<p>Background</p><p>In 2006 the audit duty for SME’s was abolished in Denmark, and January 1st 2007 Finland decided to do the same. The subject is now under investigation in Sweden since the government has appointed an</p><p>investigation dealing with the future of the audit duty for small companies. The report will not only investigate whether an abolishment needs to be done but also if compliments are needed in order to prevent companies from breaking the rules, intentionally or unintentionally due to lack of knowledge.</p><p>Purpose</p><p>To investigate how a possible abolishment of the auditing duty for small companies will affect the creditors’ ability to assess the company’s creditworthiness.</p><p>Method</p><p>The selected sample of this study contained interviews with five organisations that would be affected differently of an abolishment of the audit duty. The authors wanted to interview organisations with different perceptions of the audit duty although the or-ganisations have in common that they all possess knowledge which is important to the banks in the credit rating process. The sample consists of representatives from; FAR SRS, Företagarna, Handelsbanken, Nordea and Upplysningscentralen.</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>All the different organisations in the study showed different views in the value of having audited financial statements. FAR SRS and Företagarna were, as could be expected, most and least in favour of having audited financial statements. UC did not predict to be affected by an abolishment, but did see a value in it. Interesting conclusions could be seen between the banks. It showed that depending on the organisational structure dif-ferent value was seen in the audit duty. This addresses how important a bank’s routines are in the process of valuing a company’s creditworthiness. The study showed that an abolishment will probably turn the focus in the credit process from the information that figures generates. The information used to assess a company’s creditworthiness would to a larger extent be on analysing the business concept, the environment and the re-sources that a company posses.</p>

Background In 2006 the audit duty for SME’s was abolished in Denmark, and January 1st 2007 Finland decided to do the same. The subject is now under investigation in Sweden since the government has appointed an investigation dealing with the future of the audit duty for small companies. The report will not only investigate whether an abolishment needs to be done but also if compliments are needed in order to prevent companies from breaking the rules, intentionally or unintentionally due to lack of knowledge. Purpose To investigate how a possible abolishment of the auditing duty for small companies will affect the creditors’ ability to assess the company’s creditworthiness. Method The selected sample of this study contained interviews with five organisations that would be affected differently of an abolishment of the audit duty. The authors wanted to interview organisations with different perceptions of the audit duty although the or-ganisations have in common that they all possess knowledge which is important to the banks in the credit rating process. The sample consists of representatives from; FAR SRS, Företagarna, Handelsbanken, Nordea and Upplysningscentralen. Conclusion All the different organisations in the study showed different views in the value of having audited financial statements. FAR SRS and Företagarna were, as could be expected, most and least in favour of having audited financial statements. UC did not predict to be affected by an abolishment, but did see a value in it. Interesting conclusions could be seen between the banks. It showed that depending on the organisational structure dif-ferent value was seen in the audit duty. This addresses how important a bank’s routines are in the process of valuing a company’s creditworthiness. The study showed that an abolishment will probably turn the focus in the credit process from the information that figures generates. The information used to assess a company’s creditworthiness would to a larger extent be on analysing the business concept, the environment and the re-sources that a company posses.

<p>Problemdiskussion: För 25 år sedan infördes revisionsplikt i Sverige för samtliga aktiebolag. Idag diskuteras huruvida den lagen ska avskaffas och vilka bolag som ska kunna avsäga sig revision.</p><p>Syfte: Författarna vill utreda om en avskaffad revisionsplikt kan leda till en ökning av den ekonomiska brottsligheten, därtill hur denna lagförändring kan påverka Skatteverkets arbete att bekämpa den.</p><p>Metod: En kvalitativ studie har genomförts. Där den empiriska datainsamlingen bygger på intervjuer med tre regionchefer på skattverket. Den övriga datainsamlingen har skett via Internet, litteratur och via databaser vid Örebro universitet.</p><p>Slutsats: För att den ekonomiska brottsligheten ska öka som en följd av revisionspliktens avskaffande krävs det att företaget anser att nyttan att frånsäga sig revision är större än den hjälp revisorn bistår med idag. Många bedömer att företag i framtiden kommer att använda sig av frivillig revision eftersom deras intressenter kommer att kräva detta.</p> / <p>Problem discussion: 25 years ago the Swedish government decided to introduce an audit duty for all limited companies in Sweden. Today the discussion are about however this law should be abolished or not and what companies who are able to use this possibility to choose audit.</p><p>Purpose: The authors purpose are to investigate however the abolishing of the audit duty could lead to an increase of the economic crime and if it’s going to influence the national tax board (skatteverket) in there work to control the economic crime.</p><p>Method: The authors have made a qualitative study. They got there empirical information collected from three personal interviews at the national tax board (skatteverket). The remaining information was collected from Internet, literature and computer database at the University of Örebro.</p><p>Conclusion: The economical crime should not be increased by the abolishing of the audit duty unless the companies consider that the benefit from getting away from the audit duty will give them more profits than what the auditor can give theme in form of knowledge and practical advice.</p>

