Non-audit services and auditor independence in Spain

Abstract

The sector auditing in Spain is going through a period of changes and modifications, where companies hire the services of auditing and audit firms are forced to adapt in a short time, since the adoption of the new Act 22/2015 audit pending its entry into force in June 2016. Accordingly, the independence, integrity and objectivity of the auditor in all its functions are key factors for the proper functioning of the economy, so the law has been forced to strengthen regulation among which the new obligations and requirements of the audit Committee and reports to be issued, as well as mandatory audit firm rotation and limitations of additional services by the auditor. This project takes into account the key points where the law has focused its amendments, and analyses the impact and effectiveness of these new measures in the audit market and the four major consulting firms that concentrate virtually the entire market share, known as the Big Four: Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers.