The impact of exempting small companies from statutory audit

This document describes an evaluation of the policy of exempting small UK companies from statutory audits, aiming to assess its impact on reducing regulatory burdens for these businesses. The policy allows companies meeting certain criteria related to turnover, asset values, and employee numbers to opt out of mandatory audits. The evaluation employed a mixed-method approach, including desk research, a telephone survey of 410 companies, and interviews with 17 companies. Findings reveal that a significant majority of eligible companies took advantage of the audit exemptions, primarily to save on costs and time, with estimated savings of £4.6 billion to £8.6 billion in 2015. Despite these benefits, some companies chose to continue audits due to external investor or lender requirements. The evaluation concludes that audit exemptions are largely beneficial and supported by small businesses, though it is important to maintain transparency for companies with external stakeholders. Regular monitoring and review of the exemption criteria are recommended to ensure continued effectiveness and fairness. **This summary was written by an AI model and therefore should not be considered a definitive summary of the report. If you are aware of inaccuracies, please email evaluation.registry@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.**

Description

• Lead department: Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
• Evaluation stage: A complete evaluation report
• Other departments: No other departments listed
• Evaluation types: Process evaluation
• Process methods: Other
• Grant information: This intervention is not distributing funding via a grant
• Government Major Project information: This intervention is not a major project
• Policies: No policies provided

Event Dates

• Event Name: Publication of final results
• Event date: January 2017

Evaluation Costs

• Cost: Not provided

Evaluation sharing

• Link(s) to published report(s): Yes
• Links to evaluation plans: No link provided
• Findings: Not provided
• Permission to share confirmed: Yes