Companies Act 2014 section 1641

Registration of third-country audit firms and third-country audit entities for assurance of sustainability reporting

Section 1641 sets out how auditors and audit firms from outside the EU member states must register with the Supervisory Authority before they can provide assurance on the sustainability reporting of certain Irish-relevant companies.

• Third-country auditors and audit entities must notify the Supervisory Authority in writing of their intention to provide sustainability reporting assurance, and must then be registered on the public register each year
• Registration is not required where the European Commission has not yet assessed the third country's oversight and quality assurance systems as equivalent to EU standards, or where a previous equivalence decision has expired
• The existing registration framework for third-country auditors (Chapter 21 of Part 27) applies, but with modifications so that references to financial audits are read as references to sustainability reporting assurance
• Both Schedule 20 and Schedule 24 information requirements apply, and assurance standards for sustainability reporting replace the usual international auditing standards throughout the registration process