Independence of audit organizations and individual auditors. Types of audit and conditions for carrying out audit activities An audit can be carried out

Mandatory audit carried out in cases directly established by law or on behalf of government bodies. The scope and procedure for conducting a mandatory audit are regulated by law.

Initiative (voluntary) audit carried out by decision of an economic entity on the basis of an agreement with an audit firm or individual auditor. The nature and scope of such verification is determined by the client himself.

Internal audit is an integral and important element of management control. Some types of internal audit are called management or production audits, are carried out by auditors working at the enterprise, and therefore do not fully meet the independence criteria.

External audit carried out by third-party audit organizations (legal entities) or independent auditors on the basis of agreements (orders) with organizations. A mandatory audit is always carried out only by external auditors, taking into account the requirements of the Law on Auditing, the result of which is the drawing up of an opinion. This type of audit is often called a financial audit, as it involves assessing the reliability of financial statements.

Compliance audit designed to verify compliance by an enterprise with specific rules, regulations, laws, instructions, contractual obligations that affect the results of ongoing operations. During this audit, the compliance of the enterprise’s activities with its charter is established; the correctness of the calculation of wages, the validity of the calculation and payment of taxes, etc. are subject to verification. Compliance checks require the establishment of appropriate criteria for assessing their implementation. They may be legislative requirements, GOSTs, agreed conditions (for example, delivery times), etc.

Operational audit used to test the procedures and methods of operating an enterprise in order to assess business efficiency. It is advisable to use it to check the implementation of business plans, estimates, various target programs, personnel work, etc. Sometimes such an audit is called an audit of the efficiency of an enterprise or the activities of the administration.

Special audit- this is a check of specific issues of the activity of a business entity from the point of view of compliance with certain procedures, norms and rules (for example, the correctness of tax reporting, the use of special funds, etc.).

Initial audit characterized by the fact that for a given client it is carried out for the first time by a given team of auditors. This significantly increases the risk and complexity of the audit, since auditors initially do not have the necessary information about the specifics of the client’s activities, its internal control system, etc.

Consistent (repeated) audit carried out by this auditor or audit firm regularly (repeatedly). Such cooperation is convenient for both auditors and the client, who receives highly qualified, comprehensive assistance and assessment based on many years of long-term cooperation.

From the point of view of historical development, audits are divided into confirmatory audits, system-oriented audits and risk-based audits.

Mandatory audit

Audit-related services

• financial (material);
• related (with persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing financial statements);
• official.

The procedure for payment and the amount of monetary remuneration to audit organizations and individual auditors for conducting an audit (including mandatory audits) and providing related services are determined by contracts for the provision of audit services and cannot be made dependent on the fulfillment of any requirements of the audited entities regarding the content of the conclusions that may be made as a result of the audit.

Thus, the auditor is obliged to carefully ensure that the principle of independence is not violated at all stages of the audit, and to take the necessary measures to eliminate the circumstances that arise. If facts are established that indicate a loss of independence and the impossibility of eliminating the relevant circumstances, further audit should be abandoned.

Internal audit

The organization of an in-production audit does not relate to issues regulated by state law. This is the prerogative of the enterprise itself. Meanwhile, not only the safety of the assets of an economic entity, but also the performance of the enterprise itself depends on the efficiency of its functioning. Internal audit is capable of improving the management system.

The implementation of internal audit functions may be entrusted to special services or individual auditors on the staff of an economic entity, audit commissions (auditors), third-party organizations engaged for internal audit purposes and (or) external auditors. The internal audit service can be created as an independent division of the management apparatus, and it reports only to the head of the organization. The international experience of the organization also suggests that it is possible to move internal audit outside the enterprise with subordination to the board of directors or founders.

Internal audit is a system of control organized at an economic entity in the interests of its owners and regulated by its internal documents over compliance with the established accounting procedures and the reliability of the functioning of the internal control system. Internal audit structures include auditors, audit commissions, internal auditors or groups of internal auditors appointed by the owners of an economic entity. A distinctive feature of this definition is that internal audit institutions, in addition to internal auditors or groups of internal auditors, also include auditors and audit commissions.

To determine the place of internal audit in the control system, it is necessary to determine its structure. The most significant factors can be identified from the elements of the internal audit system.

Subjects of control are specialists performing internal audit. The higher their professional qualifications and objectivity, the higher the control results. Requirements for the knowledge and skills of internal audit employees include: knowledge of the peculiarities of the functioning of the enterprise, management structure; knowledge of equipment and methods of conducting inspections; knowledge of legal norms; the ability to correctly determine the range of issues subject to internal and external verification; the ability to summarize the results of individual checks to develop a set of recommendations.

The internal audit object is a controlled link in the organization's management system that receives control influence. Objects are selected according to purpose.

The method of internal audit of an organization is a way to achieve a goal, which is characterized by the use of both general scientific methodological techniques for studying control objects (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, analogy, modeling, abstraction, reduction, experiment, etc.), and its own empirical methodological techniques ( inventory, control measurements of work, control runs of equipment, formal and arithmetic checks, counter checks, counting methods, method of comparing homogeneous facts, internal investigation, examinations of various types, logical checks, scanning, written and oral surveys, etc.), as well as specific techniques of related economic sciences (techniques of economic analysis, economic and mathematical methods, methods of probability theory and mathematical statistics).

To achieve this goal, internal audit should be aimed at solving the following tasks:

1. assessment of the economic efficiency of the organization’s activities both as a whole and each of its management structures and responsibility centers;
2. forecasting the economic development of the organization for the future, taking into account the influence of all possible external and internal factors;
3. minimizing costs and losses in relationships with the budget, other government agencies and partners.

Depending on the specifics of the organization, the characteristics of its organizational structure and the tasks set by the administration, the tasks of a particular audit service may be different. In practice, internal auditors must be guided by the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation, as well as constituent documents, orders for the enterprise (if part of its structure) and job descriptions.

The motivation for organizing internal audit at large and medium-sized enterprises is:

• increasing complexity of the legislative system;
• desire to manage financial situations;
• strengthening the efficiency of management of the activities of the enterprise itself and its structural divisions;
• control over the rational use of resources;
• execution of obligations ;
• efficiency of the accounting system.

Certification and licensing of audit activities

All these control measures are provided in order to strengthen the responsibility of auditors and audit firms, and increase confidence in the audit results on the part of users.

Adopted by the State Duma on December 24, 2008
Approved by the Federation Council on December 29, 2008

Article 1. Auditing activities

1. This Federal Law defines the legal basis for regulating auditing activities in the Russian Federation.

2. Auditing activities (audit services) - activities related to conducting an audit and providing services related to the audit, carried out by audit organizations and individual auditors.

3. Audit - an independent verification of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity in order to express an opinion on the reliability of such statements. For the purposes of this Federal Law, the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity mean the statements provided for by the Federal Law of November 21, 1996 N 129-FZ “On Accounting”, as well as statements similar in composition provided for by other federal laws.

4. The list of audit-related services is established by federal auditing standards.

5. Auditing activities do not replace control of the reliability of accounting (financial) statements, carried out in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation by authorized state bodies and local government bodies.

6. Auditing organizations, individual auditors (individual entrepreneurs carrying out auditing activities) do not have the right to engage in any other business activity other than conducting an audit and providing services provided for in this article.

7. Auditing organizations and individual auditors, along with audit services, can provide other services related to auditing activities, in particular:

1) establishment, restoration and maintenance of accounting records, preparation of accounting (financial) statements, accounting consulting;

2) tax consulting, establishment, restoration and maintenance of tax records, preparation of tax calculations and declarations;

3) analysis of the financial and economic activities of organizations and individual entrepreneurs, economic and financial consulting;

4) management consulting, including those related to the reorganization of organizations or their privatization;

5) legal assistance in areas related to auditing activities, including consultations on legal issues, representation of the interests of the principal in civil and administrative proceedings, in tax and customs legal relations, in state authorities and local governments;

6) automation of accounting and implementation of information technologies;

7) assessment activities;

8) development and analysis of investment projects, drawing up business plans;

9) conducting research and experimental work in areas related to auditing activities and disseminating their results, including on paper and electronic media;

10) training in areas related to auditing activities.

8. An audit of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity, whose accounting and financial documentation contains information constituting a state secret, is carried out in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation.

Article 2. Legislation of the Russian Federation and other regulatory legal acts that regulate audit activities

Audit activities are carried out in accordance with this Federal Law, Federal Law of December 1, 2007 N 315-FZ “On Self-Regulatory Organizations” (hereinafter referred to as the Federal Law “On Self-Regulatory Organizations”), other federal laws, as well as others adopted in accordance with them regulatory legal acts.

Article 3. Audit organization

1. An audit organization is a commercial organization that is a member of one of the self-regulatory organizations of auditors.

2. A commercial organization acquires the right to carry out auditing activities from the date of entering information about it into the register of auditors and audit organizations of a self-regulatory organization of auditors (hereinafter referred to as the register of auditors and audit organizations), of which such an organization is a member.

3. A commercial organization, information about which is not included in the register of auditors and audit organizations within three months from the date of making an entry about it in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, does not have the right to use the word “audit” in its name, as well as derivative words from the word "audit".

Article 4. Auditor

1. An auditor is an individual who has received a qualification certificate as an auditor and is a member of one of the self-regulatory organizations of auditors.

2. An individual is recognized as an auditor from the date of entering information about him into the register of auditors and audit organizations.

3. An auditor who is an employee of an audit organization on the basis of an employment contract between him and the audit organization has the right to participate in the implementation of audit activities by the audit organization, as well as in the provision of other services provided for in Article 1 of this Federal Law.

4. An individual auditor has the right to carry out auditing activities, as well as provide other services in accordance with Article 1 of this Federal Law, unless otherwise provided by this Federal Law.

Article 5. Mandatory audit

1. Mandatory audit is carried out in cases where:

1) the organization has the legal form of an open joint stock company;

2) the organization is a credit organization, a credit history bureau, an insurance organization, a mutual insurance company, a commodity or stock exchange, an investment fund, a state extra-budgetary fund, a fund whose source of funds is voluntary contributions from individuals and legal entities;

3) the volume of revenue from the sale of products (performance of work, provision of services) of the organization (with the exception of agricultural cooperatives and unions of these cooperatives) for the previous reporting year exceeds 50 million rubles or the amount of balance sheet assets as of the end of the year preceding the reporting year exceeds 20 million rubles For municipal unitary enterprises, by law of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation, financial indicators may be reduced;

4) in other cases established by federal laws.