Problemdiskussion: För 25 år sedan infördes revisionsplikt i Sverige för samtliga aktiebolag. Idag diskuteras huruvida den lagen ska avskaffas och vilka bolag som ska kunna avsäga sig revision. Syfte: Författarna vill utreda om en avskaffad revisionsplikt kan leda till en ökning av den ekonomiska brottsligheten, därtill hur denna lagförändring kan påverka Skatteverkets arbete att bekämpa den. Metod: En kvalitativ studie har genomförts. Där den empiriska datainsamlingen bygger på intervjuer med tre regionchefer på skattverket. Den övriga datainsamlingen har skett via Internet, litteratur och via databaser vid Örebro universitet. Slutsats: För att den ekonomiska brottsligheten ska öka som en följd av revisionspliktens avskaffande krävs det att företaget anser att nyttan att frånsäga sig revision är större än den hjälp revisorn bistår med idag. Många bedömer att företag i framtiden kommer att använda sig av frivillig revision eftersom deras intressenter kommer att kräva detta. / Problem discussion: 25 years ago the Swedish government decided to introduce an audit duty for all limited companies in Sweden. Today the discussion are about however this law should be abolished or not and what companies who are able to use this possibility to choose audit. Purpose: The authors purpose are to investigate however the abolishing of the audit duty could lead to an increase of the economic crime and if it’s going to influence the national tax board (skatteverket) in there work to control the economic crime. Method: The authors have made a qualitative study. They got there empirical information collected from three personal interviews at the national tax board (skatteverket). The remaining information was collected from Internet, literature and computer database at the University of Örebro. Conclusion: The economical crime should not be increased by the abolishing of the audit duty unless the companies consider that the benefit from getting away from the audit duty will give them more profits than what the auditor can give theme in form of knowledge and practical advice.

Background: The Swedish law require companies’ annual report to be audited. Due to that auditing have the effect of a quality stable to honest and reliable reports. Now the Swedish law is making exemption of the audit duty for small companies. This means that auditing is voluntary. Therefore, when small companies choose to take away auditing they will also choose to take away the quality stable in their annual report. The quality stable is of matter for creditors’ decision to supply financial resources, due to that the quality stable from auditing contributes to trust. With trust, small companies will get financial resources from banks. By taking away auditing will lead to less trust which affects the supply of financial resources.    Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to examine from banks’ perspective trust for company in relation to the annual report, and company´s possibilities of financial credit from banks.        Method: This study carried out the multiple case studies to gain richer understanding on trust. The case study aims to examine a small sample of the population. This method also generates answers to how as well as what and why. The author randomly chose three banks and carried out in-depth interviews with them. Theory: Auditing is the auditor’s statement of the annual report. It requires the auditor to be independent and have integrity when making the statement. The role of the auditor is to state the reliability of the annual report. Therefore, his role is vital to the contribution of trust. Driscoll (1978) and  (1988)  made research on trustee and trustor’s relationship. Their research bases on the several contributions to trust and the process of remaining trust between them. Which, in this study the reliability, audited annual report is main source that contributes to trust. The vital link in this trustee (company) and trustor (bank) relationship is the audited annual report. Conclusion: The study contributes to a lack in auditing reduces creditor’s (bank) trust in the annual report. The auditor’s statement of risk is vital for creditors in making decision upon financial support to small companies. Annual reports are main sources in credit decisions making, and therefore audited annual reports increases trust.

