Independence of the auditors and participation in the accounting process
According to Swiss law, the auditors must be independent and form their audit opinion objectively. Independence must not be impaired either in fact or in appearance (Art. 728 para. 1 and Art. 729 para. 1 CO). This provision reflects the expectations of the public and the legislator.
are compatible with independence:
Supporting activities as part of the final audit
the provision of non-audit services where there is no risk of self-audit
Supporting activities in the context of the audit of the financial statements are understood to mean a certain advisory influence of the auditor on the financial statements, for example to increase the quality or informative value, to ensure compliance with the law or the articles of association, to apply new accounting regulations, etc. The auditor provides alternative courses of action. The auditor presents alternative courses of action. The decision on the application of an alternative remains with the audit client, who should also understand at least the main features of the auditor's arguments.
The provision of any non-audit services where there is no risk of self-review is compatible with independence. This includes typical services in the area of tax, duty and social security law. The decision-making authority for such services also necessarily remains with the client.
Participation in the accounting for a limited audit
The legislator defines exceptions to the limited audit, with the permitted participation in accounting and the provision of non-audit services where there is a risk of self-audit (Art. 729 para. 2 CO). Suitable organizational and personnel measures to ensure a reliable audit are prescribed as a condition for this. The involvement must be disclosed in the audit report (Art. 729b para. 1 no. 3 CO).
In the case of the limited audit, the independence is still compatible:
Assisting with the bookkeeping
the provision of non-audit services where there is a risk of self-auditing
Assisting with the bookkeeping is a purely supportive activity. Responsibility for the annual financial statements must always remain with the audit client.
Typical non-audit services with the risk of self-review are, for example, the preparation of valuation reports on individual balance sheet items. This support for the audit client does not in turn involve assuming responsibility for the annual financial statements.
Appropriate organizational and personnel measures
With the publication of the new version of the "Swiss Standard on Limited Statutory Auditing (SER)" by EXPERTSuisse in August 2015, the interpretation of independence, involvement in accounting and the measures required for this were definitively and bindingly defined. This eliminated questions regarding the interpretation of the legal provisions from the past. The publication of the new SER prompted the Swiss Federal Audit Oversight Authority (FAOA) to reconsider its professional opinion on the matter (it has no regulatory authority over limited audits). With the inclusion of the so-called "mandate-related separation", there are no longer any differences of opinion on the main features of the interpretation. The possibility of so-called "mandate-related separation" is explicitly mentioned and specified.
Suitable organizational and personnel measures are therefore those that ensure that the same person or group of persons is not involved in the bookkeeping of a client and at the same time carries out the audit for the same client. The separation must take place on a mandate basis. Consequently, it is not necessary to separate the entire audit department of a trust company in terms of organization and personnel.
The uniform interpretation creates clarity for the industry and contributes to the reputation of the profession.