2. Mandatory audit is carried out annually.

3. Mandatory audit of the accounting (financial) statements of organizations whose securities are admitted to trading on stock exchanges and (or) other organizers of trading on the securities market, other credit and insurance organizations, non-state pension funds, as well as consolidated statements, is carried out only by auditors organizations.

4. An agreement for conducting a mandatory audit of the accounting (financial) statements of an organization in the authorized (share) capital of which the share of state ownership is at least 25 percent, as well as for conducting the accounting (financial) statements of a state unitary enterprise or municipal unitary enterprise is concluded based on the results of the placement order by bidding in the form of an open tender in the manner prescribed by Federal Law of July 21, 2005 N 94-FZ "On placing orders for the supply of goods, performance of work, provision of services for state and municipal needs."

Article 6. Audit report

1. Audit report is an official document intended for users of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entities, containing the opinion of the audit organization, individual auditor, expressed in the prescribed form, on the reliability of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity.

2. The audit report must contain:

1) name "Audit report";

2) indication of the addressee (shareholders of a joint-stock company, participants of a limited liability company, other persons);

3) information about the audited entity: name, state registration number, location;

4) information about the audit organization, individual auditor: name of the organization, surname, first name, patronymic of the individual auditor, state registration number, location, name of the self-regulatory organization of auditors, the members of which are the specified audit organization or individual auditor, number in the register of auditors and audit organizations ;

5) a list of accounting (financial) statements in respect of which the audit was conducted, indicating the period for which they were compiled, distribution of responsibility in relation to the specified accounting (financial) statements between the audited entity and the audit organization, individual auditor;

6) information about the work performed by the audit organization, individual auditor to express an opinion on the reliability of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity (scope of the audit);

7) the opinion of the audit organization, individual auditor on the reliability of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity, indicating the circumstances that have or may have a significant impact on the reliability of such statements;

8) indication of the date of conclusion.

3. Requirements for the form, content, procedure for signing and submitting the audit report are established by federal auditing standards.

4. The audit report is presented by an audit organization, an individual auditor only to the audited entity or to the entity that has entered into an agreement for the provision of audit services.

5. Deliberately false audit report - an audit report drawn up without conducting an audit or drawn up based on the results of an audit, but clearly contradicting the contents of the documents submitted to the audit organization, individual auditor and considered during the audit. An auditor's report is recognized as knowingly false by a court decision.

Article 7. Auditing standards and code of professional ethics for auditors

1. Federal auditing standards:

1) determine the requirements for the procedure for carrying out audit activities, and also regulate other issues provided for by this Federal Law;

2) are developed in accordance with international auditing standards;

3) are mandatory for audit organizations, individual auditors, as well as self-regulatory organizations of auditors and their employees.

2. Standards of a self-regulatory organization of auditors:

1) determine the requirements for audit procedures, additional to the requirements established by the federal auditing standards, if this is due to the specifics of the audit or the specifics of the provision of audit-related services;

2) cannot contradict federal auditing standards;

3) should not create obstacles to the implementation of audit activities by audit organizations and individual auditors;

4) are mandatory for audit organizations, auditors who are members of the specified self-regulatory organization of auditors.

3. Code of Professional Ethics for Auditors - a set of rules of conduct that must be observed by audit organizations and auditors when carrying out audit activities.

4. Each self-regulatory organization of auditors adopts a code of professional ethics for auditors approved by the audit council. A self-regulatory organization of auditors has the right to include additional requirements in the code of professional ethics of auditors it adopts.

Article 8. Independence of audit organizations, auditors

1. An audit cannot be carried out:

1) audit organizations, the managers and other officials of which are the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their officials, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and drawing up accounting (financial) statements;

2) audit organizations whose managers and other officials are closely related (parents, spouses, brothers, sisters, children, as well as brothers, sisters, parents and children of spouses) with the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their officials, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing accounting (financial) statements;

3) audit organizations in relation to audited entities that are their founders (participants), in relation to audited entities for which these audit organizations are founders (participants), in relation to subsidiaries, branches and representative offices of the specified audited entities, as well as in relation to organizations, having founders (participants) in common with this audit organization;

4) audit organizations, individual auditors, who, during the three years immediately preceding the audit, provided services for the restoration and maintenance of accounting, as well as for the preparation of accounting (financial) statements to individuals and legal entities, in relation to these persons;

5) auditors who are the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their managers, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing accounting (financial) statements;

6) auditors who are closely related to the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their officials, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and drawing up accounting (financial) statements (parents, spouses, brothers, sisters, children, as well as brothers, sisters, parents and children of spouses).

2. The procedure for payment and the amount of monetary remuneration to audit organizations, individual auditors for conducting an audit (including mandatory) and providing related services are determined by contracts for the provision of audit services and cannot be made dependent on the fulfillment of any requirements of the audited entities for the content of conclusions that can be drawn as a result of the audit.

3. Auditing organizations and individual auditors do not have the right to carry out actions that entail a conflict of interest or create a threat of such a conflict. For the purposes of this Federal Law, a conflict of interest is understood as a situation in which the interest of an audit organization or an individual auditor may influence the opinion of such an audit organization or individual auditor about the reliability of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity. Cases where an audit organization or individual auditor has an interest that leads or may lead to a conflict of interest, as well as measures to prevent or resolve conflicts of interest are established by the code of professional ethics for auditors.

Article 9. Auditor confidentiality

1. Audit secrecy consists of any information and documents received and (or) compiled by the audit organization and its employees, as well as by the individual auditor and employees with whom they have concluded employment contracts, when providing services provided for by this Federal Law, with the exception of:

1) information disclosed by the person to whom the services provided for by this Federal Law were provided, or with his consent;

2) information about the conclusion of an agreement on conducting a mandatory audit with the audited entity;

3) information on the amount of payment for audit services.

2. The audit organization and its employees, the individual auditor and the employees with whom they have entered into employment contracts are required to maintain audit secrecy.

3. An audit organization or an individual auditor does not have the right to transfer information and documents constituting an audit secret to third parties or disclose this information and the contents of documents without the prior written consent of the person to whom the services provided for by this Federal Law were provided, except for the cases provided for by this Federal Law and other federal laws.

4. Transfer of information and documents constituting audit secrecy to third parties in cases and in the manner provided for by this Federal Law and other federal laws does not constitute a violation of audit secrecy.

5. The federal executive body exercising the functions of developing state policy and legal regulation in the field of auditing activities (hereinafter referred to as the authorized federal body), and its employees, self-regulatory organizations of auditors, their members and employees, as well as other persons who have received access to information and documents constituting an audit secret, in accordance with this Federal Law and other federal laws, are obliged to ensure (maintain) the confidentiality of such information and documents.

6. In the event of disclosure of audit secrets by an audit organization, an individual auditor, an authorized federal body, a self-regulatory organization of auditors, as well as other persons who have received access to audit secrets on the basis of this Federal Law and other federal laws, the audit organization, individual auditor, as well as the person , to whom the services provided for by this Federal Law were provided, has the right to demand from the guilty person compensation for losses caused in the manner established by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

Article 10. Quality control of audit organizations and auditors

1. An audit organization and an individual auditor are obliged to establish and comply with the rules of internal quality control of work. The principles for implementing internal quality control of the work of audit organizations and individual auditors and the requirements for organizing this control are established by federal auditing standards.

2. The audit organization and auditor are obliged to:

1) undergo external quality control of work, including providing all documentation and information necessary for verification;

2) participate in the implementation by a self-regulatory organization of auditors, of which they are members, of external control of the quality of work of other members of this organization.

3. The subject of external quality control is the compliance by the audit organization, the auditor with the requirements of this Federal Law, auditing standards, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, and the code of professional ethics for auditors.

4. External quality control of the work of audit organizations and individual auditors is carried out by self-regulatory organizations of auditors in relation to their members.

5. External quality control of the work of audit organizations conducting mandatory audits of the accounting (financial) statements of organizations specified in Part 4 of Article 5 of this Federal Law is carried out by self-regulatory organizations of auditors in relation to their members, as well as by the authorized federal body.

6. The principles of external control of the quality of work of audit organizations, individual auditors and the requirements for the organization of this control are established by federal auditing standards.

7. A self-regulatory organization of auditors, in accordance with the principles of external control of the quality of work and the requirements for its organization, establishes rules for the organization and implementation of external control of the quality of work of its members, defining, in particular, the forms of external control, the timing and frequency of inspections, including inspections, carried out by members of a self-regulatory organization of auditors in relation to other members of this organization.

8. A planned external audit of the quality of work of an audit organization, an individual auditor, with the exception of audit organizations conducting mandatory audits of the accounting (financial) statements of organizations specified in Part 4 of Article 5 of this Federal Law, is carried out at least once every five years, but not more often once a year.

9. Scheduled external audits of the quality of work of each audit organization conducting a mandatory audit of the accounting (financial) statements of organizations specified in Part 4 of Article 5 of this Federal Law are carried out:

1) a self-regulatory organization of auditors, of which such an audit organization is a member, at least once every three years, but not more than once a year, starting from the calendar year following the year of entering information about the audit organization into the register of auditors and audit organizations;

2) by an authorized federal body no more than once every two years, starting from the calendar year following the year of entering information about the audit organization into the register of auditors and audit organizations.

10. The basis for an unscheduled external audit of the quality of work of an audit organization or individual auditor may be a complaint filed with a self-regulatory organization of auditors or an authorized federal body against the actions (inaction) of an audit organization or individual auditor that violate the requirements of this Federal Law, auditing standards, and independence rules auditors and audit organizations, as well as the code of professional ethics for auditors. Other grounds for carrying out an unscheduled external audit of the quality of work of an audit organization or an individual auditor are established by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

11. The authorized federal body is obliged to inform the self-regulatory organization of auditors, of which the audited audit organization is a member, about the results of the audit and the decision made in relation to the specified audit organization.

