Professional ethics
1. Member States shall ensure that all statutory auditors and audit firms are subject to principles of professional ethics, covering at least their public-interest function, their integrity and objectivity and their professional competence and due care.
2. In order to ensure confidence in the audit function and to ensure uniform application of paragraph 1 of this Article, the Commission may, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 48(2), adopt principle-based implementing measures governing professional ethics.
Independence and objectivity
1. Member States shall ensure that when carrying out a statutory audit, the statutory auditor and/or the audit firm is independent of the audited entity and is not involved in the decision-taking of the audited entity.
2. Member States shall ensure that a statutory auditor or an audit firm shall not carry out a statutory audit if there is any direct or indirect financial, business, employment or other relationship — including the provision of additional non-audit services — between the statutory auditor, audit firm or network and the audited entity from which an objective, reasonable and informed third party would conclude that the statutory auditor's or audit firm's independence is compromised. If the statutory auditor's or audit firm's independence is affected by threats, such as self-review, self-interest, advocacy, familiarity or trust or intimidation, the statutory auditor or audit firm must apply safeguards in order to mitigate those threats. If the significance of the threats compared to the safeguards applied is such that his, her or its independence is compromised, the statutory auditor or audit firm shall not carry out the statutory audit.
Member States shall in addition ensure that, where statutory audits of public-interest entities are concerned and where appropriate to safeguard the statutory auditor's or audit firm's independence, a statutory auditor or an audit firm shall not carry out a statutory audit in cases of self-review or self-interest.
3. Member States shall ensure that a statutory auditor or audit firm documents in the audit working papers all significant threats to his, her or its independence as well as the safeguards applied to mitigate those threats.
4. In order to ensure confidence in the audit function and to ensure uniform application of paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, the Commission may, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 48(2), adopt principle-based implementing measures concerning:
(a)
the threats and safeguards referred to in paragraph 2;
(b)
the situations in which the significance of the threats, as referred to in paragraph 2, is such that the independence of the statutory auditor or audit firm is compromised;
(c)
the cases of self-review and self-interest referred to in the second subparagraph of paragraph 2, in which statutory audits may or may not be carried out.
Confidentiality and professional secrecy
1. Member States shall ensure that all information and documents to which a statutory auditor or audit firm has access when carrying out a statutory audit are protected by adequate rules on confidentiality and professional secrecy.
2. Confidentiality and professional secrecy rules relating to statutory auditors or audit firms shall not impede enforcement of the provisions of this Directive.
3. Where a statutory auditor or audit firm is replaced by another statutory auditor or audit firm, the former statutory auditor or audit firm shall provide the incoming statutory auditor or audit firm with access to all relevant information concerning the audited entity.
4. A statutory auditor or audit firm who has ceased to be engaged in a particular audit assignment and a former statutory auditor or audit firm shall remain subject to the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 with respect to that audit assignment.
Independence and objectivity of the statutory auditors carrying out the statutory audit on behalf of audit firms
Member States shall ensure that the owners or shareholders of an audit firm as well as the members of the administrative, management and supervisory bodies of such a firm, or of an affiliated firm, do not intervene in the execution of a statutory audit in any way which jeopardises the independence and objectivity of the statutory auditor who carries out the statutory audit on behalf of the audit firm.
Audit fees
Member States shall ensure that adequate rules are in place which provide that fees for statutory audits:
(a)
are not influenced or determined by the provision of additional services to the audited entity;
(b)
cannot be based on any form of contingency.
