full check of financial and economic documentation, documentation on the availability of amounts of money, material assets, and securities.
  • - upon written request, receive all necessary information from third parties
  • -on a contractual basis, attract auditors working independently or in other companies and other specialists to participate in the audit;
  • - if the audited entity does not provide the necessary documentation, as well as the failure of the state bodies that entrusted the audit to ensure the personal safety of the auditor and his family members, if necessary, the auditor has the right to refuse to conduct the audit. Danilevsky Yu.A., Shapiguzov S.M., Remizov N.A., Starovoitova E.V. Audit: Textbook. allowance. - M.: ID FBK-PRESS, 2012. - 470 s.

Auditors do not have the right:

• - engage in business activities other than auditing and related activities;
• -disclose information obtained during the audit process to third parties.
• -conduct an audit if there is any dependence between the auditor and the economic entity (related, economic or other dependence), namely: a) if the auditors are the founders, owners, shareholders, managers and other officials of the audited economic entity who are responsible for the preparation of financial statements, or are closely related or related to these persons; b) if the audit firm is the founder, owner, shareholder of an economic entity; c) if economic entities are for the audit firm its founders, owners, shareholders, creditors, insurers, subsidiaries, branches and representative offices, or if this audit firm has a share in their capital; d) if auditors and audit firms provided this economic entity with services for restoration and accounting, for the preparation of financial statements, they also cannot conduct an audit.

Responsibilities of auditors. When considering the responsibilities of the auditor, it is worth keeping in mind that they carry out financial control, but their functions do not include tax control and control over the use of social insurance funds and other extra-budgetary funds. However, errors found in calculations with extra-budgetary funds and taxation, which were identified from accounting data and resulted in distortion of reporting, must be presented to the customer and reflected in the audit report if they are not corrected.

Auditors are required to:

• - provide the customer with information about those legislative, instructional and other materials that confirm the correctness of the auditors’ conclusions about the presence of distortions;
• -strictly comply with the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation when carrying out audit activities;
• -immediately inform the customer or government body that has entrusted the audit of the impossibility of further participation in it in the absence of an appropriate license, if there are reasons that do not allow the audit, as well as the need to attract additional auditors;
• -qualifiedly conduct audits and provide other audit services;
• - ensure the safety of documents received and compiled by them during the audit, and not disclose their contents without the consent of the owner of the audited economic entity, except for cases expressly provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

Thus, we can conclude that the rights and obligations of auditors are strictly regulated and enshrined in the legislation of the Russian Federation. Only auditors who have a license, have passed certification and state registration of business activities, and are also included in the state register of auditors have the right to conduct an audit. The results of the audit are confidential and cannot be disclosed to third parties.

1. What can an auditor ask when checking cash transactions?

1.1. Everything related to cash transactions.

2. Does the auditor have the right to copy documents in 3 copies during an audit? Thank you!

2.1. Good afternoon. Yes, he has the right. this is not prohibited by law.

3. How to hire a payroll audit auditor.

3.1. It is necessary to conclude an appropriate agreement with him

4. Please tell me, Four founders established an LLC in equal shares of 25%, one of the founders is a director, after a year he fires the chief accountant, who is also a founder and wants to conduct an audit, who should pay for the auditor’s services if the two founders are against it.

4.1. Good afternoon, Alena!
This is one of the typical dead-end situations, when half are for and half are against. Therefore, the decision-making procedure must be described in the Charter or there must be a separate document on the procedure for conducting an audit.

5. Hello, I have been serving in the Federal Penitentiary Service since 2010, for what period can auditors perform an audit?
THX.

Hello, I have been serving in the Federal Penitentiary Service since 2010, for what period can auditors carry out an audit? What auditors and checking what or whom? Please clarify your question.

6. An NFO employee has a qualification certificate as an auditor and is a member of the SRO. Can he work in an organization as the Director of the Tax Planning and IFRS Department (with audits of accounting and tax accounting) or must he work as an auditor in order not to have his certificate revoked? He undergoes annual training. Thank you!
Olga.

6.1. Dear Olga, individual auditors do not have the right to engage in any other business activity other than conducting an audit and providing services provided for by audit legislation.
Sincerely, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences Yuris Korolev

7. Hello! We had an audit in December 2017! The auditors indicated which points needed to be changed. The supply agreement itself within the framework of the state defense order was signed in December 2016. Tell me, would it be correct if we conclude an additional agreement in December 2017, and set the validity period from December 19, 2016?

7.1. Yes it is possible. In this case, in the text of the agreement, make a reference to clause 2 of Art. 425 Civil Code of the Russian Federation
Article 425 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Validity of the agreement
2. The parties have the right to establish that the terms of the agreement they have concluded apply to their relations that arose before the conclusion of the agreement, unless otherwise established by law or follows from the essence of the relevant relations.