Article 11. Auditor qualification certificate

1. An auditor qualification certificate is issued provided that the person applying for it (hereinafter referred to as the applicant):

1) passed the qualification exam;

2) by the day the results of the qualifying examination are announced, work experience related to auditing activities or maintaining accounting records and preparing accounting (financial) statements has been at least three years. At least two of the last three years of the specified work experience must be spent working in an audit organization.

2. Verification of the applicant’s qualifications is carried out in the form of a qualification exam. The procedure for conducting a qualification exam, including the procedure for the applicant’s participation in the qualification exam, the range of questions offered to the applicant, as well as the procedure for determining the results of the qualification exam, is established by the authorized federal body.

3. An applicant who has received a higher education in a state accredited educational institution of higher professional education is allowed to take the qualifying exam.

4. The qualification exam is conducted by a single certification commission, which is created jointly by all self-regulatory organizations of auditors in the manner established by the authorized federal body. The constituent documents of the unified certification commission, as well as changes made to them, are agreed upon with the authorized federal body before their approval. The activities of the unified certification commission are based on the principles of independence, objectivity, openness and transparency, and self-financing.

5. For taking the qualifying exam, the applicant is charged a fee, the amount and procedure for collecting which is established by the unified certification commission.

6. The decision to refuse to issue an auditor’s qualification certificate is made if:

1) the applicant does not meet the requirements of part 1 of this article;

2) after passing the qualification exam, it is discovered that the applicant does not comply with the requirement of part 3 of this article.

7. An auditor’s qualification certificate is issued without limiting its validity period. The procedure for issuing an auditor's qualification certificate and its form are approved by the authorized federal body.

8. The decision to refuse to issue an auditor qualification certificate may be challenged in court.

9. The auditor is obliged, during each calendar year, starting from the year following the year of receiving the auditor’s qualification certificate, to undergo training in advanced training programs approved by the self-regulatory organization of auditors, of which he is a member. The minimum duration of such training is established by the self-regulatory organization of auditors for its members and cannot be less than 120 hours for three consecutive calendar years, but not less than 20 hours in each year.

Article 12. Grounds and procedure for revocation of an auditor’s qualification certificate

1. An auditor’s qualification certificate shall be revoked in the following cases:

1) obtaining an auditor’s qualification certificate using forged documents or obtaining an auditor’s qualification certificate by a person who does not meet the requirements for the applicant established by Article 11 of this Federal Law;

2) the entry into force of a court verdict providing for punishment in the form of deprivation of the right to engage in auditing activities for a certain period;

3) failure by the auditor to comply with the requirements of Articles 8 and 9 of this Federal Law;

4) systematic violation by the auditor during the audit of the requirements of this Federal Law or federal auditing standards;

5) signing by the auditor of an audit report recognized in the prescribed manner as knowingly false;

6) non-participation of the auditor in the implementation of audit activities (failure of an individual auditor to carry out audit activities) for two consecutive calendar years, with the exception of:

a) persons who are members of permanent collegial management bodies and members of collegial executive bodies of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, persons performing the functions of sole executive bodies of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, as well as persons performing in self-regulatory organizations of auditors the functions of members and employees of a specialized body for external quality control audit organizations, auditors;

b) employees of internal control departments of organizations who are responsible for conducting audits of the accounting (financial) statements of these organizations;

c) persons acting as the sole executive body or who are members of the collegial executive body of audit organizations;

d) other persons provided for by other federal laws;

7) failure by the auditor to comply with the requirement to undergo training under advanced training programs established by Article 11 of this Federal Law, except for the case when the self-regulatory organization of auditors, with the approval of the audit council, recognizes a valid reason for non-compliance with this requirement (for example, serious illness);

8) the auditor’s evasion from undergoing external quality control of work.

2. The decision to cancel an auditor’s qualification certificate is made by a self-regulatory organization of auditors, of which the auditor is a member.

3. The decision of a self-regulatory organization of auditors to cancel an auditor’s qualification certificate may be challenged in court within three months from the date of receipt of the said decision.

4. A person whose auditor’s qualification certificate has been canceled on the grounds provided for in paragraphs 1 (in terms of obtaining an auditor’s qualification certificate using forged documents), 3 - 5 of part 1 of this article, does not have the right to re-apply for admission to the qualification exam within three years from the date of the decision to cancel the auditor’s qualification certificate.

5. A person whose qualification certificate of an auditor has been canceled on the grounds provided for in paragraph 2 of part 1 of this article does not have the right to re-apply for admission to the qualification exam within the period provided for by a court verdict that has entered into legal force.

Article 13. Rights and obligations of an audit organization, an individual auditor

1. When conducting an audit, an audit organization or an individual auditor has the right to:

1) independently determine the forms and methods of conducting an audit on the basis of federal auditing standards, as well as the quantitative and personal composition of the audit team conducting the audit;

2) examine in full the documentation related to the financial and economic activities of the audited entity, as well as check the actual availability of any property reflected in this documentation;

3) receive explanations and confirmations, orally and in writing, from officials of the audited entity on issues that arose during the audit;

4) refuse to conduct an audit or express one’s opinion on the reliability of the accounting (financial) statements in the auditor’s report in the following cases:

a) failure by the audited entity to provide all necessary documentation;

b) identification during the audit of circumstances that have or are capable of significantly influencing the opinion of the audit organization or individual auditor on the reliability of the accounting (financial) statements of the audited entity;

5) exercise other rights arising from the contract for the provision of audit services.

2. When conducting an audit, the audit organization and individual auditor are obliged to:

1) provide, at the request of the audited entity, justifications for the comments and conclusions of the audit organization, individual auditor, as well as information about its membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors;

2) transfer, within the period established by the contract for the provision of audit services, the audit report to the audited entity, the person who entered into the contract for the provision of audit services;

3) ensure the storage of documents (copies of documents) received and compiled during the audit for at least five years after the year in which they were received and (or) compiled;

Article 14. Rights and obligations of the audited entity, the entity that has entered into an agreement for the provision of audit services

1. When conducting an audit, the audited entity, the entity that has entered into an agreement for the provision of audit services, has the right to:

1) demand and receive from the audit organization, individual auditor justification for the comments and conclusions of the audit organization, individual auditor, as well as information about the membership of the audit organization, individual auditor in a self-regulatory organization of auditors;

2) receive an audit report from an audit organization or an individual auditor within the period established by the contract for the provision of audit services;

3) exercise other rights arising from the contract for the provision of audit services.

2. When conducting an audit, the audited entity, the entity that has entered into an agreement for the provision of audit services, is obliged to:

1) assist the audit organization, individual auditor in the timely and complete conduct of the audit, create appropriate conditions for this, provide the necessary information and documentation, give, upon oral or written request of the audit organization, individual auditor, comprehensive explanations and confirmations in oral and written form, as well as request information necessary for the audit from third parties;

2) not to take any actions aimed at narrowing the range of issues to be clarified during the audit, as well as concealing (restricting access) information and documentation requested by the audit organization or individual auditor. The presence of information and documentation requested by an audit organization or an individual auditor for an audit that contains a trade secret cannot be a basis for refusing to provide it;

3) timely pay for the services of an audit organization or an individual auditor in accordance with the contract for the provision of audit services, including in the case when the audit report does not agree with the position of the audited entity, the person who entered into the contract for the provision of audit services;

4) fulfill other obligations arising from the contract for the provision of audit services.

Article 15. State regulation of auditing activities

1. The functions of state regulation of auditing activities are carried out by an authorized federal body.

2. The functions of state regulation of auditing activities are:

1) development of state policy in the field of auditing;

2) legal regulation in the field of auditing activities, including the approval of federal auditing standards, rules for the independence of auditors and audit organizations, as well as the adoption, within its competence, of other regulatory legal acts regulating auditing activities and (or) provided for by this Federal Law ;

3) maintaining the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, as well as a control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations;

4) analysis of the state of the audit services market in the Russian Federation;

5) other functions provided for by this Federal Law.

3. To carry out the functions provided for by this Federal Law, the authorized federal body has the right to request from self-regulatory organizations of auditors copies of decisions of the management bodies and specialized bodies of the self-regulatory organization of auditors and other necessary information and documentation.

Article 16. Audit Council

1. In order to ensure public interests in the course of auditing activities, an auditing council is created under the authorized federal body.

2. The Audit Council performs the following functions:

1) considers issues of public policy in the field of auditing;

2) reviews draft federal auditing standards and other regulatory legal acts regulating auditing activities and recommends them for approval by the authorized federal body;

3) approves the procedure for developing draft federal auditing standards, as well as the code of professional ethics for auditors;

4) evaluates the activities of self-regulatory organizations of auditors in implementing external quality control of the work of audit organizations and auditors and, if necessary, makes recommendations for improving these activities;

5) submits proposals for consideration by the authorized federal body on the procedure for its external control of the quality of work of audit organizations;

6) considers appeals and petitions from self-regulatory organizations of auditors in the field of auditing activities and makes appropriate proposals for consideration by the authorized federal body;

7) performs, in accordance with this Federal Law and the regulations on the audit council, other functions necessary to maintain a high professional level of audit activity in the public interest.

3. To carry out the functions provided for in Part 2 of this article, the audit council has the right to request from self-regulatory organizations of auditors copies of decisions of management bodies and specialized bodies of the self-regulatory organization of auditors and other necessary information and documentation.

4. The composition of the audit council is approved by the head of the authorized federal body.

5. The composition of the audit council includes:

1) 10 representatives of users of accounting (financial) statements. Representatives of users of accounting (financial) statements are subject to rotation once every three years by at least 25 percent of their total number;

2) two representatives of the authorized federal body;

3) one representative each from the federal executive body exercising the functions of developing state policy and legal regulation in the field of business development, from the federal executive body exercising the functions of adopting regulations, control and supervision in the field of financial markets, and from the Central Bank of the Russian Federation;

4) two representatives from self-regulatory organizations of auditors, whose candidacies are nominated jointly by all self-regulatory organizations of auditors. Representatives of self-regulatory organizations of auditors are subject to rotation once a year.

6. Members of the council’s working body cannot be members of the audit council, with the exception of representatives of the authorized federal body.

7. The chairman of the audit council is elected at the first meeting of the council from representatives of users of accounting (financial) statements who are members of the council.

8. The secretary of the audit council is a representative of the authorized federal body from among the members of the council.

9. Meetings of the audit council are convened by the chairman of the council as necessary, but at least once every three months. A meeting of the audit council is considered valid if at least two thirds of the council members are present.