Tax evasion is one of the world's societal problems, which annually contributes to distorted competition when large tax amounts disappear from welfares. High-income earners and companies have managed to minimize tax expenditures through systematic applications, which has been revealed recently by elements such as Panama Papers, Luxleaks and Swissleaks. Previous studies have highlighted a problem that clear boundaries between tax planning and tax evasion do not exist. Whether or not which tax techniques and methods that are compatible with the law has been expressed as a difficulty in understanding the profession of accountants but also in professions such as tax advisers and accounting consultants. The purpose of the study was to investigate how auditors handle the issues regarding the gray zones between tax planning and tax evasion. The study's intention was to review previous legal cases and companies' audit reports to see how auditors have acted and how the court assessed complex legal cases, which were then supplemented with an interview study. This because when reviewing the cases, attention was drawn to the results that led us to interviews in order to take part in the auditor's perspective on the matter. The study was based on a qualitative research method where the results showed that auditors should consult more complex tax procedures with other auditors and tax lawyers to avoid legal consequences. The results further showed how important it is for auditors to keep constantly updated by legislation and regulations as these tend to change over time. The result also showed that auditors should act restrictively and judiciously and have a strict attitude in their working methods for minimizing undesirable situations where irregularities can occur. Auditors must also have a well-designed audit plan to avoid the risk of material errors slipping through the audit.

Nivå: Examensarbete på kandidatnivå i företagsekonomi Författare: Maria Andersson och Aryanaz Farhadi Handledare: Jan Svanberg Datum: 2024 januari Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka huruvida små aktiebolag i branscher där företagen typiskt är mer benägna att begå ekonomisk brottslighet, är mindre benägna att ha revision än företag i andra branscher. Metod: Kvantitativ regressionsanalys med hjälp av data som hämtats från Retriever Business. Analys har utförts både manuellt och med hjälp av regression, för att en jämförelse skulle kunna genomföras. Populationen bestod av små aktiebolag som omfattas av reformen för frivillig revision, med urval gjort av företag i 4 specifika branscher. Resultat och slutsats: Resultatet av denna studie visar att företag i de branscher som anses mer benägna att begå ekonomisk brottslighet i större utsträckning använder sig av revision än företag i andra branscher. Detta kan komma sig av att företag i branscher förknippade med ekonomisk brottslighet känner ett större behov av att visa sig legitima, detta på grund av ryktet som branschen har. Examensarbetets bidrag: Studiens resultat är ett starkt avsteg från både de rapporter som svenska myndigheter släppt, likväl som tidigare forskning, och indikerar att branschtillhörighet inte har den negativa påverkan som myndigheterna påstår. Studien visar även på att Sveriges låga tröskelvärde kan vara av stor vikt vid valet av revision eller ej, något som bör beaktas i diskussioner om regeländringar. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Om en mer omfattande studie med samtliga aktiebolag som omfattas av reformen genomförs kunde generaliseringen bli bättre och därmed ge än mer pålitliga resultat. Dessutom kunde en liknande studie genomförd i EU ge mer information kring hur tröskelvärdena påverkar valen kring revision.

Background and problem: Since the abolition of the audit obligation for small limited companies in 2010, non obligated companies can decide for themselves whether they want to hire an auditor or not. The majority of these companies opt out of audit due to high audit costs, auditbut approximately 3040 percent of these companies still want to be audited even though they are not covered by the audit obligation. The government's ongoing investigation into the possible reintroduction of the law from 2010 makes it even more interestin g and contributes to our wanting to investigate the motives behind the voluntary audit of these companies. Aim: The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze whether and why a selection of companies in the study with loyalty systems that are not sub ject to audit duty choose to hire an auditor. Questions: 1. 2. Are there companies among the sample in this study that choose to engage the auditor without being subject to audit duty? Why do small limited companies with loyalty systems that are not subject to choose to engage the auditor? Method: audit duty The study is based on a quantitative method with a deductive approach. The method is based on primary data collected through a questionnaire survey in which 68 nonsmall limited companies par auditobligated ticipated. The collected data was then analyzed using various statistical models. Results and conclusion: The study's results show that 73 procent of respondents choose voluntary audit. The motives that, according to the study's empirical analysis, may lie behind this decision are the company's development, the company's profitability, the auditor's advice and the auditor's insurance. This result cannot be generalized.

