S.L. 403.9 Art. 5Grant of authorisation.

(1) The competent authority may under these regulations grant an applicant authorisation to act as approved auditor only if it is satisfied, on the basis of the information provided by the applicant under these regulations and any information received by it, that authorisation ought to be granted.

(2) Subject to the provisions of the Act and of these regulations, the competent authority may subject any authorisation issued or held under these regulations to such conditions and limitations as it may, from time to time, deem fit to impose.

(3) On granting an applicant authorisation to act as approved auditor under these regulations, the competent authority shall -

(a) in the case of an applicant who is an individual, register the applicant in the approved auditors register; and

(b) in the case of an applicant which is an audit firm, enrol the applicant in the approved auditors list.

(4) Any person who, for the purpose of obtaining an authorisation under these regulations, gives any wrong information or otherwise acts in a deceitful or fraudulent manner, or any person who fails to comply with any condition or limitation imposed in the authorisation by the competent authority under subregulation (2), shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction for each offence to a fine (multa) not exceeding one thousand and one hundred and sixty-four euro and sixty-nine cents (€1,164.69) or to

(a) the person, in applying for the authorisation, has given any false or incorrect information which was material to the application referred to in regulation 4 or has obtained otherwise the authorisation by fraud or misrepresentation;

(b) the person has failed to fulfil or comply with the requirements prescribed by these regulations or as determined by Insurance Rules or any of the terms, conditions or limitations attached to the authorisation;

(c) the person has shown incompetence in the conduct of his responsibilities under the authorisation or has in any manner acted fraudulently, or dishonestly or otherwise in such manner as to cease to be trustworthy;

(d) the warrant to act as auditor issued to the person under the Accountancy Profession Act is suspended or revoked under that Act, or the registration of an audit firm under that Act is suspended or cancelled thereunder;

(e) at any time, in the case of an audit firm, no longer has any two partners/directors, or any one partner/director and one employee, who hold an authorisation to act as approved auditor;

(f) the person who holds an appointment to audit insurance undertakings accounts is no longer covered by an indemnity insurance contract for the amount specified in Insurance Rules; and

(g) the person is disciplined or convicted under any provision of these regulations.

(2) The name of an individual person or audit firm whose authorisation is revoked under these regulations shall be struck off the approved auditors register or the approved auditors list, as the case may be, and a name struck off the register or the list shall be restored thereto only where the revocation is declared void and of no effect by order of the Financial Services Tribunal on an appeal made to it by the aggrieved person under article 58 of the Act.

(3) Without prejudice to anything contained in any other provision of the Act, the competent authority may at any time suspend or revoke an authorisation issued or held under these regulations and strike off the name of the approved auditor from the approved auditors register or the approved auditors list, as the case may be, if such approved auditor fails to pay the annual supervisory fee, when due, to continue to act as an approved auditor.

(4) The competent authority may, after the expiration of one year from the date of revocation of an authorisation, issue a fresh specified in regulation 6, the competent authority intends to suspend or revoke an authorisation issued or held under these regulations, it shall give the person concerned notice in writing specifying the reasons for its intention to do so.

(2) Every notice given under sub-regulation (1) shall state that the person concerned may, within such reasonable period after the service thereof as may be stated in the notice (being a period of not less than forty-eight hours and not longer than thirty days), make representations in writing to the competent authority giving reasons why the authorisation should not be suspended or revoked and the competent authority shall consider any representations so made before arriving at a final decision.

(3) The competent authority shall notify in writing its final decision to the person concerned and, where the authorisation is revoked, the notification shall also state that the name of the person concerned has been struck off the approved auditors register or the approved auditors list, as the case may be.