10. Decisions of the council on audit activities are made by a simple majority of votes of the council members participating in its meeting.

11. In order to prepare decisions of the audit council, its working body is created.

12. The composition of the working body of the audit council and its number are approved by the authorized federal body.

13. The working body of the audit council includes heads of permanent collegial management bodies and other representatives of all self-regulatory organizations of auditors, the head of the unified certification commission created in accordance with this Federal Law, representatives of the authorized federal body, as well as representatives of the scientific and pedagogical community .

14. The number of representatives of self-regulatory organizations of auditors in the working body of the audit council must be at least 70 percent of the total number of members of the working body of the council.

15. The composition of the working body of the audit council (with the exception of the heads of permanent collegial management bodies of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, representatives of the authorized federal body, the head of the unified certification commission created in accordance with this Federal Law) is subject to rotation once every three years at least by 30 percent of the total number of members of the working body of the council, with the exception of the heads of permanent collegial management bodies of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, representatives of the authorized federal body, the head of the unified certification commission created in accordance with this Federal Law.

16. Information about the activities of the audit council and its working body must be open and publicly available.

17. The regulations on the audit council and the regulations on the working body of the audit council are approved by the authorized federal body. The regulations of the audit council and the regulations of the working body of the audit council are approved by the audit council.

Article 17. Self-regulatory organization of auditors

1. A self-regulatory organization of auditors is a non-profit organization created on the basis of membership in order to ensure conditions for carrying out audit activities.

2. A non-profit organization acquires the status of a self-regulatory organization of auditors from the date of its inclusion in the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors.

3. A non-profit organization is included in the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors provided that it meets the following requirements:

1) association within a self-regulatory organization as its members of at least 700 individuals or at least 500 commercial organizations that meet the requirements for membership in such an organization established by this Federal Law;

2) the presence of approved rules for the implementation of external quality control of the work of members of a self-regulatory organization of auditors and an adopted code of professional ethics for auditors;

3) provision by the self-regulatory organization of auditors of additional property liability of each of its members to consumers of audit services and other persons through the formation of a compensation fund (compensation funds) of the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

4. To carry out activities as a self-regulatory organization of auditors, a non-profit organization must create specialized bodies that monitor compliance by members of the self-regulatory organization of auditors with the requirements of this Federal Law, auditing standards, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, the code of professional ethics of auditors and consideration of cases of application of disciplinary measures against members of a self-regulatory organization of auditors.

5. The self-regulatory organization of auditors, along with the functions established by the Federal Law "On Self-Regulatory Organizations", develops and approves the standards of the self-regulatory organization of auditors, adopts a code of professional ethics for auditors, develops draft federal auditing standards, participates in the development of draft standards in the field of accounting and accounting (financial) reporting, organizes training for auditors under advanced training programs.

6. A self-regulatory organization of auditors, along with the rights established by the Federal Law "On Self-Regulatory Organizations", has the right to establish in relation to audit organizations and individual auditors who are its members, additional requirements to the requirements provided for by this Federal Law, requirements ensuring their responsibility in carrying out audit activity, develop and establish additional disciplinary measures to the measures provided for by this Federal Law on its members for violating the requirements of this Federal Law, auditing standards, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, code of professional ethics for auditors, organize professional training of persons, those wishing to engage in auditing activities.

7. A self-regulatory organization of auditors, along with fulfilling the duties established by the Federal Law “On Self-Regulatory Organizations”:

1) participates in the prescribed manner in the creation, including financing, and activities of the unified certification commission provided for by this Federal Law;

2) informs the authorized federal body about changes in information about the self-regulatory organization of auditors for inclusion in the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, as well as about any non-compliance of the self-regulatory organization of auditors with the requirements established by part 3 of this article, no later than seven working days from the day following the day of occurrence of the corresponding changes in information or discrepancies;

3) informs the authorized federal body about the additional requirements established by the federal auditing standards, the requirements provided for by the self-regulatory organization of auditors in its standards, as well as about additional standards of professional ethics included in the code of professional ethics of auditors adopted by it, in the manner, terms and conditions in the form determined by the authorized federal body;

4) submits to the authorized federal body a report on the fulfillment by the self-regulatory organization of auditors, its member or members of the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation and other regulatory legal acts governing audit activities, in the manner, terms and form that are determined by the authorized federal body;

5) confirms compliance by auditors who are members of this self-regulatory organization of auditors with training requirements for advanced training programs;

6) no later than 10 working days from the day following the day of receipt of the written request, submit to the authorized federal body and the audit council, upon their requests, copies of decisions of management bodies and specialized bodies of the self-regulatory organization of auditors;

7) assists representatives of the audit council in familiarizing themselves with the activities of the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

8. Representatives of the authorized federal body and the audit council have the right to attend meetings (sessions) of management bodies and specialized bodies of the self-regulatory organization of auditors, as well as at other events held by it.

9. A self-regulatory organization of auditors cannot be a member of another self-regulatory organization of auditors.

10. If members of a self-regulatory organization of auditors are individuals and (or) organizations that are not auditors and audit organizations, respectively, the activities of the management bodies of such an organization must ensure the independence of auditors and audit organizations when they perform functions directly related to the audit activities.

11. Members of a permanent collegial management body and specialized bodies of a self-regulatory organization of auditors may combine the performance of these functions with audit activities (with participation in audit activities).

12. Independent members of a permanent collegial governing body of a self-regulatory organization of auditors must constitute at least one fifth of the number of members of this body.

13. A mandatory audit of the annual accounting (financial) statements of a self-regulatory organization of auditors must be carried out by an audit organization that is a member of another self-regulatory organization of auditors.

14. The formation of a compensation fund (compensation funds) of a self-regulatory organization of auditors and the allocation of funds from such a fund (such funds) are carried out in the manner established by the Federal Law “On Self-Regulatory Organizations”.

Article 18. Requirements for membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors

1. A self-regulatory organization of auditors establishes requirements for membership in it of audit organizations and auditors, which must be uniform, respectively, for all audit organizations - members of the self-regulatory organization of auditors and auditors - members of the self-regulatory organization of auditors and must not contradict the requirements provided for in parts 2 and 3 of this article .

2. The requirements for membership of audit organizations in a self-regulatory organization of auditors are the following:

1) a commercial organization can be created in any organizational and legal form, with the exception of an open joint-stock company, state or municipal unitary enterprise;

2) the number of auditors who are employees of a commercial organization on the basis of employment contracts must be at least three;

3) the share of the authorized (share) capital of a commercial organization owned by auditors and (or) audit organizations must be at least 51 percent;

4) the number of auditors in the collegial executive body of a commercial organization must be at least 50 percent of the composition of such executive body. A person who is the sole executive body of a commercial organization, as well as an individual entrepreneur (manager), to whom the powers of the executive body of a commercial organization are transferred under an agreement, must be auditors. If the powers of the executive body of a commercial organization are transferred under an agreement to another commercial organization, the latter must be an audit organization;

5) impeccable business reputation;

6) availability and compliance with the rules for implementing internal quality control;

7) payment of contributions to the self-regulatory organization of auditors in the amounts and manner established by it;

8) payment of contributions to the compensation fund (compensation funds) of the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

3. The requirements for membership of auditors in a self-regulatory organization of auditors are the following:

1) availability of an auditor’s qualification certificate;

2) impeccable business (professional) reputation;

3) payment of contributions to the self-regulatory organization of auditors in the amounts and manner established by it;

4) payment of contributions to the compensation fund (compensation funds) of the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

4. An audit organization and an auditor may be members of only one self-regulatory organization of auditors.

5. To become a member of a self-regulatory organization of auditors as an audit organization, a commercial organization submits an application for membership to the self-regulatory organization of auditors, and also submits the following documents:

1) constituent documents;

2) a document confirming the entry of a legal entity into the Unified State Register of Legal Entities;

3) a list of auditors who are employees of a commercial organization on the basis of employment contracts, with attached extracts from the register of auditors and audit organizations confirming that the persons included in the list are auditors;

4) a list of members of the collegial executive body of a commercial organization, indicating those of them who are auditors, or an extract from the register of auditors and audit organizations confirming that the individual entrepreneur (manager), to whom the powers of the executive body of a commercial organization have been transferred under the agreement, is an auditor, or an extract from the register of auditors and audit organizations confirming that another commercial organization to which the powers of the executive body of a commercial organization were transferred under the agreement is an audit organization;

5) a list of founders (participants) of a commercial organization who are auditors and audit organizations, with attached extracts from the register of auditors and audit organizations confirming that the persons included in the list are auditors and audit organizations, as well as documents confirming the size of the shares of these persons in the authorized (share) capital of a commercial organization;

6) written recommendations confirming the impeccable business reputation of a commercial organization, at least three auditors, information about which is included in the register of auditors and audit organizations at least three years before the day of giving recommendations and who are not the founders (participants) of this commercial organization, not are members of its management bodies and do not have an employment relationship with it;

7) one copy of the approved rules for implementing internal quality control;

8) other documents provided for by the rules for admitting commercial organizations to membership in the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

6. To become a member of a self-regulatory organization of auditors as an auditor, an individual submits an application to the self-regulatory organization of auditors indicating the surname, name, patronymic, details of an identity document, address of residence (registration), and also submits the following documents:

1) auditor’s qualification certificate;

2) written recommendations confirming the impeccable business (professional) reputation of an individual, at least three auditors, information about which is included in the register of auditors and audit organizations at least three years before the date of giving recommendations;

3) a certificate of absence of unexpunged or outstanding convictions for crimes in the economic sphere, as well as for crimes of average gravity, serious and especially serious crimes;

4) a document confirming the entry of an individual entrepreneur into the Unified State Register of Individual Entrepreneurs - for an individual who is an individual entrepreneur;

5) other documents provided for by the rules for admitting individuals as members of the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

7. Original documents or their duly certified copies are submitted to the self-regulatory organization of auditors. The originals of constituent documents, auditor qualification certificates, documents confirming the entry of entries about a legal entity into the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and about an individual entrepreneur into the Unified State Register of Individual Entrepreneurs are accepted by the self-regulatory organization of auditors for review and returned to the person who represented them. In this case, the self-regulatory organization of auditors stores copies of documents certified by an authorized person of this self-regulatory organization of auditors. The rules for admission to membership of a self-regulatory organization of auditors may establish a requirement for the submission of duly certified translations into Russian of documents executed in whole or in any part in a foreign language.

