Interreg III B Northern Periphery

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Interreg III B Northern Periphery

• Scottish Partner Seminar
• Inverness Sept 2-3, 2004

2
NPP Auditing

• Auditing requirements
• System audit
• Financial audit
• Who can audit your project?
• Other types of audit

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Auditing Requirements

• Only lead partners need to be audited.
• Annual audits for projects that do not send
  ledgers with each claim to the PA.
• System audit replacing midterm-audit for projects
  that send ledgers and in addition to the annual
  audit for projects that do not.
• Internal or national auditors may be used, but
  must be pre-approved by the PA.

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Auditors

• The Lead Partner should appoint a project
  auditor
• Auditors must be INDEPENDENTfrom the project
• Auditors must have sufficient experience of EU
  PROGRAMME AUDITING and be familiar with EU rules
  and regulations
• The auditor may be external or internal
• External auditors must be certified
• Internal/national auditors must be pre-approved
  by the PA

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System audit

• The Project Organisation
• The Lead Partner Role
• Accounting system
• Salary costs
• Accounts payable
• Evaluation of the projects internal control
  system
• - responsibilities and authorities- competence
  and skills
• - Lead Partner responsibilities- The accounting
  system, salaries/ timesheets, accounts
  payable 
•  The reliability of the project from an internal
  control perspective.
•  

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Financial audit (1)

• The auditor should confirm that
• Costs are project related
• Activities are in accordance with the project
  description
• The project can assure good internal control
• Costs are in accordance with the Commission
  regulation (448/2004)
• The project is administered in accordance with
  the Grant Letter and the Conditions

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Financial audit (2)

• The auditor should confirm that
• Separate project accounting has been used
• The information in the entries file corresponds
  to the separate accounts
• Income is accounted for
• The projects cost only include VAT if the project
  actually bore this cost
• The relevant public procurement rules have been
  applied.

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Financial audit (3)

• The auditor should include a memo containing
• How the auditing has been carried out (sample
  checks etc)
• Comments to the above-mentioned issues
• Accounts for any observations (N.B!)

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Internal/national auditors

• An approved internal/national auditor can be
• An external auditing firm
• A separate auditing department within the
  organisation. Describe the organisation!
• The auditing department of another
  organisation
• A national auditing body
• The PA will not approve the financial/economy
  department of your organisation.

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Description

• In order to be approved by the Paying Authority,
  the appointed auditor should describe in written
• - the nature and tasks of the auditing body
• - how the impartiality and externality to the
  project is guaranteed
• - qualification concerning ERDF rules

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Other Types of Audit

• 438/2001 Art. 10 5 -control
• 5 of eligible expenditure
• representative sample
• professional independent auditors
• 438/2001 Art. 4 on- the-spot checks
• verify delivery of products and services
• verify the reality of expenditure
• MA/PA/JPS
• The grey men from Brussels

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Closing Projects

• Final report
• Auditors certificate
• Time schedule

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Final report (1)

• Not much guidance in the PGPM
• No form available, will be published on the
  website before the end of 2004
• Will probably not differ much from the progress
  report
• Interact?

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Final report (2)

• Focus on outputs and results
• Both positive and negative resultsand
  experiences
• Dissemination of information
• Indicators- how have they been measured- what
  was the starting value?- use the indicators for
  your measure (please!)

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Time schedule

• The project should be finished by the date set in
  the decision (example 31.12.2005)
• Activities should stop no later than the
  finishing date in the decision (31.12.2005)
• After that projects have three additional months
  that should be used for- final reporting-
  allowing for costs to be paid(until
  31.03.2005)Costs after these three months will
  not be accepted (exception auditing costs)
• Report should be sent within six months from the
  date of the project. (30.06.2005)