Background and problem: Since the abolition of the audit obligation for small limited companies in 2010, non obligated companies can decide for themselves whether they want to hire an auditor or not. The majority of these companies opt out of audit due to high audit costs, auditbut approximately 3040 percent of these companies still want to be audited even though they are not covered by the audit obligation. The government's ongoing investigation into the possible reintroduction of the law from 2010 makes it even more interestin g and contributes to our wanting to investigate the motives behind the voluntary audit of these companies. Aim: The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze whether and why a selection of companies in the study with loyalty systems that are not sub ject to audit duty choose to hire an auditor. Questions: 1. 2. Are there companies among the sample in this study that choose to engage the auditor without being subject to audit duty? Why do small limited companies with loyalty systems that are not subject to choose to engage the auditor? Method: audit duty The study is based on a quantitative method with a deductive approach. The method is based on primary data collected through a questionnaire survey in which 68 nonsmall limited companies par auditobligated ticipated. The collected data was then analyzed using various statistical models. Results and conclusion: The study's results show that 73 procent of respondents choose voluntary audit. The motives that, according to the study's empirical analysis, may lie behind this decision are the company's development, the company's profitability, the auditor's advice and the auditor's insurance. This result cannot be generalized.

Bakgrund: Revisionsplikten var länge obligatorisk för alla aktiebolag i Sverige men avskaffades år 2010 för små aktiebolag som ett led i att förenkla för företagare. Avskaffandet skapade en debatt mellan olika aktörer. Debatten har till stor del handlat om den ekonomiska brottsligheten har ökat efter avskaffandet av revisionsplikten och om nyttan av revisionen, om den är värd vad den kostar. Syfte: Studiens syfte är att bidra med en förståelse för debatten om avskaffandet av revisionsplikten för små aktiebolag i Sverige. Varför och hur har de olika aktörerna valt att agera för att nå ut med sina budskap samt vilka aktörerna vill påverka med budskapet. Studiens bidrag är att fånga de skillnader och likheter som finns i debatten i nuläget och hur debatten har utvecklats mellan åren 2008-2023. Metod: Studien har en kvalitativ ansats och genomfördes med hjälp av metoder som dokumentanalys och av semistrukturerade intervjuer. De mest relevanta dokumenten valdes ut för att de ligger till grund för en stor del av debatten. Det kompletterades med en sammansatt intervjuguide som anpassades för att uppnå studiens syfte. Slutsats: Politik är en grund till varför debatten ser ut som den gör eftersom politikerna har makten att fatta beslut och förändra. Budskapen som aktörerna förmedlar i debatten har olika syften, som visar på skillnader och likheter mellan aktörerna. Debatten har två olika sidor där den ena sidan argumenterar för ett återinförande av revisionsplikten och därmed minska den ekonomiska brottsligheten. Den andra sidan fokuserar på att höja gränsvärdena för revisionsplikt för aktiebolag så att fler företag ska kunna välja bort revision. / Background: The audit duty was for a long time mandatory for all limited companies in Sweden, but was abolished in 2010 for small limited companies as part of simplification for entrepreneurs. The abolition created a debate between different actors. The debate has largely been about whether economic crime has increased after the abolition of the audit duty and about the benefit of the audit, whether it is worth the cost. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to contribute to an understanding of the debate about the abolition of the audit duty for small limited companies in Sweden. Why and how have the various actors chosen to act in order to reach out with their messages and who the actors want to influence with the message. The study's contribution is to capture the differences and similarities that exist in the current debate and how the debate has developed between the years 2008-2023. Method: The study has a qualitative approach and was carried out using methods such as document analysis and semi-structured interviews. The most relevant documents were selected because they form the basis of a large part of the debate. It was supplemented with a composite interview guide that was adapted to achieve the purpose of the study. Conclusions: The politics is a foundation for why the debate looks the way it does because the politicians have the power to make decisions and change. The messages that the actors convey in the debate have different purposes, which show differences and similarities between the actors. The debate has two different sides, with one side arguing for a reintroduction of the audit duty and thereby reducing financial crime. The other side focuses on raising the threshold for audit obligation for limited companies so that more companies can opt out of audit.