Interim Measures of the Ministry of Commerce on the Selection and Appointment of Accounting Firms

商务部选聘会计师事务所暂行办法

 

Promulgating Institution: General Office of the Ministry of Commerce

Document Number: Shang Cai Zi [2011] No. 37

Promulgating Date: 03/28/2011

Effective Date: 04/27/2011

颁布机关: 商务部办公厅

文   号: 商财字[2011]37号

颁布时间: 03/28/2011

实施时间: 04/27/2011

 

Chapter 1: General Provisions

第一章 总则

 Article 1  With a view to regulating the selection and appointment of accounting firms of the Ministry of Commerce and its directly subordinated institutions , chambers of commerce, associations and academies by using the financial funds, perfecting the procedures for selection and appointment, and improving the efficiency in the use of the financial funds, these Measures are hereby formulated in accordance with the Government Procurement Law of the People's Republic of China and by referring to the Specifications for Entrusting Accounting Firms with Audit of Tendering.

    第一条 为规范商务部以及各直属事业单位、商会、协会、学会使用财政资金选聘会计师事务所行为,完善选聘程序,提高财政资金使用效益,依据《中华人民共和国政府采购法》,并参照财政部《委托会计师事务所审计招标规范》,特制定本办法。

 Article 2  The professional services provided by selected and appointed accounting firms shall include: 

(1) Internal audit;

(2) Construction project audit;

(3) Financial advisory service;

(4) Assessment; and

(5) The services other than the corporate annual report audit and the construction project cost consultation.

    第二条 选聘会计师事务所提供的专业服务内容包括:

  (一)内部审计;

  (二)建设项目审计;

  (三)财务咨询服务;

  (四)评估;

  (五)除企业年报审计、工程造价咨询以外的其他服务。

 Article 3  The funds for appointing accounting firms shall be subject to the budget management, reported for approval in accordance with the internal approval procedure of each entity, and paid after the completion of each service project.

    第三条 聘请会计师事务所所需经费,应当纳入预算管理,按各单位内部审批程序报批,并在服务项目结束后支付。

 Article 4  The Department of Finance under the Ministry of Commerce, in conjunction with the Department of Personnel under the Ministry of Commerce and the Commission for Discipline Inspection, shall form a review group to regularly review the qualification of accounting firms. All the entities shall, by inviting tender, select and appoint accounting firms from those that have passed the unified qualification review.

    第四条 商务部财务司会同人事司、机关纪委组成审查组定期对会计师事务所进行资格审查。各单位在通过了统一资格审查的会计师事务所范围内,采用邀请招标方式进行选聘。

 Article 5  The persons responsible for selecting and appointing an accounting firm and members of a review group of each entity must withdraw when having interest in the appointed accounting firm.

    第五条 各单位负责选聘会计师事务所的人员及评标小组成员,与被选聘会计师事务所有利害关系的,必须回避。

 Article 6  With respect to the matters concerning State secrets, an entity shall strictly carry out the confidentiality management of the project when selecting and appointing an accounting firm.

    第六条 对于涉及国家秘密的事项，选聘会计师事务所时，应当严格项目的保密管理。

Chapter 2: Standards and Procedures for Qualification Review

第二章 资格审查标准及程序

 Article 7  The Department of Finance under the Ministry of Commerce, in conjunction with the Department of Personnel under the Ministry of Commerce and the Commission for Discipline Inspection, shall form a qualification review group to review the qualification of accounting firms in a unified way.

    第七条 商务部财务司会同人事司、机关纪委等部门成立资格审查小组,对会计师事务所进行统一的资格审查。

 Article 8  To be accepted for qualification review, an accounting firm must meet the following conditions:

(1) It is established in accordance with the law and can independently enjoy civil rights and bear civil liabilities;

(2) It has the qualification compatible with the matters entrusted;

(3) It is ranked among the top 100 national accounting firms in the last two years published by the Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants (CICPA);

(4) It is registered in Beijing;

(5) It has good social reputation, and has not been punished by relevant departments due to any quality problem or illegal activity for the last three years; and

(6) It has provided the professional services to the central government departments.