8. The organization has existed since 2011. I have been working there as the head of the HR department since 2015. I discovered that there is no original employment contract with the general director, but only a certified copy. The director is one of the founders. The director has now resigned. There will be an audit soon. Will the auditor accept a certified copy of the employment contract with the general director? Will there be any comments?

8.1. Good afternoon. If this agreement is properly certified, then it has legal force and will be accepted by the audit company. Good luck to you.

8.2. Good afternoon, Elena Sergeevna!

The question may arise where the original employment contract is located. If you have the opportunity, you can sign an agreement with the director.

All the best to you! Good luck resolving your issue!

9. The auditor audited the manager’s advance reports in order to collect from him the debt on accountable amounts to the individual entrepreneur

Thanks for the answer.

9.1. Hello. The auditor's report will be assessed in conjunction with other evidence confirming the fact that funds were spent.

10. The auditor audited the manager’s advance reports in order to collect from him the debt on accountable amounts to the individual entrepreneur

Will such an audit opinion be valid if in the advance reports the signature on their approval was never put by the individual entrepreneur himself, and instead of the individual entrepreneur everywhere, a hook instead of a signature or a facsimile was affixed and in general it was forged by a person close to the individual entrepreneur

Thank you for your answer / Irina.

10.1. In court, not only the result of the audit, but rather the primary documents will be valid. There you will prove that you did not actually receive the money on account.

11. Can auditors require the originals of HOA documents (minutes of meetings, boards, agreements with organizations, contract agreements, accounting documents) to be taken away for inspection outside the HOA premises? What document regulates this situation? Thank you very much in advance.

11.1. Auditors do not have the right to demand original documents from you. This is not regulated by law. How can you refer to the law if there is none? They are obliged to indicate to you the law on the basis of which they require the original documents. If auditors perform an examination of documents, then the expert will need the originals. But you will provide them according to the inventory report, where the receiving party will assume responsibility for their loss.

12. Do auditors have the right to demand all original documents of the HOA (minutes of meetings, boards, agreements with organizations, contract agreements, all financial accounting documents) to be taken away: to carry out an inspection outside the premises of the HOA?

12.1. Contract agreements, all financial documents of the accounting department) for removal: carry out an inspection outside the premises of the HOA? if you are transferring documents, then they must be transferred according to the act or copies of accounting documents in the originals are better not to transfer.

13. Mom is an auditor. I came to check the hookah bar. At the end of her work she had to take a photo. To do this you had to go to the window. There was a glass table, with another glass table on top of it. On her way out, she tripped over a table leg and the top table fell. The corner of the table broke. The manager announced the amount to be paid 5000 rubles. Should she pay for the broken table?

13.1. Formally, of course, she must compensate for the damage in accordance with Article 1064 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Another thing is the amount of damage. If you don't agree, you can challenge it.

14. An auditor for a fund investment specialist received an offer from a mutual fund to conduct a mandatory audit of financial (accounting) accounting. Can an individual auditor accept this?

14.1. Hello. Only if he is an individual entrepreneur can he conduct a mandatory audit. Good luck and all the best to you.

15. If the organization invited an auditor to verify the accuracy of the report for the reporting period. Does the auditor have the right to contact the client for information beyond the reporting period?

15.1. Yes, he has the right

16. In what cases is a mandatory audit required in an open joint stock company if management does not need the services of auditors?

16.1. See the Law of the Russian Federation "On Joint Stock Companies"

17. Does the auditor have the right to access personal data of patients (full name, date of birth, diagnosis) of the hospital during a routine audit?

17.1. Yes, the inspector has such a right, but he does not have the right to disclose it.

18. What methods of control can the owner of a federal state unitary enterprise exercise?
Can the owner suddenly send some kind of “commission” to “inspect certain issues of the activities of the federal state unitary enterprise” and “execute the instructions” of the owner? As far as I understand the law on GIMUPs, control should be carried out only by auditors who have passed a competitive selection. There is nothing in the law about any commissions.

18.1. Federal State Unitary Enterprise - control can only be exercised by the state. supervisory authorities.

19. Our HOA hired an auditor to audit the accountant. The cost of the service was 5,000 rubles. The chairman announced that we must pay an additional 39% to this amount, and the payment will be 6950 rubles. Tell me what kind of interest this is?

19.2. so find out why 39%

20. Does the bank’s internal auditor have the right to come for unannounced inspections not to the cash desk clerk, but repeatedly to the acting cash desk clerk when the cash desk clerk is on vacation?

20.1. Hello, yes, of course.

21. I want to hire auditors (not a labor inspectorate) to check my employer to see if my salary is calculated correctly. Since the salary consists of many components and is calculated using a complex formula that none of the employees really knows. Please tell me, will the employer be required to provide all the necessary documents to the auditors (including the Regulations on the calculation of salary)?

