NFRA has published lists of audit firms/auditors who have failed to file the mandatory Annual Return in ‘e-Form NFRA-2’, within the timeline allowed for the reporting periods 2018-19 and 2019-20, indicating status as on 30/09/2022.
The annual return in Form NFRA-2 is required to be mandatorily filed, on or before 30th November of each year, in accordance with Rule 5 of the NFRA Rules, 2018, by the auditors/audit firms of the class of companies designated in Rule 3 of the said Rules.
NFRA has already discovered cases of non-compliance with the aforementioned regulatory obligations and notified the concerned defaulting audit firms. A list of such firms/ auditors was also posted on the NFRA website and forwarded to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA).
The deadline for submitting Annual Return in Form NFRA-2 for the reporting period 2018-19 (audit reports signed from 01/04/2018, to 31/03/2019) was 30/11/2019, which was extended upto 04/09/2020, vide MCA General Circular 14/2019, because it was the first year of filing the same. However NFRA has noticed that 617 audit firms/auditors have not yet submitted their NFRA-2 for the said reporting period.
Further, a total of 1684 audit firms have not yet filed NFRA-2 for the next reporting period, 2019-20 (Audit reports signed during the period of 01/04/2019 to 31/03/2020), for which the NFRA-2 submission deadline was 30/11/2020.
The list of audit firms/auditors in default for both of these years has been published on the NFRA website and the concerned audit firms have also been intimated separately.
The attention of all defaulting audit firms/auditors is drawn to the fact that failure to file the NFRA-2 form is a non-compliance covered by Rule 13 of the NFRA Rules 2018 and is a punishable offence. The rule has been revised further by NFRA Amendment Rules 2022, dated 17/06/2022.
Also, the NFRA is reviewing the status filing of NFRA-2 in respect of reporting period 2020-21 and is in the process to prepare the list of defaulting audit firms/auditors for the said reporting period and will publish the same asap.
NFRA has also reminded that the deadline for the reporting period 2021-22 (Audit reports signed between 01/04/2021 and 31/03/2022) is 30/11/2022 and concerned audit firms have been advised for timely filing of NFRA-2.
NFRA Press Release dt. 13/10/2022: List of Audit Firms failed to file Annual Return NFRA-2 (2018-19 and 2019-20)
List of Audit Firms which have not filed NFRA-2 (Status as on 30/09/2022)
List of Audit Firms of Unlisted Companies (2019-20) that have not Filed NFRA 2
List of Audit Firms of Listed Companies (2019-20) that have not Filed NFRA 2
List of Audit Firms of Banking And Insurance Companies (2019-20) that have not Filed NFRA 2
List of Audit Firms of All Companies (2018-19) that have not Filed NFRA 2
NFRA should immediately initiate recovery proceedings in respect of the amounts of penalty due from defaulter audit firms, as huge amounts of penalty are piling up day by day, which may prove unrecoverable over time, e.g., more than Rs. 50 crore penalty is due from Auditors of Listed Companies (2019-20) alone considering two years of delay. I’m unable to understand why NFRA is allowing the process to be delayed?