Audit

In France, the appointment of a statutory auditor (Commissaire aux comptes) is legally required for companies above a certain size. For SAS, SARL and SA companies, a statutory audit is generally mandatory when two of the following three thresholds are exceeded: total assets of €5 million, net turnover of €10 million, or an average of 50 employees.

Below these thresholds, a statutory auditor may be appointed on a voluntary basis. In addition, shareholders may, under certain conditions, request the appointment of a statutory auditor or apply to the court for such an appointment.

Specific rules apply to companies that are part of a group. A controlled company is therefore generally required to appoint a statutory auditor if it exceeds two of the following three thresholds: total assets of €2.5 million, net turnover of €5 million, or 25 employees.

An important exception applies in particular where the parent company is legally required to prepare and publish consolidated financial statements. In this case, the specific audit requirement based on the reduced thresholds generally does not apply.

However, the subsidiary remains subject to the statutory audit requirement if it itself exceeds the general thresholds of €5 million in total assets, €10 million in net turnover and 50 employees, or if another legal provision requires the appointment of a statutory auditor.

In France, the statutory auditor is appointed for a term of six years.

Our partner firm TWF provides both statutory and voluntary audits of annual financial statements, as well as business valuations and sustainability assurance services. We also hold the new certification required to carry out sustainability assurance engagements.