8. The self-regulatory organization of auditors, within 30 working days from the day following the day of submission of the documents specified in this article, makes a decision on admitting or refusing to admit auditors as members of this self-regulatory organization.

9. The decision of a self-regulatory organization of auditors on admission to membership of a self-regulatory organization of auditors comes into force on the date of payment of the contribution (contributions) to the compensation fund (compensation funds) of the self-regulatory organization of auditors, as well as the contributions established by the self-regulatory organization of auditors upon admission to its membership.

10. In case of failure to pay the fees specified in part 9 of this article within 180 calendar days from the day following the day of the decision on admission to membership of the self-regulatory organization of auditors, such a decision is recognized as invalid by the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

Advertisement less than one year has passed since he completed training in advanced training programs established by Article 11 of this Federal Law.

12. The basis for a self-regulatory organization of auditors to make a decision to refuse admission to membership of a self-regulatory organization of auditors is:

1) the person’s failure to comply with the requirements of this article and the membership requirements approved by the self-regulatory organization of auditors;

2) submission of documents that do not meet the requirements established by this article;

3) establishing the unreliability of information contained in documents submitted to the self-regulatory organization of auditors;

4) discovery, after the issuance of an auditor’s qualification certificate to an individual, of circumstances that prevented such issuance;

5) termination of membership of an audit organization, auditor in this or another self-regulatory organization of auditors (except for termination of membership on the grounds provided for in paragraphs 1, 4, 8 of part 15 of this article), if less than three years have passed from the date of the decision to terminate membership.

13. The decision of a self-regulatory organization of auditors to refuse admission to its membership must be communicated in writing no later than seven working days from the day following the day this decision was made.

14. A decision to refuse admission to membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors may be challenged in court.

15. The grounds for termination of membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors are:

1) a written statement from an audit organization or auditor regarding withdrawal from membership of a self-regulatory organization of auditors;

2) a decision of a self-regulatory organization of auditors to exclude an audit organization or an auditor from its membership as a disciplinary measure;

3) identification of false information in documents submitted for admission to membership in the self-regulatory organization of auditors;

4) reorganization of the audit organization, with the exception of the case of reorganization in the form of merger;

5) liquidation of the audit organization;

6) cancellation of the auditor’s qualification certificate;

7) recognition of the auditor's report as knowingly false;

8) exclusion of information about a self-regulatory organization of auditors from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors;

9) other grounds provided for by federal laws.

16. An auditor’s membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors is considered terminated from the date the self-regulatory organization of auditors makes a decision to terminate such membership.

17. The membership of an audit organization in a self-regulatory organization of auditors is considered terminated from the date of liquidation or reorganization of the audit organization or from the date the self-regulatory organization of auditors makes a decision to terminate such membership.

18. If information about a self-regulatory organization of auditors is excluded from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, the membership of an audit organization, an auditor in such a self-regulatory organization of auditors is considered terminated from the date of exclusion of these audit organizations, the auditor by the authorized federal body from the control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations .

19. A self-regulatory organization of auditors, no later than seven working days from the day following the day of termination of membership of an audit organization, an auditor in this self-regulatory organization of auditors, notifies in writing:

1) a person whose membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors has been terminated;

2) an audit organization whose employee, on the basis of an employment contract, is an auditor whose membership in the self-regulatory organization of auditors has been terminated;

3) other self-regulatory organizations of auditors, except for the case of termination of membership at the request of the audit organization or auditor.

Article 19. Maintaining a register of auditors and audit organizations

1. Register of auditors and audit organizations - a systematic list of auditors and audit organizations. Control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations - a set of registers of auditors and audit organizations.

2. Maintenance of the register of auditors and audit organizations is carried out by self-regulatory organizations of auditors in relation to their members. Maintaining a control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations is carried out by the authorized federal body.

3. The procedure for maintaining the register of auditors and audit organizations and the control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations, as well as the list of information included in them, are established by the authorized federal body.

4. The register of auditors and audit organizations and a control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations are maintained on paper and electronic media. If there is a discrepancy between records on paper and electronic media, records on paper take precedence.

5. Information contained in the register of auditors and audit organizations is open and publicly available. The specified information is provided by the self-regulatory organization of auditors at the written request of the interested party no later than 10 working days from the day following the day of receipt of the written request.

6. Information about a member of a self-regulatory organization of auditors must be entered by the self-regulatory organization of auditors into the register of auditors and audit organizations no later than seven working days from the day following the day the decision on admission to membership of the self-regulatory organization of auditors comes into force.

7. A self-regulatory organization of auditors does not have the right to:

1) put forward any requirements or conditions when entering into the register of auditors and audit organizations information about a person whose decision to admit him as a member of this self-regulatory organization of auditors has entered into force;

2) charge a fee for entering information into the register of auditors and audit organizations.

8. An audit organization or auditor is required to notify in writing the self-regulatory organization of auditors, of which they are members, of all changes contained in the information contained in the register of auditors and audit organizations within 10 working days from the day following the day such changes occur.

9. Information on termination of membership of an audit organization or an auditor in a self-regulatory organization of auditors must be entered into the register of auditors and audit organizations no later than seven working days from the day following the day of termination of membership.

10. The self-regulatory organization of auditors is obliged, within seven working days from the day following the day of entering information about the audit organization, auditor into the register of auditors and audit organizations, as well as from the day following the day of making changes to the information contained in the register of auditors and audit organizations about the audit organization, the auditor, transfer the relevant information to the authorized federal body for inclusion in the control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations, as well as disclose such information.

11. The authorized federal body, within five working days from the day following the day of receipt of the information specified in Part 10 of this article, enters the relevant information or changes to the information in the control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations.

12. A self-regulatory organization of auditors maintains a register of auditors and audit organizations in relation to its members that meet the requirements of Articles 3 and 4 of this Federal Law, starting from the day information about it is entered into the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors in the manner established by this article.

Article 20. Disciplinary measures against audit organizations and auditors

1. In relation to a member of a self-regulatory organization of auditors who has violated the requirements of this Federal Law, auditing standards, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, the code of professional ethics for auditors, the self-regulatory organization of auditors may apply the following disciplinary measures:

1) issue an order obliging a member of a self-regulatory organization of auditors to eliminate violations identified as a result of an external audit of the quality of his work and establishing a deadline for eliminating such violations;

2) issue a written warning to a member of a self-regulatory organization of auditors about the inadmissibility of violating the requirements of this Federal Law, 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 a self-regulatory organization of auditors;

4) make a decision to suspend the membership of an audit organization, an auditor in a self-regulatory organization of auditors for a period until they eliminate the identified violations, 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, auditor from the members of the self-regulatory organization of auditors;

6) apply other measures established by the internal documents of the self-regulatory organization of auditors.

2. Disciplinary measures are applied by a self-regulatory organization of auditors in the manner established by the Federal Law “On Self-Regulatory Organizations”.

3. An auditor in respect of whom 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, does not have the right to:

1) participate in audit activities;

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

4. An audit organization, an individual auditor, in respect of whom a decision has been made to suspend their membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors, 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.

5. No less than seven working days before the expiration of the period for which the membership of an audit organization, auditor in a self-regulatory organization of auditors is suspended, the self-regulatory organization of auditors makes a decision on restoring the membership of the audit organization, auditor in the self-regulatory organization of auditors or on their expulsion from members of the self-regulatory organization auditors.

6. In relation to an audit organization that has violated the requirements of this Federal Law, federal auditing standards, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, the code of professional ethics for auditors, the authorized federal body 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 this Federal Law, federal auditing standards, rules of independence of auditors and audit organizations, and the code of professional ethics for auditors;

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

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

Article 21. Maintaining the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors

1. Maintenance of the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors is carried out by the authorized federal body.

2. To enter information about a non-profit organization that meets the requirements established by Article 17 of this Federal Law into the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, the non-profit organization submits an application to the authorized federal body, and also submits the following documents:

1) a copy of the certificate of state registration of a non-profit organization;

2) a copy of the charter of the non-profit organization;

3) a list of members of a non-profit organization - individuals who meet the requirements for membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors;

4) a list of members of a non-profit organization - commercial organizations that meet the requirements for membership in a self-regulatory organization of auditors;

5) copies of documents certified by a non-profit organization confirming the state registration of its members - legal entities;

6) a copy of the approved rules for external quality control of the work of members of the self-regulatory organization of auditors;

7) a copy of the decision (decisions) of a non-profit organization on the approval of the standards of a self-regulatory organization of auditors and copies of such standards (if available);

8) a copy of the decision of a non-profit organization to adopt a code of professional ethics for auditors approved by the audit council and a copy of such a code;

9) copies of documents confirming the creation by a non-profit organization of specialized bodies provided for by the Federal Law “On Self-Regulatory Organizations”, copies of regulations on such bodies and copies of documents on the composition of the persons participating in their work;

10) copies of documents certified by a non-profit organization confirming the existence of a compensation fund (compensation funds), the creation of which is provided for by this Federal Law.

3. The authorized federal body, within 40 working days from the day following the day of receipt of the documents specified in Part 2 of this article, reviews and verifies information about the non-profit organization. No later than five working days after the end of consideration and verification of the documents specified in Part 2 of this article, the authorized federal body enters information about the non-profit organization into the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors or makes a decision to refuse to enter information about the non-profit organization into the state register of self-regulatory organizations auditors.

4. The basis for making a decision to refuse to enter information about a non-profit organization into the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors is:

1) failure of a non-profit organization to comply with the requirements provided for in Part 3 of Article 17 of this Federal Law;

2) submission by a non-profit organization of documents that do not comply with the requirements established by this Federal Law;

3) failure to submit the documents provided for in Part 2 of this article;

4) submission by a non-profit organization of documents containing false information;

5) exclusion from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors on the grounds provided for in paragraphs 3-6 of part 5 of this article, provided that less than one year has passed since the exclusion.