    第八条 会计师事务所进入资格审查范围必须同时具备下列条件:

  (一)依法设立,能够独立享有民事法律权利、承担民事法律责任;

  (二)具备与委托事项相适应的资质;

  (三)中国注册会计师协会公布的上两个年度全国会计师事务所综合评价前100名;

  (四)注册地为北京;

  (五)社会信誉好,近三年未因业务质量问题和违法违规行为受到有关部门处理处罚;

  (六)向中央国家机关提供过专业服务。

 Article 9  After taking into consideration all aspects of accounting firms, such as staffing, relevant work experiences, professional ethics records, quality control, charging standards, a qualification review group shall, upon the final review, determine ten accounting firms that meet the eligibility standards and the work requirements, being circulated on behalf of the general office to the relevant entities upon approval by the leader of the Ministry of Commerce, and publish the brief introductions and other related information of the accounting firms on the intranet of the Ministry of Commerce.

    第九条 资格审查小组综合考虑会计师事务所的人员配备、相关工作经验、职业道德记录和质量控制水平、收费标准等各方面情况,最终评审确定10家符合资格标准和工作要求的会计师事务所,报部领导批准后,以办公厅名义通报有关单位,并在部内网公布会计师事务所简介等相关信息。

 Article 10  The qualification review shall be carried out very two years. The review results shall be valid for two years after the date of issuance. If the Ministry of Commerce and its directly subordinated institutions, chambers of commerce, associations and academies appoint accounting firms during such period, they shall do so from those that have passed the abovementioned qualification review.

    第十条 资格审查工作每两年进行一次。审查结果自发布日起两年内有效。商务部以及各直属事业单位、商会、协会、学会在此期间聘用会计师事务所，需在上述经资格审查通过的会计师事务所范围内进行。

Chapter 3: Standards and Procedures for Selection and Appointment

第三章 选聘标准及程序

 Article 11  The final user of the professional services or reports of an accounting firm shall be responsible for selecting and appointing the accounting firm for some specific project.

    第十一条 会计师事务所专业服务或报告的最终使用单位负责为具体项目选聘会计师事务所。

 Article 12  Each entity shall, by inviting tenders, appoint one accounting firm with the feasible solutions and the lowest quotation from at least three accounting firms, and conclude an appointment agreement with the accounting firm. Relevant provisions of Chapter 4 of the Government Procurement Law of the People's Republic of China shall be applied with respect to specific procedures.

    第十二条 各单位通过邀请招标方式,在不少于三家会计师事务所中,选取方案可行前提下价格最低的一家,并与其签订聘用协议。具体程序按照《中华人民共和国政府采购法》第四章的相关规定执行。

 Article 13  If any accounting firm invited to participate in the tender is under any of the following circumstances, it shall take the initiative to withdraw from bidding:

(1) It holds the stocks, bonds or other economic benefits of the entity to be audited or inspected;

(2) It acts as an accounting consultant or handles the account and tax matters for the entity to be audited or inspected; and

(3) Other matters to which the withdrawal shall be applied.

    第十三条 获邀请参加投标的会计师事务所凡有以下情况之一的,应主动提出退出竞标:

  (一)持有被审计或检查单位股票、债券或有其他经济利益的;

  (二)担任被审计或检查单位常年会计顾问或代为办理会计、税务事项的;

  (三)其他应回避的事项。

 Article 14  If any of the personnel of an accounting firm is under any of the following circumstances, he/she shall take the initiative to withdraw from the entrusted matters:

(1) To hold the stocks, bonds or other economic benefits of the entity to be audited or inspected;

(2) To have taken a position in the entity to be audited or inspected;

(3) To have a close family relationship with the person in charge, executive officer, director or person entrusting the matter of the entity to be audited;

(4) To have a benefit-based relationship with the person in charge, executive officer, director or person entrusting the matter of the entity to be audited; and

(5) To have other relations with the person in charge, executive officer, director or person entrusting the matter of the entity to be audited, thus Possibly affecting the handling of the entrusted matters.

