PROGRAMME DU CERTIFICAT D’APTITUDE AUX FONCTIONS DE CommISIRE AUX Comptes
In application of the provisions of article A. 822-6, the programme of tests for the certificat d’aptitude aux fonctions de commissaire aux comptes is set in accordance with this appendix.
The syllabus for the tests for the certificate of aptitude for the duties of statutory auditor assumes that the syllabus for the tests for the preparatory certificate for the duties of statutory auditor is known.
ADMISSIBILITY
First test
Accounting and auditing
I.-Financial accounting, management accounting and management control
A.-.Financial accounting:
The articles L. 123-12 to L. 123-28 and R. 123-172 to R. 123-208 of the French Commercial Code.
Accounting principles and standards, their sources and issuing bodies.
The general chart of accounts.
International accounting standards.
The consolidated financial statements.
The valuation of companies.
Mergers.
Publication of annual accounts.
B.-Management accounting and management control:
Cost analysis and pricing policies: full costs and partial costs.
Cost analysis and variance management: rational allocation of fixed charges and pre-established costs, different variance analyses.
Cost analysis and performance measurement: transfer prices, surplus accounts, management charts.
Cost analysis and internal control.
The budgetary approach and forecast accounts, simulations and break-even points.
The link between budget and strategy.
II.-Framework for the practice of the profession of statutory auditor
A.-General framework:
The audit market.
The various assignments and their players.
The objectives of audit and other engagements with assurance.
The normative framework for the interventions of the statutory auditor and the certified public accountant.
The standardised assignments of the statutory auditor and the certified public accountant.
The inherent limitations of statutory audit.
B.-Legal and institutional framework:
The Haut Conseil du commissariat aux comptes.
The organisation of the statutory audit profession: the national company of statutory auditors, the regional companies of statutory auditors.
The conditions for admission to the profession of statutory auditor.
The organisation and conditions of access to the profession of chartered accountant.
III.-Methods of practising the profession of statutory auditor
The different modes of practising the profession (individual practice, practice in a company, practice in a network).
The appointment, engagement letter and termination of the statutory auditor’s duties.
Remuneration.
IV.-Ethics, ethics and independence
The code of ethics for the profession of statutory auditor.
The other rules relating to the independence of the statutory auditor.
The code of ethics for chartered accountancy professionals.
The code of ethics for professional accountants of the International Federation of Accountants.
V.-The statutory auditor’s mission
A.-Applicable texts:
Legal and regulatory texts governing the statutory auditor’s mission.
Professional practice standards.
International Standards on Auditing (ISAs).
Good professional practice identified by the Haut Conseil du Commissariat aux Comptes.
Professional practices adopted by the CNCC.
B.-Notion of statutory audit and methodology:
The fundamental principles (risk-based approach and issuing a reasoned opinion).
Audit techniques.
C.-Phases of the statutory audit approach:
The acceptance and continuation of the engagement.
The understanding of the entity and its environment and the assessment of the risk of material misstatement.
The engagement plan.
The audit procedures performed by the statutory auditor following its risk assessment.
The summary of the engagement and the statutory auditor’s report on the annual and consolidated financial statements.
Communication with the bodies mentioned in Article L. 823-16 of the Commercial Code.
Documentation of work and supervision.
VI.-Other missions
A.-Specific verifications and information:
The field of specific verifications: delimitation by law and nature of verifications and information.
The communication of findings made during specific verifications to the bodies mentioned in Article L. 823-16 of the French Commercial Code.
B.-The limited review: definition and objectives, methodology and techniques.
C.-Interventions defined by agreements and DDL (due diligence directly related to the statutory auditor’s mission).
D.-Interventions defined by law or regulation:
Interventions following specific transactions decided by the company: transactions concerning the share capital; transactions concerning dividends; transformation transactions; other transactions.
Actions following events occurring within the company: disclosure of criminal acts; obligations of the statutory auditor relating to the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism; whistleblowing procedure; other events.
E.-Special assignments:
The contribution auditor.
The merger auditor.
Other special assignments.
F.-Legal audit in certain entities and in specific contexts: audit of a bank, an insurance company, an association, a public interest entity, consolidated accounts.
VII.-Audit of information systems
A.-Risks related to the computerised information processing environment:
The auditor’s environment: knowledge of legal obligations and professional standards.
Audit of the accounts of computerised entities.
Audit risks.
National and international professional standards.
Legal and regulatory obligations.
Separation of functions and information systems management.
Information systems management: mission, organisation chart and scorecard.
The IT function in small organisations.
IT strategy, an element of general policy.