5. The basis for the exclusion by the authorized federal body of information about a non-profit organization from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors is:

1) an application from a self-regulatory organization of auditors to exclude information about it from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors;

2) liquidation or reorganization of a non-profit organization;

3) identification of false information in documents submitted by a non-profit organization in accordance with Part 2 of this article;

4) refusal of the self-regulatory organization of auditors to participate in the established manner in the creation, including financing, and activities of the unified certification commission provided for by this Federal Law;

5) repeated failure by a self-regulatory organization of auditors to comply within one calendar year with the requirements of this Federal Law and the regulatory legal acts adopted in accordance with it on maintaining a register of auditors and audit organizations, including the requirement to transfer relevant information to the authorized federal body for maintaining a control copy of such registry;

6) a court decision that has entered into legal force to exclude information about a non-profit organization from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors.

6. The grounds for an authorized federal body to apply to an arbitration court to exclude information about a non-profit organization from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors are:

1) identification, based on the results of the audit, of non-compliance of the self-regulatory organization of auditors with the requirements provided for in Part 3 of Article 17 of this Federal Law;

2) identification, based on the results of an inspection of a self-regulatory organization of auditors conducted by an authorized federal body, of non-compliance of the activities of a self-regulatory organization of auditors with the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation and other regulatory legal acts regulating auditing activities;

3) non-fulfillment and (or) non-compliance with the deadlines for fulfillment by the self-regulatory organization of auditors of the mandatory instructions of the authorized federal body provided for by this Federal Law.

7. From the day the court accepts for proceedings the application of the authorized federal body to exclude information about a non-profit organization from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors until the day the court decision enters into legal force, the self-regulatory organization of auditors has no right to accept audit organizations or auditors as members.

8. In the case provided for in Part 7 of this article, or in the event of exclusion of information about a self-regulatory organization of auditors from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, audit organizations and auditors that are members of such a self-regulatory organization have the right to become members of another self-regulatory organization of auditors.

9. Within 60 working days from the day following the day of exclusion of information about a self-regulatory organization of auditors from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, audit organizations, auditors who were members of this self-regulatory organization and who have not become members of another self-regulatory organization of auditors, carry out audit activities in in the manner established by this Federal Law, while audit organizations and individual auditors do not have the right to enter into agreements for the provision of audit services.

10. Upon expiration of the period established by Part 9 of this article, information about audit organizations, auditors who have not become members of another self-regulatory organization of auditors, is excluded by the authorized federal body from the control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations.

11. If, during the period provided for in Part 7 of this article, all members of a self-regulatory organization ceased to be members of it, upon the application of the authorized federal body, the court makes a decision on the liquidation of such a self-regulatory organization of auditors and the appointment of a liquidator or liquidation commission.

Article 22. State control (supervision) over the activities of self-regulatory organizations of auditors

1. State control (supervision) over the activities of self-regulatory organizations of auditors is exercised by an authorized federal body.

2. The subject of state control (supervision) over the activities of self-regulatory organizations of auditors is compliance by self-regulatory organizations of auditors with the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation and other regulatory legal acts that regulate auditing activities.

3. State control (supervision) over the activities of self-regulatory organizations of auditors is carried out in the form of scheduled and unscheduled inspections.

4. A scheduled inspection of a self-regulatory organization of auditors is carried out no more than once every two years in accordance with the inspection plan approved by the authorized federal body.

5. The basis for an unscheduled inspection of a self-regulatory organization of auditors may be a complaint filed with the authorized federal body against the actions (inaction) of a self-regulatory organization of auditors that violate the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation and other regulatory legal acts that regulate auditing activities. The specified complaint can be filed with the authorized federal body by an audit organization, an auditor, as well as federal executive authorities, executive authorities of constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, other self-regulatory organizations of auditors, public associations, and other persons in cases provided for by other federal laws . Other grounds for carrying out an unscheduled audit by an authorized federal body of a self-regulatory organization of auditors are established by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

6. The procedure for appointing and conducting an audit of a self-regulatory organization of auditors, the audit program, as well as the procedure for recording its results are established by the authorized federal body.

7. The head of the self-regulatory organization of auditors being inspected has the right to appeal the actions (inaction) of the officials carrying out the inspection to the head of the authorized federal body within 10 working days from the day following the day the action (inaction) was committed.

8. If a self-regulatory organization of auditors detects violations of the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation and other regulatory legal acts that regulate audit activities, the authorized federal body, based on the results of the audit, may apply the following enforcement measures:

1) issue an order obliging the self-regulatory organization of auditors to eliminate the violations identified as a result of such an audit and establishing a deadline for eliminating such violations;

2) issue a warning in writing about the inadmissibility of violating the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation and other regulatory legal acts that regulate audit activities;

3) make a decision to exclude information about a non-profit organization from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors on the grounds provided for in paragraphs 3-5 of part 5 of Article 21 of this Federal Law;

4) apply to the arbitration court to exclude information about the non-profit organization from the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors.

9. The authorized federal body, within three working days from the day following the day the corresponding decision was made based on the results of an audit of a self-regulatory organization of auditors, is obliged to inform it in writing about the decision made regarding its decision. The authorized federal body is obliged to inform the audit council at its next meeting about the results of the audit of the self-regulatory organization of auditors conducted by the authorized federal body and the decision made.

10. The self-regulatory organization of auditors, within three working days after the expiration date established by the authorized federal body for eliminating the violation, must inform the authorized federal body, as well as the audit council, in writing about the elimination of the identified violations at its next meeting.

Article 23. Final provisions

1) audit organizations, auditors are obliged to fulfill the requirements established by this Federal Law for membership in self-regulatory organizations of auditors, in addition, audit organizations must also bring their constituent documents into compliance with the requirements of this Federal Law;

2) audit organizations, individual auditors who have licenses to carry out auditing activities, the validity of which has not expired, have the right to carry out auditing activities;

3) audit organizations, individual auditors with licenses to carry out auditing activities, the validity of which expires in the period from January 1, 2009 to January 1, 2010, have the right to carry out auditing activities without re-issuing a document confirming the presence of a license;

4) auditors who have not fulfilled the requirement for membership in self-regulatory organizations of auditors established by this Federal Law have the right to participate in audit activities (carry out audit activities);

5) professional audit associations accredited before the date of entry into force of this Federal Law and which have brought their constituent documents into compliance with the requirements established by this Federal Law for self-regulatory organizations of auditors, have the right to submit, in the prescribed manner, to the authorized federal body an application for entering information about them into the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors.

2. From January 1, 2010, licenses to carry out auditing activities become invalid and audit organizations and individual auditors who have not joined self-regulatory organizations of auditors are not entitled to conduct audits and provide audit-related services.

3. Until January 1, 2010, in the manner established before the entry into force of this Federal Law, the following shall be carried out:

1) licensing control in accordance with Federal Law of August 8, 2001 N 128-FZ “On licensing of certain types of activities”;

2) external control of the quality of work of audit organizations, individual auditors who are not members of self-regulatory organizations of auditors;

3) confirmation of compliance by auditors with training requirements for advanced training programs.

4. From the date of entry into force of the parts

1 - 8 of Article 11 of this Federal Law, auditors who have valid auditor qualification certificates issued before this day have the right to:

1) participate in audit activities (carry out audit activities) in accordance with the type of auditor qualification certificate they have, with the exception of participation in audit activities (carry out audit activities) provided for in Part 3 of Article 5 of this Federal Law;

2) before January 1, 2013, take the qualification exam provided for by this Federal Law in a simplified manner. A simplified procedure for passing the qualification exam for these persons is established by the authorized federal body. At the same time, the requirement established by paragraph 2 of part 1 of Article 11 of this Federal Law that at least two years out of the last three years of work experience related to auditing activities or maintaining accounting records and preparing accounting (financial) statements does not apply to these persons , must be employed in an audit organization.

5. Until January 1, 2013, organizations and individuals, when joining a self-regulatory organization of auditors, have the right to submit to the self-regulatory organization of auditors recommendations of at least three auditors who have a valid auditor qualification certificate issued before the date of entry into force of this Federal Law, but no later than three years before giving recommendations confirming the impeccable business (professional) reputation of the applicant.

6. The register of auditors and audit organizations is subject to publication by self-regulatory organizations of auditors, information about which is included in the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors before January 1, 2010, on their official websites on the Internet no later than February 1, 2010.

7. A control copy of the register of auditors and audit organizations must be published by the authorized federal body on its official website on the Internet no later than March 1, 2010.

8. Until the creation of the audit council provided for by this Federal Law, its functions are performed by the audit council under the authorized federal body, created before the date of entry into force of this Federal Law.

9. Until the authorized federal body approves the federal auditing standards provided for by this Federal Law, the federal rules (standards) of auditing approved before the entry into force of this Federal Law are mandatory for audit organizations, auditors, self-regulatory organizations of auditors and their employees.

10. Until the approval by the audit council, created in accordance with this Federal Law, of the code of professional ethics of auditors provided for by this Federal Law, mandatory for audit organizations and auditors is the code of ethics of auditors of Russia, approved by the audit council under the authorized federal body, created before the date of entry into force of this Federal Law.

Article 24. On amendments to the Federal Law "On licensing of certain types of activities"

Insert into paragraph one of paragraph 52 of Article 18 of the Federal Law of August 8, 2001 N 128-FZ “On licensing of certain types of activities” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2001, N 33, Art. 3430; 2002, N11, Art. 1020; 2005 , N 27, article 2719; 2006, N 1, article 11; N 31, article 3455; 2007, N 1, article 15; N 30, article 3749, 3750; N 46, article 5554; 2008 , N 29, Art. 3413; N 30, Art. 3604) change, replacing the words “From January 1, 2009” with the words “From January 1, 2010”.

Article 25. On the recognition as invalid of certain legislative acts (provisions of legislative acts) of the Russian Federation

1. The following shall be declared invalid from the date of entry into force of this Federal Law:

1) Articles 1 - 14, 17, 18, 20 - 22 of the Federal Law of August 7, 2001 N 119-FZ “On Auditing Activities” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2001, N 33, Art. 3422);

2) paragraphs 1 - 6, 8, 9, 11 and 12 of Article 1 of the Federal Law of December 14, 2001 N 164-FZ “On Amendments and Additions to the Federal Law “On Auditing Activities” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2001, N51 , art. 4829);

3) Article 3 of the Federal Law of December 30, 2004 N 219-FZ “On amendments to certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation in connection with the adoption of the Federal Law “On Credit Histories” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2005, N 1, Art. 45 );

4) Article 23 of the Federal Law of February 2, 2006 N 19-FZ "On amendments to certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation and the recognition as invalid of certain provisions of legislative acts of the Russian Federation in connection with the adoption of the Federal Law "On placing orders for the supply of goods, fulfillment works, provision of services for state and municipal needs" (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2006, No. 6, Art. 636);

5) paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 4 of the Federal Law of November 3, 2006 N 183-FZ “On Amendments to the Federal Law “On Agricultural Cooperation” and certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2006, N45, Art. 4635).

