Brussels, 15/07/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 15 July, the European Commission decided that the audit rules in force in the United States were equivalent to those of the European Union. This equivalence, which has been in place since August 2013, has now been extended until August 2022.
Under the Commission's decision, the public supervision, quality assurance, investigative and sanction systems applicable to auditors and audit bodies of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) of the United States meet requirements which are equivalent to those laid down in Directive 2006/43 governing the audit of the financial statements of listed companies in the EU.
Under the directive, the competent authorities of a member state must register all auditors and audit bodies of third countries which present audit reports concerning the annual or consolidated financial statements of a company incorporated in a third country, but listed in the EU.
Furthermore, the Commission has decided to recognise, until the end of July 2022, that the American SEC and PCAOB fulfil criteria deemed adequate with regard to Directive 2006/43/EC. The national competent authorities may therefore continue to allow accredited European companies to send audit documents and inspection or investigation reports to these two entities. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)