    第十四条 受聘会计师事务所人员凡有以下情况之一的,应当主动提出退出受委托事项:

  (一)持有被审计或检查单位股票、债券或有其他经济利益的;

  (二)曾在被审计或检查单位担任职务的;

  (三)与被审计单位负责人和主管人员、董事或委托事项的当事人有近亲关系的。

  (四)与被审计单位负责人和主管人、董事或委托事项的当事人有利害关系的;

  (五)与被审计单位负责人和主管人员、董事或委托事项的当事人有其他关系,可能影响委托事项处理的。

 Article 15  An employer shall conclude an appointment agreement with the appointed accounting firm.

The appointment agreement shall include:

(1) The name of the contracting parties and the name of the service project;

(2) The contents and objective of the project;

(3)The adopted standards;

(4) The scope of work, including the professional standards;

(5) The rights and obligations of the contracting parties;

(6) The work arrangements, including the time for completing the work and issuing the report;

(7) The determination of service fees and rates and the payment thereof;

(8) The confidentiality of the information obtained by the project personnel in the practice;

(9) The prohibitive provisions on subcontracting the project to others;

(10) The liabilities for breach of contract;

(11) Other relevant matters; and

(12) The date for both parties to sign and affix the seals on the agreement.

    第十五条 聘用单位与受聘会计师事务所必须签订聘用协议。聘用协议的内容包括:

  (一)签约双方及服务项目名称;

  (二)项目内容及目标;

  (三)采用的标准;

  (四)工作的范围,包括执行的专业准则;

  (五)签约双方的权利和义务;

  (六)工作的安排,包括完成工作、出具报告的时间;

  (七)服务费用及费率的确定和支付方式;

  (八)参与项目人员对执业过程中获知的信息保密;

  (九)不得将受托项目分包或转包给其他机构;

  (十)违约责任;

  (十一)其他有关事项;

  (十二)双方签字、盖章及签约日期。

 Article 16  An employer shall, within seven working days after concluding an appointment agreement, submit one duplicate of the agreement to the qualification review group for record-filing.

    第十六条 聘用协议签订之日起七个工作日内,聘用单位应当将协议书副本报资格审查小组备案。

 Article 17  If during the performance of an appointment agreement, an employer needs to supplement the service contents identical with those under the agreement, it may conclude a supplementary agreement with the appointed firm without changing the other terms of the original agreement after being approved in accordance with the internal approval procedure of the entity, but the total sum of all supplementary agreements shall not exceed 10% of the sum of the original agreement.

    第十七条 聘用协议履行中，聘用单位需追加与协议约定相同的服务内容的，在不改变协议其他条款的前提下，按各单位内部审批程序报批后，可以与受聘会计师事务所签订补充协议，但所有补充协议的金额合计不得超过原协议金额的百分之十。

Chapter 4: Quality Control

第四章 质量控制

 Article 18  An employer has the right to conduct double-check over the service quality of the appointed accounting firm, and, if discovering any service quality problem, violation of Article 13 or Article 14 of these Measures or other illegal activity, may immediately take the following measures:

(1) To terminate the participation of such personnel in the entrusted matters;

(2) To cancel the entrustment without paying the service fees as required by the entrustment agreement; and

(3) To report the quality problems and the illegal activities to the qualification review group.

    第十八条 聘用单位有权对受聘会计师事务所的服务质量进行复查,如发现服务质量问题、违反本办法第十三条和第十四条以及其他违法违纪情况的,可即时采取以下措施:

  (一)终止该人员参加委托事项;

  (二)按委托协议的规定,取消该项委托并不予支付服务费用;

  (三)将质量问题及违法违规情况上报资格审查小组。

 Article 19  If an appointed accounting firm or its personnel who violates Article 13 and Article 14 of these Measures or commits any illegal activity during the provision of their service, the qualification review group shall, according to the circumstances, handle the cases as follows:

(1) Canceling the qualification of the concerned accounting firm to participate any bidding or auction for three years; and

(2) Suggesting the competent departments of the relevant industries to impose punishments in accordance with the law, and, if the accounting firm or personnel violate the criminal law, transferring the case to the judicial authority.