1) paragraph 3 of Article 15, Articles 16 and 19 of the Federal Law of August 7, 2001 N 119-FZ “On Auditing Activities” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2001, N 33, Art. 3422);

2) paragraph 10 of Article 1 of the Federal Law of December 14, 2001 N 164-FZ “On Amendments and Additions to the Federal Law “On Auditing Activities” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2001, N 51, Art. 4829);

3) paragraph 3 of Article 4 of the Federal Law of November 3, 2006 N 183-FZ “On Amendments to the Federal Law

“On Agricultural Cooperation” and certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation” (Collection of Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2006, No. 45, Art. 4635).

1) Federal Law of August 7, 2001 N 119-FZ “On Auditing Activities” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2001, N 33, Art. 3422);

2) paragraph 7 of Article 1 of the Federal Law of December 14, 2001 N 164-FZ “On Amendments and Additions to the Federal Law “On Auditing Activities” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2001, N 51, Art. 4829).

Article 26. Entry into force of this Federal Law

1. This Federal Law comes into force on January 1, 2009, with the exception of parts 1-9 of Article 11, Articles 12 and 16 of this Federal Law.

3. Part 9 of Article 11, Articles 12 and 16 of this Federal Law come into force on January 1, 2010.

President of Russian Federation
D. Medvedev

Auditing- this is an examination of the accounting (financial) statements of an organization in order to express an opinion on its reliability. Based on the results of the audit, the organization receives an audit report. Currently, audits are often referred to as checks in other, non-financial areas (for example, fire audits). However, officially the concept of audit refers specifically to financial audits and is defined in the Law “On Auditing Activities”.

Who conducts the audit

Auditing activities are carried out by audit organizations and individual auditors. Only a person who has passed the exam and received a certificate can be called an auditor. The audit firm must have at least 3 auditors on staff. All auditors and audit firms must be members of a self-regulatory organization (SRO) of auditors. Now in Russia . In total, as of May 2013, there were approx. 4.8 thousand and 23 thousand auditors.

What are auditors guided by?

Audits are carried out on the basis of Federal Law No. 307-FZ of December 30, 2008 “On Auditing Activities” and Federal Auditing Standards. In addition, there is a Code of Professional Ethics for Auditors, which defines the basic principles of auditors’ behavior and their relationship with the client.

Who needs an audit?

The audit can be proactive (at the request of the client) and mandatory when the law obliges the organization to annually confirm the accuracy of its financial statements. The law requires mandatory auditing of large and socially significant organizations - see.

What happens when you evade a mandatory audit?

Currently, there are no penalties in Russian legislation for evading mandatory audits.

Quality of audits

The quality of work of an audit firm is controlled by the SRO of which it is a member, and in some cases by Rosfinnadzor. This is external quality control. In addition, each audit firm has an internal quality control system.

Still have questions? Ask them on the audit forum.

Audit: details for an accountant

• Organization of an audit

  In order to organize an audit within the established time frame, it is necessary to carry out certain preparatory procedures... in order to organize an audit within the established time frame, it is necessary to carry out certain preparatory procedures... by those participating in the audit, as well as to coordinate such work. Stages of an audit The team leader... the moment the audit report is issued, the audit manager must check the auditor's working papers...

• Audit program

  The audit planning process involves drawing up an audit program. The audit program is a specific... recorded. How to create an audit program? When developing an audit program, it is necessary to take into account: activities... audit Sample program for conducting an audit The audit program is divided into relevant sections...

• Audit stages

  It is necessary to properly plan the audit. To achieve the main purpose of the audit..., it is necessary to properly plan the audit. During the audit process, auditors... and internal auditing standards. The audit includes the following... established deadlines to conduct a quality audit of the client, it is necessary to draw up a thoughtful... be clarified and revised. Stage 3 audit program. Conducting an audit. ...

• Audit result

  ...) and the auditor's report. The result of the audit is the presentation to the management of the audited company...) and the audit report. The final stage of the audit is the preparation of written information (report... Written information (report) based on the results of the audit, presented to the audited company, being confidential... on the relevant sections of the approved audit program. As a rule, these sections represent...

• Mistakes made when implementing internal financial control and audit

  For each audit: the topic of the audit; audit objects; the timing of the audit; responsible executors... of the audit; a list of issues to be studied during the audit; the timing of it. Audit program... violations identified; audit report. The results of the audit are documented in an audit report, which is signed by the head of the audit...

• The theory and practice of applying audit procedures regarding opening balances when performing the first audit engagements

  This allows you to optimize audit resources while obtaining audit evidence... . This ensures the optimization of audit resources in the course of obtaining audit evidence... period, ensures the optimization of audit resources in the course of obtaining sufficient and... The audit ensures optimization of audit resources in the course of obtaining sufficient... . This allows you to optimize audit resources while obtaining audit evidence...

• Choosing an audit company

  For a specific organization? The cost of an audit is determined by many different factors, however... the total amount of labor required to carry out the audit. Human capital is the most important...

• Auditors: what information and in what cases are they required to provide to the tax authorities?

  Only documents provided by taxpayers during the audit, but also any information, any... will take information about the audits carried out. If information about the results of the mandatory...

• Audit procedure (Part I)

  Evidence? In what order is the audit carried out? What methodological techniques exist for... obtaining audit evidence? The main purpose of the audit is to establish the reliability of the accounting (financial.... Each evidence collected during the audit is supported by relevant records. Due to the limited time of the audit, it is carried out using a sampling method. The audit includes...

• Audit of long-term development programs and auditing standards

  Moreover, in the Model standard for conducting an audit of the long-term development program (Order of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 91 ... part of the entire audit work. Expert assessment by the auditor of the implementation... 3.4. The standard standard for conducting an audit of the implementation of the long-term development program of open joint-stock companies... Approximate technical assignment for conducting an audit of the implementation of the long-term development program of open joint-stock companies... activities. The existing standard standard for conducting an audit of the implementation of the long-term development program, according to the expert...

• On the results of the analysis of the implementation of internal financial control and audit

  In order to ensure the principle of independence, audits must be organized and carried out... perform responsibilities during the audit. The Federal Treasury notes: part..., direction and timing of consideration of the audit report (clause 52 of Rules No. 93... submission of a report on the results of the audit and annual reporting on... each audit (topic of the audit, data on objects audit, the timing of the audit of responsible...

• TOP misconceptions about auditing

  For example, tax authorities. In fact, the audit is carried out on a specific sample. Financial... must understand why he needs an audit, what he wants in the end... reputation. Other Common Misconceptions About Audits It is commonly believed that auditing allows... a common HR myth about auditing. It is believed that she has not... been reckless in not preparing for the upcoming audit.

• Russian audit has taken a decisive step forward

  Which introduces additional requirements for audits of subjects of public interest. Note...

• Punishment as an end in itself? On the practice of using the state function of external quality control of audit organizations

  The scope of documentation for each specific audit, guided by your professional opinion, when...

• Types of audit reports

  The result of the audit is an audit report. What are...other types of conclusion? The result of the audit is an audit report. What are there...

1) auditors who are the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their managers, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing financial (accounting) statements;


2. The procedure for payment and the amount of monetary remuneration to audit organizations and individual auditors for conducting an audit (including mandatory) and providing related services are determined by contracts for the provision of audit services and cannot be made dependent on the fulfillment of any requirements of the audited entities for the content of conclusions that can be drawn as a result of the audit.
Commentary on Article 12
Independence is one of the fundamental principles of auditing. Auditors, audit organizations and individual auditors, in the course of their activities, are required to comply with professional, ethical auditing principles and use them as the basis for making any professional decisions.
Independence is an audit principle, which consists in the obligatory absence of the auditor, when forming his opinion, from financial, property, related or any other interest in the affairs of the audited economic entity, exceeding the relations under the contract for the provision of audit services, as well as any dependence on third parties . Requirements for the auditor in terms of ensuring independence and the criteria that the auditor is not dependent are regulated by regulatory documents on auditing activities, as well as ethical codes of auditors. The independence of the auditor must be ensured both on formal grounds and in terms of actual circumstances.
Provisions on the independence of auditors are contained not only in the commented Law and other acts, but also in the auditor’s code of ethics.
The Code of Professional Ethics for Auditors of the Russian Federation lists the main circumstances that impair independence:
a) upcoming (possible) or ongoing legal (arbitration) cases with the client’s organization;
b) financial participation of the auditor in the affairs of the client’s organization in any form;
c) financial and property dependence of the auditor on the client (joint participation in investments in other organizations, lending, except for banking, etc.);
d) indirect financial participation (financial dependence) in the client’s organization through relatives, employees of the company, through main and subsidiary organizations, etc.;
e) family and personal friendly relations with directors and senior management personnel of the client’s organization;
f) excessive hospitality of the client, as well as receiving goods and services from him at prices significantly reduced relative to real market prices;
g) participation of the auditor (managers of the audit firm) in any management bodies of the client’s organization, its main and subsidiaries;
h) careless recommendations and advice from auditors (heads of audit firms) regarding financial investments in organizations in which they themselves have any financial interests;
i) previous work of the auditor in the client’s organization or in its management organization in any positions;
j) if the issue of appointing an auditor to a managerial or other position in the client’s organization is being considered.
Under the above circumstances, independence is considered to be impaired if the circumstances arose, continued to exist or were terminated during the period for which professional audit services are to be performed.
The independence of an audit firm is questionable if:
a) if it participates in a financial-industrial group, a group of credit organizations or a holding company and provides professional audit services to organizations included in this financial-industrial or banking group (holding);
b) if the audit firm arose on the basis of a structural unit of a former or current ministry (committee), or with the direct or indirect participation of a former or current ministry (committee), or with the direct or indirect participation of a former or current ministry (committee) and provides services to organizations, previously or currently subordinate to this ministry (committee);
c) if the audit firm arose with the direct or indirect participation of banks, insurance companies or investment institutions and provides services to organizations whose shares are owned, acquired or acquired by the above-mentioned structures during the period for which the audit firm must provide services.
In cases where the auditor performs other services on behalf of the client (consulting, reporting, accounting, etc.), it is necessary to ensure that they do not violate the independence of the auditor. Auditor independence is ensured when:
a) the auditor’s consultations do not develop into services for the management of the organization;
b) there are no reasons or situations affecting the objectivity of the auditor’s judgments;
c) personnel involved in accounting and reporting are not involved in the audit of the client’s organization;
d) the client’s organization assumes responsibility for the content of accounting and reporting.
According to Article 12 of the commented Law, audit cannot be carried out:
1) auditors who are the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their managers, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing financial (accounting) statements;
2) auditors who are closely related to the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their officials, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing financial (accounting) statements (parents, spouses, brothers, sisters, children, as well as brothers, sisters, parents and children of spouses);
3) audit organizations, the managers and other officials of which are the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their officials, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing financial (accounting) statements;
4) audit organizations whose managers and other officials are closely related (parents, spouses, brothers, sisters, children, as well as brothers, sisters, parents and children of spouses) with the founders (participants) of the audited entities, their officials, accountants and other persons responsible for organizing and maintaining accounting records and preparing financial (accounting) statements;
5) audit organizations in relation to audited entities that are their founders (participants), in relation to audited entities for which these audit organizations are founders (participants), in relation to subsidiaries, branches and representative offices of the specified audited entities, as well as in relation to organizations, having founders (participants) in common with this audit organization;
6) audit organizations and individual auditors who, during the three years immediately preceding the audit, provided services for the restoration and maintenance of accounting records, as well as for the preparation of financial (accounting) statements to individuals and legal entities - in relation to these persons.
The procedure for payment and the amount of monetary remuneration to audit organizations and individual auditors for conducting an audit (including mandatory audits) and providing related services are determined by contracts for the provision of audit services and cannot be made dependent on the fulfillment of any requirements of the audited entities regarding the content of the conclusions that may be made as a result of the audit.

