Audit Exemptions in Ireland: Read and keep up to date with useful information in relation to audit exemptions and financial statements within the Republic of Ireland
All types of small and micro companies can have audit exemptions in Ireland from filing full financial statements and filing abridged financial statements.
The company must file full financial statements before the AGM. However, the type and size company may be eligible to receive an exemption from filing any or all Financial Statements with CRO.
Audit exemptions in Ireland in relation to audit and financial statements.
One or more of these exemptions could be claimed by companies that meet certain criteria.
- Exemption for small companies
- Audit Exemption for Dormant Companies
- Size/abridgement Exemption
- Exemption from the filing of Financial Statements
These companies do not qualify for audit exemption:
- Public Limited Companies, Public Unlimited Companies, and Investment Companies
- (A credit institution, or an insurance company
- Referred to in the Fifth Schedule of the 2014 Act
A small company can be exempt from certain conditions.
- Exemption for companies that are inactive
- Exemption from filing complete Financial Statements
- Exemption from filing an audit report
The audit exemptions in Ireland for companies that are currently inactive.
The Dormant Company Audit Exemption in Ireland does not apply to companies of any size. An audit exemption can be claimed by a company if it is inactive.
Directors of the company must agree that the company is dormant for the purpose of obtaining an exemption from the audit.
- It does not have any significant accounting transactions.
- Its assets include only permissible assets and liabilities.
Directors must also decide whether the company should qualify for an exemption from audit in order to qualify. This decision will be recorded in the minutes.
To determine if a company is still active, it will be considered:
Any transaction that results from the taking of shares by the company by a subscriber as a result of an undertaking made by him or her in connection to the formation of the corporation
Any transaction that includes the following payments:
- On a company’s name change, a fee is payable to the Registrar.
- Re-registration fees to the Registrar
- The registration of an annual return requires payment to the Registrar.
A dormant business is not eligible for the right of members to identify from the audit exemption.
Audit exemptions in Ireland for small companies from filing financial statements.
A company must meet the following conditions to be considered a small business and qualify for this exemption:
- The total balance sheet does not exceed EUR6m
- Turnover is not more than EUR12m
- The number of employees is not more than 50
Except for Companies Limited by Guarantee (CLGs), public companies are not eligible for exemption
What are the audit exemptions in Ireland for small companies?
To be eligible for the exemption from audit for small companies, a company must meet these criteria:
- The company must be a small business.
- The company cannot be included in any of the 18 categories of companies listed under the Fifth Schedule to 2014 Act.
- For the current year and previous years, the company’s annual returns must be filed.
For small companies that claim both audit and abridgment exemptions, they must file:
- The company’s Balance Sheet (with (a- to (e), the “audit exempt statement” at the bottom of it)
- Extract from the Directors’ Report indicating the Directors’ interest in shares or debentures
- Notes to Financial Statements
If an ANNUAL RETURN is not filed on time, the COMPANY loses the right to claim the AUDIT EXEMPTION in two years.
Directors have the obligation to appoint an auditor to the company within 24 hours of the company’s failure to meet the qualifying conditions
When deciding whether they wish to have an audit of a financial period, they should also consider that there may be third parties (e.g. An audit may still be required by trade organizations or bankers.
An audit must be conducted if the company is asked by any shareholder representing less than 10% of voting rights (one member for a CLG guarantee company CLG) to deny the exemption. This notice must be served in writing within the immediately preceding or during the financial years concerned, but no later than one month prior to the end of that financial year.
Directors of dormant companies must decide whether they want to apply for an audit exemption in relation to a financial period. They must do so in that financial year.
What are the audit exemptions in Ireland for small group companies?
If the entire group qualifies for Small Group status, Audit Exemption is available to all group companies. To be eligible for a Group Company Audit Exemption, the entire group must meet the conditions.
- The total balance sheet of the holding company and its subsidiaries is not more than EUR6m net or EUR7.2m gross.
- The total turnover of the holding company, subsidiaries, and affiliates is not more than EUR12m net or EUR14.4m brut.
- The average number employed by the holding company or its subsidiaries is not more than 50.
In relation to the total turnover and balance sheet figures, ‘net’ refers to the amount after any set-offs or other adjustments to eliminate group transactions and ‘gross’ refers to the amount without such set-offs.
All of the above conditions must be met within the current year. These conditions must be met in any preceding year unless the previous financial year is the first for the holding company.
If you found this article helpful, please go to the rest of the website for more about accounting in the Republic of Ireland, the general accounting standards, some of the tax reliefs in Ireland, the Irish company audit requirements and audit exemptions, understanding the Irish tax system, or more accounting and financial topics in International Accounting, Audit, Taxation, Accounting Software, Cloud Accounting and Accounting Automation.
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