Alignment of IT strategy with business strategy.
The IT master plan: definition, evolution, communication on the master plan.
IT plan and IT planning approach.
Mapping the information system.
Risks related to application architectures.
Risks related to technical architectures.
Identify the main technical architectures: client-server, mediator, transactional, integration, portal.
Risks and challenges of a project.
Analysis of the conditions for launching a project: place of the project in the strategy, scope in its application, organisation of the project.
Conditions that can lead to failure and preventive and corrective measures that can be used: risk analysis and management, incorporating risks into contracts.
Risks associated with the implementation of integrated management software packages.
Functional coverage.
Technological developments.
B.-Risks related to applications:
Risks related to the implementation of a project:
Tender specifications.
Project life cycle: forecasting, planning and scheduling.
Quality assurance plan: software quality standards, project management method, process improvement method.
Monitoring and control of costs and deadlines: variance analysis (schedule, budget).
Testing: test games, pilot site, real-life testing, qualification, acceptance.
Deployment of a solution and user training.
Risks associated with the life cycle of an ERP package:
Expression of requirements.
Solution selection.
Implementation.
Operation of the solution.
Evaluation of integrated management systems.
Risks associated with maintenance actions:
Corrective maintenance.
Evolutionary maintenance.
Maintenance contract.
Third-party application maintenance.
C.-Performance audit of the IT function:
Definition of indicators: performance and quality indicators.
Evaluation of IT projects: evaluation of the costs and benefits of IT projects, project selection criteria.
The service contract:
Objectives and constraints of the service contract.
Drafting the contract.
Implementation of the contract.
Costs and their analysis.
Budgets:
Operating budget for the IT function.
Internal billing for the use of IT resources.
D.-Security audit of IT systems:
Evaluation of trust architectures: public key infrastructure, digital certificate, electronic signature.
Level of monitoring and prevention: process monitoring, legal protection, insurance and guarantees (legal and contractual).
Materiality of the audit trail: audit trail materiality criteria, audit trail presence.
E.-Computer-assisted audit:
Development of computer-assisted audit transactions:
Identification of data.
Recovery of data on suitable media.
Identification of processing resources in the entity and at the firm.
Documentation of work.
Implementation and formalisation of conclusions.
Computer-assisted audit software packages.
VIII.-Quality control
The public supervision system and its players.
Quality control: periodic controls, occasional controls, inspections.
Internal approaches implemented by firms and networks and quality control within the firm.
IX.-Internal control and risk management
The concepts of risk and materiality.
The objectives of internal control.
The concepts and principles of internal control.
The place of internal control assessment in the audit assignment.
The techniques for assessing internal control, including in an IT environment.
The internal control report.
The communication of internal control weaknesses.
The statutory auditor’s report drawn up pursuant to articles L. 225-235and L. 226-10-1 of the French Commercial Code on the Chairman’s report.
Consultations within the scope of due diligence directly related to the statutory auditor’s mission concerning internal control relating to the preparation and processing of accounting and financial information.
X.-Responsibility of the statutory auditor
Civil liability.
Penal liability.
Disciplinary liability.
Administrative liability (sanction procedure of the Autorité des marchés financiers).
XI.-International context
The EU framework:
International audit standard setters.
How European directives and international auditing standards are applied in France.
International harmonisation of audit conceptual frameworks and audit methodologies: influence of national standard setters’ work on international auditing standards.
Test two
Law and business life
I.-Fundamental principles of private law and judicial organisation
A.-Sources of law :
The hierarchy of norms.
French legal standards.
Community legal standards.
B.-Fundamental principles of property law:
The theory of heritage.
Property: individual ownership; collective ownership (joint ownership, co-ownership); dismembered ownership (usufruct, bare ownership, rights of use, easements); transfer of ownership.
Possession.
C.-Proof and prescription.
D.-Judicial organisation and dispute resolution:
Civil, criminal and administrative courts.
Commercial and industrial tribunals.
Arbitration.
Court expertise.
II.-The company and its legal forms
A.-The sole proprietorship.
B.-The business as a company:
The general theory of company law: the company contract; legal personality.
Civil partnerships and commercial partnerships.
Rules governing the formation, operation, transfer, dissolution and liquidation of companies.
Management and administrative bodies, relations between managers and partners.
Securities and financial markets.
The Autorité des marchés financiers (organisation, role and powers).
Company law and corporate governance.
Relationships between directors and partners.
The board of directors, the management board and the supervisory board: attributions and roles.
Systems for improving the transparency of company operations.
III.-The company and the contract
Contract law:
Founding principles of contract law (freedom of contract, binding force).
