Public interest entities are defined per EU Directive 2014/56/EC The definition states that public interest entities mean: entities governed by the law of a Member State whose transferable securities are admitted to trading on a regulated market of any Member State within the meaning of point 14 of Article 4(1) of Directive 2004/39/EC; credit institutions … Continued

IAASA may raise a finding where a Firm policy has been breached, even if the requirements of standards and legislation have not been breached. As set out in Article 26 of EU Regulation 537, an inspection assesses both the design of the internal control system and testing compliance with that control system. In instances where … Continued

Findings contained in the inspection reports may relate to a number of ISAs or other requirements, all of which would not be disclosed in the report. Reports will however note whether a particular requirement comes from auditing standards, legislation or firm’s own policies and procedures and this information will be considered in the rating process. … Continued

For firmwide findings, where findings are identified on issues that have already been raised by IAASA in the preceding 12 months, no action will be taken. This is because the relevant areas would be assessed again in either a follow up visit or as part of a full inspection after the 12 month implementation period. … Continued

Yes, firmwide reports are shared with the CAI Professional Standards team, or other relevant RAB. The purpose of sharing the reports is to allow the Professional Standards team to understand any firmwide issues arising which may impact on their selections and/or procedures in relation to QA of non-PIE audits. The information is shared on condition … Continued

The 12 month recommendation implementation period is set out in Regulation (EU) 537/2014. All other timelines are set by IAASA to improve the efficiency of the inspection process. Section 1523 of the Companies Act 2014 gives IAASA the power to require a relevant person to provide specified documents within a specified period. Furthermore, section 906 … Continued

A competent authority from outside the state would not normally contact individual audit firms in relation to audit inspections. If you are contacted by a competent authority (supervisory body) from outside of the state please contact the Audit Quality Unit.

A. Section 1523 of the Companies Act 2014 states that: ‘Where it considers it reasonably necessary to do so for the purposes of performing a particular function under the relevant provisions, the Supervisory Authority may request information and inspect and make copies of all relevant documents in the possession or control of a recognised accountancy … Continued

The Companies Act 2014 confers upon IAASA a number of powers to allow it to effectively carry out its functions. Some of the key powers utilised are listed below – please note that this list is not exhaustive. S 906(1) The Supervisory Authority has the power to do anything that appears to it to be … Continued