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Financial Reporting Act 2013

External Reporting Board, standards, and provisions that apply to other enactments - Standard provisions relating to auditor qualifications and access to information - Auditor access to information

38: Specified entity must give auditor access to information

You could also call this:

"Let the auditor see your records or you might get a fine"

Illustration for Financial Reporting Act 2013

If you are part of a specified entity, you must make sure the auditor can see the accounting records and documents at any time. You have to keep these records available so the auditor can do their job. If you do not do this, you can get in trouble and have to pay a fine of up to $50,000.

If you are a director and you are accused of not following this rule, you can defend yourself if you can prove that you or the entity took all the right steps to follow the rule. You can also defend yourself if you can show that you could not have done anything to make the entity follow the rule.

You can look at the Financial Reporting Act 2013 and other related laws, such as the law referenced in s 206(1), (3), to learn more about these rules.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM4632949.

Topics:
Money and consumer rights > Accounting and auditingBusiness > Industry rules
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Part 2External Reporting Board, standards, and provisions that apply to other enactments
Standard provisions relating to auditor qualifications and access to information: Auditor access to information

38Specified entity must give auditor access to information

  1. A specified entity must ensure that an auditor of the specified entity has access at all times to the accounting records and other documents of the specified entity.

  2. If a specified entity fails to comply with subsection (1), every director commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $50,000.

  3. It is a defence to a director charged with an offence in relation to the duty imposed under subsection (1) if the director proves that—

  4. the specified entity took all reasonable and proper steps to ensure that the duty would be complied with; or
    1. he or she took all reasonable steps to ensure that the specified entity complied with the duty; or
      1. in the circumstances, he or she could not reasonably have been expected to take steps to ensure that the specified entity complied with the duty.

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