For purposes of this guide, an issuer is an entity filing an initial public offering, a S-X, 17 C.F.R.§ 210.2-01. FIVE KEY REQUIREMENTS FOR AUDITOR INDEPENDENCE Independence of the auditor means independence from parties whose interests could be harmed by the results of an audit. Underlying the positions historically taken by the SEC and its staff is Rule 2-01(c)(4)(i)(B) of its Regulation S-X, which prohibits an auditor of a client that is subject to the SEC independence rules from preparing, or substantially assisting in the preparation of, the audit client’s financial statements. In remarks made in December 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Chief Accountant Wesley Bricker reaffirmed that auditor independence remains one of the SEC’s areas of focus. The SEC’s amendments revise auditor independence requirements in several important ways: amends the definition of ‘Affiliate of the Audit Client’ and ‘Investment Company Complex.’ This will likely result in fewer sister entity affiliates of the entity under audit; See Rule 2-01 of Reg. On October 16, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted final amendments to certain of the auditor independence requirements in Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X (Reg. As mentioned in Rule 3500T, the Board's Interim Independence Standards do not supersede the Commission's auditor independence rules. The following are the five things that can potentially compromise the independence of auditors: 1. Specifically, internal management issues are inadequate risk management, inadequate internal controls, and poor governance. Some auditors are not issuing the annual PCAOB Rule 3526 independence letter to the client’s audit committee and discussing independence, as required under PCAOB rules. Five Threats to Auditor Independence. Auditor independence and audit quality Auditor independence. Independence Requirements. A self-interest threat exists if the auditor holds a direct or indirect financial interest in the company or depends on the client for a major fee that is outstanding. subject to the audit requirements either in Part 363 of the FDIC regulations (i.e., those with $500 million or more in total assets) or in Section 562.4 of the OTS regulations, the external auditor should be in compliance with the AICPA’s Code of Professional Conduct and also meet the independence requirements and S-X), referred to as the auditor independence rule. Nonetheless, the rule should help audit committees carry out their existing responsibilities by codifying the key legal requirements that may bear on audit committees' exercise of their business judgment. Self-Interest Threat. The charter of audits and, therefore, the reporting to the audit … independence requirements of the principal rule-making bodies in the United States, so you can ... SEC audit client means an SEC registrant and its affiliates, as defined in the SEC rules. An auditor is required to be independent from the entity it audits. “These modernized auditor independence requirements will increase investor protection by focusing audit clients, audit committees and auditors on areas that may threaten an auditor’s objectivity and impartiality. Under the SEC's auditor independence rule, auditors are required to be independent of their audit clients "both in fact and in … Consultations with the SEC about specific auditor independence questions influence the staff’s recommendations to the commission regarding updating or expanding the independence …