Formation, performance and sanctions for non-performance of contractual obligations.
Special contracts (contract of sale, contract of enterprise, distribution contract, consumer contract, employment contract, international contracts).
General commercial law:
Commercial acts and traders; business assets.
Law of companies in difficulty:
Prevention of difficulties.
The treatment of difficulties.
IV.-Labour law and social protection
Individual labour law relations.
The collective aspects of social law.
Social protection.
Labour litigation.
V.-Criminal law
General criminal law (constituent elements of the offence, classification of offences, identification of the person responsible, penalty).
Criminal procedure (public action, civil action, preparatory investigation, judgment and remedies).
Corporate and business criminal law (misuse of corporate assets, distribution of fictitious dividends, presentation or publication of annual accounts that do not give a true and fair view, offences relating to the formation and dissolution of the company, meetings, control of the company, corporate rights, changes to the share capital, insider dealing).
VI.-Competition law
Merger control in domestic and EU law.
Regulation of anti-competitive practices: cartel and abuse of dominant position in Community and domestic law.
Monitoring behaviour: action for unfair competition and regulation of pricing and invoicing.
The law on restrictive practices: resale at a loss, fixed prices and discriminatory practices.
State aid: domestic law, Community law, legality of granting, restitution.
VII.-Tax law
Rules for determining and taxing the income of companies subject to corporation tax and partnerships.
Tax rules relating to the allocation of profit or loss.
Tax rules relating to the formation, transformation, transfer, dissolution and liquidation of companies.
VAT rules: domestic, intra-Community and international transactions.
Relations with the tax authorities: approval, rescript and tax audit.
Tax litigation.
VIII.-Environmental law
Environmental disclosure obligations of companies.
IX.-Computer law
Notion of computer law and in particular the main legal rules governing the use of the internet.
X.-Law of company financing
The legal and tax regime for capital increases and reductions.
Shareholders’ agreements.
Current account financing.
Guarantees for financing: the main securities (surety, pledge and mortgage).
Financing by recourse to the financial markets (concept of financial market, Autorité des marchés financiers regulation, listed company, financial instruments, legal and tax regime for long and medium-term financing, structured financing and securitisation).
XI.-Group law
The legal, tax and social structure of the group.
Labour law applied to groups.
Group tax regimes and tax treatment of intra-group transactions.
Company law and the tax regime applicable to the acquisition of shareholdings and the holding of shareholdings in the capital of other companies or groupings.
Legal, tax and social rules governing certain forms of inter-company cooperation: economic interest grouping, European economic interest grouping, management leases, common interest contracts.
Legal, tax and social rules relating to restructuring operations (mergers, demergers, partial contributions of assets, universal transfers of assets, etc.).
XII.-Non-profit organisations
Legal, tax and social aspects of associations and other non-profit organisations.
Third paper
Economics, finance and management
I.-Economics
A.-Fundamentals:
The major currents in the history of economic thought and the main economic and social facts from the nineteenth century to the present day.
The market economy: how it works and its imperfections.
Financing and the globalisation of the economy.
Public policies and the regulation of the economy.
B.-Business economics:
The functions of the business: commercial function, production, research and development, supply, personnel, administration, accounting and finance, management control.
II.-Finance
A.-Financial analysis and management :
Analysis of the financial situation (result, structure, financial risks).
Short-term financial management (provisional cash flow budget and cash flow statement, provisional balance sheet and income statement, methods of financing short-term requirements and cash flow).
Medium and long-term financial management (financial strategy, main methods of financing, financing plan).
B.-Computerised management tools:
General knowledge of the IT function.
Basic knowledge of information systems, particularly operating systems and management software packages.
C.-Quantitative methods and applied mathematics:
Descriptive statistics (univariate and bivariate statistical series, indices).
Probability, polling and sampling.
Financial mathematics.
III.-Management
Organisational theory.
Fundamental elements of strategy.
Human behaviour in the organisation.
Internal and external communication.
Decision making, leadership, facilitation.
Fourth test
Summary test
This test, covering all the subjects in the programme for the eligibility tests, is designed to assess candidates’ thinking and writing skills.
ADMISSION
First test
Interview with the jury
The programme for the oral test of the interview with the jury covers the professional practice of statutory auditors and their ethical obligations; it is based on a text commentary.
Test two
English applied to business life
The skills assessed by the oral test of English applied to business life are as follows:
Understand and comment, in English, on business documents such as texts, graphs and tables taken from magazines or a company annual report.
Present a summary note, in French or English, based on English documents relating to business life.
Compose a basic commercial document in English: letter, quotation, order form, etc.
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