Organization audit is a set of measures to assess the reliability of financial reporting information and their compliance with legal requirements. The audit ends with the formulation of a conclusion about the correctness of accounting at the enterprise. Let's take a closer look at the features organizing and conducting an audit.

Classification

There are different types audit of the organization. Classification is carried out according to various criteria. Depending on the category, there are independent, internal, and state.

In the first case, the inspection is carried out by a third-party company in accordance with an agreement concluded with the management of the enterprise. Behind organization of internal audit is answered by a special service operating within the company structure. State inspections are carried out by authorized government agencies.

Depending on the profile of the enterprise, the audit can be general, insurance, banking, etc.

Inspections can also be voluntary or mandatory. In the first case, the initiator is the head of the enterprise. He also determines the timing and scope of the inspection.

Organizations are subject to mandatory audit specified in the legislation.

Normative base

Concept audit of the organization, duties, responsibilities, rights, requirements for certification of companies carrying out inspections are enshrined in Federal Law No. 307.

In addition, in accordance with this regulatory act, federal auditing standards have been adopted. They set out the procedure for performing the inspection and uniform standards for carrying out the procedure. The rules are the same for all participants in audit activities.

The standards explain the principles of verification and the procedure for drawing up a conclusion. They define the methodology, depth, volume audit of organizations.

In addition to domestic ones, there are also international standards. They establish requirements for audit quality, define goals, provide lists of necessary documentation and rules for drawing up conclusions.

Instructions for auditors

The reporting can be verified by specialized organizations or private specialists. The latter are subject to a number of requirements. A private auditor must, firstly, be a member of an accredited self-regulatory organization. In addition, they must have:

• higher legal or economic education;
• work experience as an assistant auditor or chief accountant for at least three years;
• auditor certificate (issued based on the results of passing a special exam).

The legislation also establishes a number of requirements for audit firms. The organization must, firstly, be commercial, and secondly, be formed in any form, with the exception of an OJSC. Such a company must have at least three specialists on staff. At the same time, at least 51% of its authorized capital must belong to auditors or other similar organizations.

Subject of inspection

IN organizations subject to audit at the initiative of the manager, control is carried out only on issues specified in the contract. For example, the check can be performed in relation only to cash transactions, accounting of fixed assets, intangible assets or current assets, settlements with counterparties or the budget. Accordingly, the specialist will evaluate the correctness of execution of only certain categories of documents.

IN organizations subject to mandatory audit, all financial documentation and accounting statements are checked. In this case, the company must provide all available papers that are related to its business activities. Since this is carried out by representatives of government agencies, it is impossible not to comply with their demands.

Mandatory verification

For most companies, an audit is not mandatory. As a rule, government agencies are involved in checking the accounting records of large companies, including those that use public funds. Mandatory audit is aimed at reducing the risk from the actions of unscrupulous companies, ensuring the protection of the interests of citizens and the state. It is usually performed once a year.

List of enterprises subject to mandatory inspection

Annual organization accounting audit carried out if:

• The enterprise is a joint-stock company. It is worth noting that in accordance with the latest amendments to the legislation, the audit is carried out in relation to all business entities, regardless of the type, type of activity, or financial indicators. Accordingly, the audit is performed at both CJSC and OJSC.
• The company's shares are traded on the stock exchange.
• The enterprise publishes or provides its reports to the competent government agencies. The exception in this case is government agencies.
• The organization is a credit, insurance, clearing, non-state fund or uses financial resources of the population.
• The profit volume for the previous year exceeded 400 million rubles. or the asset on the balance sheet at the end of the period is more than 60 million rubles.

This list is not closed. The legislation may also establish other cases of mandatory audit. It is worth noting that only audit firms have the right to check these entities.

Deadlines

Duration of the inspection period for voluntary audit of the organization's activities is determined in the contract. The period depends on:

• Enterprise scale.
• Availability of representative offices and branches.
• Duration of activity.
• Scope of inspection.
• Accounting quality.

If a mandatory inspection is carried out, the period is established by law and regulations. As practice shows, in this case it takes on average 1-2 weeks. There are cases of longer inspections, but they rarely last more than two months.

Stages

The audit involves 4 interconnected stages:

• Preliminary acquaintance with the enterprise.
• Planning.
• The main stage (the actual check).
• Formulation of conclusions.

Preliminary activities

At this stage, the auditor examines the constituent documentation and assesses risks based on:

• Specifics of the enterprise's activities.
• Indicators of financial position, production growth rates.
• Personnel turnover.
• Qualifications of accountants.

Planning an inspection

This stage is considered one of the key stages in the auditor’s activities. Planning includes 3 stages:

1. Concluding an agreement with the customer. During this stage, the timing, cost of the audit, and the number of specialists are discussed.
2. Planning. This includes defining the verification strategy.
3. Development of an assessment program. During this stage, activities are formulated and reporting sections that are subject to deep and superficial verification are identified.

Progress of the process

During the direct study of documentation and its assessment, the auditor must adhere to the requirements and standards. The specialist carries out:

• Collection of evidence, i.e. primary documents reflecting the facts of transactions, information from third parties, etc.
• Evaluation of sample results.
• Study of reporting indicators.
• Assessment of the degree of materiality.
• Determination of audit risk.
• Assessing the compliance of completed financial transactions with legal requirements.
• Other actions necessary to formulate valid conclusions.

Registration of the conclusion

Upon completion of the audit, the auditor draws up an official motivated document. In it, he sets out his opinion on the compliance of reporting with legal requirements.

The conclusion is necessary for internal and external users to form their own idea of ​​the financial position of the enterprise. The information in this document contributes to making the right management decisions.

The conclusion could be:

• Unmodified. It is also called positive. In such a document, the auditor indicates that there are no violations in the company’s financial statements.
• Modified. This type of conclusion is divided, in turn, into 2 subtypes: a qualified opinion and a negative conclusion. The first is drawn up if the specialist has identified some violations, but they do not have a significant impact on the reliability of the reporting documents. Accordingly, a negative conclusion is formed if the violations are significant.

In addition, the auditor may refuse to express an opinion on the documents audited. This situation is possible if the specialist did not receive the necessary evidence during the audit. For example, the assessment was carried out in relation to only one reporting area, the organization refused to provide documentation, etc.

Organization of internal audit

Any manager is interested in ensuring proper control over the efficiency of the company’s structural divisions and the conscientiousness of the performance of their assigned duties by their employees. The most important element of management is on-farm

The objectives of control are:

• Minimizing risks and maximizing the organization's profits.
• Increasing the efficiency of decisions regarding the use of enterprise resources.

Internal audit is an activity regulated by local documents related to the control of various areas of the company’s work.

To implement this task, an audit service is being formed at the enterprise. The number of its employees depends on the volume and nature of the inspections. In small enterprises, internal audit can be carried out by 1-4 employees. In large companies, the audit department staff is quite large. However, the responsibilities of individual employees may extend beyond accounting. For example, employees can conduct assessment, technological, environmental audits, etc.

Key terms

Proper organization of an audit at an enterprise is impossible without implementing a set of measures, including:

• Drawing up projects for organizing internal audits by industry and area of ​​work. They must clearly indicate the specific functions of the responsible persons, the rules for their interaction with other departments and the management of the enterprise, the status of internal auditors, their responsibilities, duties, and rights.
• Establishment of qualification requirements for audit service employees.
• Development and determination of rules for introducing standards, guidelines, and norms into the activities of the audit department.
• Drawing up programs for advanced training and training of internal auditors.
• Forecasting staffing needs.

Types of internal audit

The most common division of auditing into operational, financial reporting and compliance with legal requirements.

In addition, there are checks:

• Organizational and technological.
• Functional.
• Control systems.
• Types of activities.

A functional audit is performed to evaluate efficiency and productivity. For example, an audit may be carried out in relation to transactions performed by an employee or department in the context of its function.

An organizational and technological audit involves assessing the performance of various parts of the management system. During such verification, the technological or organizational feasibility of their presence and operation is established.

Cross-functional audit is aimed at assessing the quality of certain functions. For example, the efficiency of production and sales, the effectiveness of the relationship and interaction of departments responsible for these areas of work are analyzed.