Licence application
Before you submit a licence application, you will need to determine if you require a licence for the performance of statutory audits at public interest entities (PIEs) or a regular licence. It is your responsibility to determine whether your firm’s external auditors are able to perform proper statutory audits and whether your firm is able to consistently safeguard the quality of its statutory audits.
First, email us to arrange an exploratory interview
You should start the process for your licence application by sending us an email stating that you wish to apply for a licence. Please send your email to vergunningen_wta@afm.nl. Include your phone number in the email. We will then call you to schedule an exploratory interview at our office. In this interview, we will discuss various matters, including the background to your application and your audit firm’s legal structure, clients, business model, quality control system and audit approach. We will also discuss the follow-up steps for your licence application. In addition, a more in-depth discussion may follow in which we advise you on points for attention.
Licence application process subsequent to exploratory interview
Subsequent to the exploratory interview, your licence application process will continue in our AFM Portal. Please ensure the information you send to the AFM Portal is complete and accurate. This way, you will avoid a situation in which we cannot process your application straight away and you incur additional costs.
You should in any case send us the following information: a description of your audit firm’s legal and organisational structure (and that of your auditing network, where applicable), its articles of association and all its management, shareholders’ and other agreements, a certified paper extract of your audit firm’s registration in the business register of the Dutch Chamber of Commerce and a summary of the number of permanent education (PE) credits attained by each of the policymakers at your firm and the total number of PE credits attained by your policymakers.
You can find the full list of the required information in the AFM Portal.
Assessment of trustworthiness and suitability of policymakers and co-policymakers
The application process for the regular licence includes an assessment of the trustworthiness of all policymakers and co-policymakers. We will only grant a licence if we have been able to establish the trustworthiness of all your policymakers and co-policymakers. The application process for the licence for the performance of statutory audits at PIEs also includes a suitability assessment.
Granting of a licence and registration in public register
If we approve your application, we will grant you a licence. All audit firms licensed by the AFM are registered in our public register.
Fees
When you submit an application for a licence or for changes to your licence, we will charge one-off fees. These fees are payable regardless of the outcome of the application process. Once you have been granted a licence, you will annually pay the AFM a levy for our ongoing supervision.
Notify us of your first statutory audit
Once you have been granted a licence and have completed your first statutory audit for a client in the Netherlands, you must notify us of this by emailing vergunningen_wta@afm.nl. We will then include your statutory audit in our ongoing supervision.
Options to object and appeal if your application is rejected
If the AFM concludes on the basis of your application that your firm does not meet the requirements, we will inform you of this. You can then respond to this. Based on your response, the AFM will then either approve your application or definitively reject it. If we reject your application, you can submit an objection against this decision. If we reject your objection, you can file an appeal against this decision with the Rotterdam District Court.