21.1. The employer was obliged to familiarize you with the wage regulations; you cannot hire an auditor to check the employer; if you do not agree with his actions, contact the State Tax Inspectorate, the prosecutor's office, or the court.

22. Tell me, can homeowners hire a housing and communal services audit? And Can an accountant conduct an audit without an auditor's certificate?

22.1. No, they can't! But they can complain about their management to the State Housing Inspectorate or the prosecutor’s office.

23. I wanted to know what an auditor can ask when checking an employee conducting cash transactions?

23.1. Everything related to your responsibilities according to the job description.

24. Can I, as a member of the Company (LLC, 16%), contact an individual auditor for an appropriate audit, without convening a general meeting of participants, roughly speaking, without informing them.

Auditing activities in the Russian Federation are regulated by the following legislative documents :

1. When conducting an audit, audit organizations and individual auditors have the right :

a) independently determine the forms and methods of the audit based on the requirements of regulatory acts of the Russian Federation, as well as the specific terms of the agreement with the audited entity;

b) check the audited entity’s documentation in full on financial and economic activities, the availability of cash, securities, material assets, receive oral and written explanations on issues that have arisen and additional information necessary for the audit;

c) receive, at the written request of the audited persons, information necessary for the audit from third parties;

d) involve, on a contractual basis, individual auditors, audit organizations, as well as other specialists, with the exception of the persons specified in article"Independence of auditors, audit organizations and individual auditors" of the draft of this federal law;

e) refuse to conduct an audit if the audited entity fails to provide all the necessary information.

2. When conducting an audit, audit organizations and individual auditors are obliged :

a) strictly comply with the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation when carrying out audit activities;

b) immediately inform the person with whom the agreement is concluded about the audit: about the impossibility of participating in the audit of this person due to the circumstances provided for by this federal law and excluding the possibility of conducting an audit; on the need to involve additional auditors (specialists) in the audit due to a significant amount of work or any other circumstances that arose after the conclusion of the contract;

c) conduct qualified audits, as well as provide audit-related services;

d) ensure the safety of documents received and compiled by them during the audit, and not disclose their contents without the consent of the owner (manager) of the audited entity, except for cases provided for by legislative acts of the Russian Federation;

e) provide the audited entity upon request with information about the requirements of regulations and all-Russian rules (standards) of auditing activities regarding the conduct of an audit.

In the rights and responsibilities of the audited entities during the audit, determine that:

1. When conducting an audit the audited entity has the right :

a) receive from an individual auditor (audit organization) complete information about the legal requirements relating to the conduct of an audit;

b) after reading the conclusion of the individual auditor (audit organization), receive information about the regulations on which the comments and conclusions of the individual auditor (audit organization) are based.

2. When conducting an audit the audited entity is obliged :

a) create conditions for the individual auditor (audit organization) for the timely and complete conduct of the audit, provide all the documentation necessary for its conduct, and also give, upon request, the individual auditor (audit organization) clarifications and explanations in oral and written form;

b) promptly eliminate violations of the accounting procedures and preparation of accounting (financial) statements identified by the audit;

c) provide assistance to audit organizations in the timely and complete conduct of audits;

d) provide, upon oral or written request from audit organizations, explanations and confirmations, including written ones;

e) an audited entity subject to a mandatory audit does not have the right to evade or interfere with its conduct and is obliged to enter into agreements for conducting a mandatory audit with audit organizations within the time limits established by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

3. It is prohibited to take any actions in relation to an audit organization or an individual auditor in order to limit the range of issues to be clarified during the audit.

Audit Responsibilities

The auditor is responsible for formulating and expressing an opinion on the reliability of financial (accounting) statements.

Responsibility for the preparation and presentation of financial (accounting) statements lies with the management of the audited entity. An audit of financial (accounting) statements does not relieve the management of the audited entity from such responsibility.

According to Art. 20 of Law No. 307-FZ provides for disciplinary measures against audit organizations and auditors.

At the same time, audit organizations and their managers, individual auditors, audited persons and persons subject to mandatory audit may bear criminal, administrative and civil liability.

In the event of disclosure of an audit secret by an audit organization, an individual auditor, an independent auditor, as well as other persons who have received access to audit secrets on the basis of federal laws, the person to whom audit services were provided has the right to demand compensation from the guilty party for losses caused in the manner established by the legislation of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

The COA may take the following disciplinary action:

1) issue an order obliging a member of the Board of Directors to eliminate violations identified as a result of an external audit of the quality of his work and establishing a time frame for eliminating such violations;

2) issue a warning to the member of the Board of Directors in writing about the inadmissibility of violating the requirements of the Federal Law “On Auditing”, auditing standards, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, and the code of professional ethics for auditors;

3) impose a fine on a member of the COA;

4) make a decision to suspend the membership of an audit organization, an auditor in the SAI for a period until they eliminate the violations identified, but not more than 180 calendar days from the day following the day the decision to suspend membership was made;

5) make a decision on the exclusion of the audit organization, the auditor from the members of the Board of Directors;

6) apply other measures established by the internal documents of the SOA.

