ASIC has reissued a regulatory guide to consolidate and simplify guidance on auditor breach notification and contravention reporting obligations to ASIC as well as reflect changes to the law.
Regulatory Guide 34 Auditor obligations: Reporting to ASIC (RG 34) provides guidance to auditors on their breach notification and contravention reporting obligations to ASIC.
The reissued RG 34 replaces guidance issued in March 2020.
The changes include guidance on auditor obligations to report:
- suspected contraventions in connection with sustainability reporting, and when conducting audits of registrable superannuation entities, corporate collective investment vehicles (CCIVs) and compliance plans of retail CCIVs
- attempts to unduly influence, interfere and mislead the auditor
- conflicts of interest, and
- the auditor’s own suspected contraventions.
The technical updates made to RG 34 reflect our regulatory approach to new reporting obligations, incorporate relevant ASIC guidance and amend outdated references. We have not made significant changes to our general policy for when auditors should report to ASIC.
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Regulatory Guide 34 Auditor obligations: Reporting to ASIC (RG 34)
Background
RG 34 provides guidance for auditors on their obligations to report to ASIC:
- contraventions and suspected contraventions under s311, 601HG, 990K and 1226H of the Corporations Act 2001 (Corporations Act) and s104 of the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (National Credit Act)
- attempts to unduly influence, interfere, or mislead the auditor under s311, 601HG, 990K and 1226H of the Corporations Act and s104 of the National Credit Act
- conflict of interest situations and circumstances involving relevant relationships as part of an auditor’s independence obligations under s324CA–CC and s324CE–CG of the Corporations Act, and
- the auditor’s own contraventions and suspected contraventions under s311, 601HG and 1226H of the Corporations Act.