    第十九条 资格审查小组对受聘会计师事务所、会计师事务所人员在服务过程中违反本办法第十三条和第十四条,或者有违法违纪行为的,视情节轻重可给予以下处理:

  (一)取消该事务所的参与投标、竞价资格,三年以上不许投标、竞价;

  (二)建议有关行业主管部门依法进行处罚,触犯刑律的,移交司法机关处理。

 Article 20  An employer shall report the problems discovered while selecting and appointing or using an accounting firm to the qualification review group in writing. The qualification review group shall be responsible for analyzing the selection and appointment procedure and standards, and based on such information, rate the quality services of the accounting firm during the next qualification review.

    第二十条 聘用单位在选聘以及使用会计师事务所过程中发现的各类问题都可以书面形式报告资格审查小组。资格审查小组负责检讨选聘程序和标准，并在下一次资格审查时，据此对会计师事务所的服务质量评分。

Chapter 5: Supervision and Punishment

第五章 监督与处罚

 Article 21  The Ministry of Commerce and its directly subordinated institutions, chambers of commerce, associations and academies must comply with the manner, standards and procedure specified in these Measures to appoint an accounting firm by using the financial funds. No entities or individuals may, in violation of the provisions of these Measures, directly appoint an accounting firm, or limit an accounting firm to participate in bidding by setting any threshold.

    第二十一条 商务部及各直属事业单位、商会、协会、学会使用财政资金聘用会计师事务所必须按照本办法规定的方式、标准、程序。任何单位和个人不得违反本办法规定,直接指定或人为设置门槛限制会计师事务所参加投标。

 Article 22  A qualification review group and an employer shall actively cooperate with the competent department at a higher level and the auditing or supervision departments in supervising and inspecting the selection and appointment activities, truthfully report the situations and provide relevant materials.

    第二十二条 资格审查小组和聘用单位应当积极配合上级主管部门以及审计、监察部门对选聘活动的监督检查,如实反映情况,提供有关材料。

 Article 23  If any entity is under any the following circumstances, it may be ordered to make rectifications within a specified period of time and a notice on criticism shall be circulated:

(1) To appoint an accounting firm by other means without approval;

(2) To use the unreasonable conditions to have accounting firms under differentiated treatments;

(3) To consult with a bidding accounting firm during the selection and appointment process; or

(4) To refuse the relevant departments to carry out the supervision and inspection in accordance with the law.

    第二十三条 各单位有下列情形之一的,责令限期整改并予以通报:

  (一)擅自采用其他方式聘用会计师事务所的;

  (二)以不合理条件对会计师事务所实行差别待遇的;

  (三)在选聘过程中与投标会计师事务所进行协商谈判的;

  (四)拒绝有关单位依法依规实施监督检查的。

 Article 24  If any personnel involved in the selection and appointment is involved in any illegal activity, he/she shall be punished in accordance with the law.

    第二十四条 参与选聘工作的人员有违法违规行为的，将依法依规进行处理。

Chapter 6: Supplementary Provisions

第六章 附则

 Article 25  With respect to the projects not suitable for inviting tenders by the Ministry of Commerce, each entity shall state the reasons, submit it to the leader of the Ministry in charge for approval after being countersigned by the department of finance, and then take other methods to select and appoint an accounting firm to the extent permitted by the Government Procurement Law of the People's Republic of China.

    第二十五条 商务部不宜实行邀请招标方式的项目,各选聘单位应报明原因,经会签财务司后,报分管部领导批准,并在《中华人民共和国政府采购法》许可范围内,通过其他方式选聘。

 Article 26  All institutions directly under the Ministry of Commerce, chambers of commerce, associations and academies may, by referring to these Measures, appoint an accounting firm if not using the financial funds or otherwise stipulated by the industry authorities.

    第二十六条 各直属事业单位、商会、协会、学会聘用会计师事务所不使用财政资金的,或行业主管部门有明确规定的,可参照本办法执行。

 Article 27  The Department of Finance under the Ministry of Commerce is responsible for the interpretation of these Measures.

    第二十七条 本办法由商务部财务司负责解释。

 Article 28  These Measures shall come into force 30 days after the date of the promulgation.

    第二十八条 本办法自发布之日起30日后施行。