Auditor in respect of which a decision has been made to suspend his membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors, during the entire period of validity of such a decision has no right :

1) participate in audit activities;

3) participate in the work of elected and specialized bodies of a self-regulatory organization of auditors.

Audit organization, an individual auditor in respect of whom a decision has been made to suspend their membership in the Board of Directors, during the entire period of validity of such a decision, does not have the right to:

1) enter into contracts for the provision of audit services;

2) make changes to contracts for the provision of audit services concluded before the self-regulatory organization of auditors makes the said decision, entailing an increase in the obligations of the audit organization or individual auditor.

At least 7 working days before the expiration of the period for which the membership of the audit organization, auditor in the Board of Auditors is suspended, the Board of Directors makes a decision on restoring the membership of the audit organization, auditor in the Board of Directors or on their expulsion from members of the Board of Directors.

In relation to an audit organization that has violated the requirements of the Federal Law “On Auditing”, federal standards of auditing, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, the code of professional ethics for auditors, the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation may apply the following disciplinary measures:

1) issue an order obliging the audit organization to eliminate violations identified as a result of an external audit of the quality of its work and establishing a deadline for eliminating such violations;

2) issue a warning in writing about the inadmissibility of violating the requirements of the legislation on auditing activities;

3) send to the audit organization, of which the audit organization is a member, a binding order to suspend the audit organization’s membership in the audit organization;

4) send to the audit organization, of which the audit organization is a member, a binding order to exclude the audit organization from the audit organization.

Audits have long become not just a common attribute of the activities of both commercial and non-profit organizations. Some types of audits, such as proactive internal audits, are conducted at the discretion of management. For targeted voluntary audits, both company employees, third-party audit organizations, and individual auditors can be involved.

Mandatory audits must be carried out annually, regardless of the desire or unwillingness of management. This article will discuss who has the right to conduct a mandatory audit and what requirements are put forward to auditors.

Who can conduct an audit?

Auditors come in three varieties. And their powers differ, as does the cost of the services they provide.

The most economical type of audit is an in-house audit of the company’s employees. An audit commission is recruited from their composition, approved by order of the head. The advantages of such an audit are, firstly, savings on the services of third-party auditors, and secondly, the organization’s employees are aware of the intricacies and features of the activities carried out at the enterprise, they know where the weak points are, and also where what documents can be found, what significantly speeds up the process. The disadvantages of this type of auditor are the following: the internal commission does not have the right to conduct a mandatory audit; the quality of such an audit is lower than that of an audit conducted by professionals who do this constantly and have up-to-date information on changes in legislation.

The second type of auditor, the audit company, does not have these shortcomings. This is a legal entity that professionally provides services for various types of audits. These people know exactly what needs to be done and in what order, what regulations to follow, and what norms to apply to what forms of activity. Auditing commercial organizations are engaged not only in industry, initiative audits and related services, but also have the legal right to conduct mandatory audits. Naturally, provided that this audit firm is a member of an SRO: a self-regulatory audit organization. You can check whether the audit company you have chosen is a member of the SRO in the register of auditors on the official website of the Ministry of Finance. The only drawback when choosing an audit firm is the fairly high prices for the services provided. Obviously: the higher the quality, the higher the prices.

If the amount of audit work to be done is not too large, the statutory audit can also be entrusted to an individual auditor (this is stated in the Law “On Auditing” No. 307 of 2010), but there are a number of restrictions. What is hidden behind the concept of “individual auditor”? This is an individual who has the status of an entrepreneur, has passed a qualification commission and received a certificate allowing him to provide audit services. But in order for such an auditor to conduct an audit, he, like audit firms, must have membership in an SRO.

So, according to Russian legislation, individual auditors can conduct mandatory audits in all companies, except those included in the following list:

• companies providing credit or insurance services
• NPF (non-state pension funds)
• enterprises owned by the state
• enterprises whose shares are traded on a securities exchange
• companies in which at least a quarter of the authorized capital belongs to the state
• companies preparing consolidated statements

By the way, as for state corporations and organizations with a state share of at least 25% in their authorized capital. The fact is that before concluding an agreement for the provision of services with any auditor, such an organization is obliged to announce an open tender. And only after the auditor or audit company that is a member of the SRO wins the competition will a contract be concluded with them.

And finally, let us remind you that a mandatory audit cannot be carried out by persons who are the founders of the company being audited, as well as their close relatives, as is the case if the company being audited is the founder of an audit firm.