CONTROL & AUDIT REQUIREMENTS What project promoters cannot ignore about INTERREG IVB NWE project management

Table of contents First level control – the basics Who will/can be your first level controller? The Audit Trail Control of the Payment Claim – what and when? Other controls Public procurement – the basics Audit Requirements The Basics

Who will/can be your controller? Audit Requirements The Basics Two possible systems: centralised or decentralised Differences: Who proposes the controller Who bears the costs Time pressure Responsibility to inform about the project and Programme; EU rules

Audit Requirements The Basics Approval of project at PSC The involved MS control bodies contact the relevant partners and inform them of their FLC procedure (name and contact details of controller, timeframe and deadlines, necessary documents, etc.). Partners from MS with a decentralised First Level Control system The involved MS approbation bodies contact the relevant partners and inform them of their FLC procedure ( s hortlist of approved controllers, timeframe and deadlines). The partners send the information back to the MS approbation body The MS assesses the provided information and checks if all criteria are fulfilled. The partner’s controller qualifications are satisfying The partner’s controller qualifications are not satisfying The MS approbation body sends a certificate that confirms the controller to the partner (JTS in copy) The involved MS approbation bodies contact the relevant partners and inform them of their FLC procedure ( f orm to be filled in and signed by partner and controller, timeframe and deadlines) The partners send the information back to their MS approbation body The JTS informs the involved MS control bodies of the partners’ contact details The JTS informs the involved MS approbation bodies of the partners’ contact details Partners from MS with a centralised First Level Control system

Who will/can be your controller? For the centralised Member States: Ireland - Southern & Eastern Regional Assembly Luxembourg - Ministère des Finances, direction du Contrôle financier Belgium Wallonia - Ministère de la Région Wallonne, DRI, Service comptabilité Switzerland - Staatssekretariat für Wirtschaft SECO Audit Requirements The Basics

Who will/can be your controller? For the decentralised Member States: The Netherlands, France, Belgium Flanders and Brussels Capital, Germany, UK usually the First Level Controllers can be internal or external, public or private, there are some differences from Member State to Member State. For the UK they have to be on a shortlist, for France public procurement is a prerequisite. For further information and addresses see Guidance Note 20 Audit Requirements The Basics

Who will/can be your controller? Compulsory For the programming period Audit Requirements The Basics The main requirement is independency from project management, finance and activities. Other requirements are set by MS: Background Experience Language skills Knowledge in Structural funds regulations (…) These requirements are listed per Member State in the Project Handbook (guidance note n°20)

Who will/can be your controller? Compulsory For the programming period Audit Requirements The Basics For the decentralised systems, the approval of the controller will in most cases be made using a form to be filled in by the partners and the controller. Professional skills and experiences in audit and EU funded projects Sufficiency of the controller’s knowledge in the English language Independence of the controller: If external: what is the basis for the work (contract); is the controller registered; is the controller obliged to a professional code of conduct or other rules? If internal: is their independence regulated by law or other rules; to which person does he answer? Independence of mind,… Knowledge of Programme documents, audit trail, timeframe.

Compulsory For the programming period Audit Requirements The Basics Who has already declared their first level controllers? Who has received an answer from the approbation bodies? Was any proposal rejected? Poll: first level control

The Audit trail Audit Requirements The Basics What is the audit trail? The audit trail is a comprehensive set of documents which provide a complete history of a project and provide evidence that proper procedures were applied and outcomes achieved. The audit trail permits to: Reconcile the total amount of funding with detailed accounting records and supporting documents. Verification of compliance with all EC Regulations, National legislation So, what documents do you think are part of the audit trail?

The Audit trail Audit Requirements The Basics In what form? Original documents (at partner level), but also photocopies (at Lead Partner level), microfiches or electronic versions of original documents. Where? The Lead Partner is responsible for storing all relevant documentation for all partners and all sub-partners. They must be filed separately, even if this leads to a dual treatment of accounts. Importance of Partnership Agreement ! How long? It is essential that all documents and accounting records be kept available for a period of three years following the last payment to the Programme, that is 31st December Projects that cannot provide sufficient documentation risk losing their ERDF grant.

Control of the Payment claim Audit Requirements The Basics What? One sheet per partner + Summary + Investment sheet One controller declaration per partner On the summary sheet, LP controller signs for the whole claim, on the basis of all received declarations When to control? Example: Closure of accounts at partner level: end July Documents to the project controller: end August Documents to the LP (controller): end September Documents to the JTS: end October -> Maximum for the whole process : 3 months (Article 16 of 1080/2006)

Other controls – JTS Site visits Audit Requirements The Basics Fulfils the Managing Authority obligation to verify the operations on-the-spot (Article 13 of Regulation (EC) 1828/2006). What ?to learn from the project to verify the management system (incl audit trail) to see deliverables When ?once during the project lifetime Who? Visited: Lead Partner + other partners Visitors: JTS staff (Project Dvpt + Finance + Com) National Auditor and National Authority Outcome:Site visit report

Other controls – Second level controls Audit Requirements The Basics What? Audits organised at Programme level by the Member States under direction of the Audit Authority. Who will audit? The audits will be performed by an external audit firm, under supervision of the Audit Authority and the national auditors. Who will be audited? A sample will be defined each year. The sample will be based on partners’ claimed expenditure on a yearly basis. The sample will represent 10-15% of the total expenditure claimed at Programme level. The Lead partners of the partners selected will be audited as well. -> the chances for a project to be controlled is higher than under IIIB!

Other controls – Second level controls Audit Requirements The Basics When? January (each year)Sample is defined January - FebruaryPartners selected are informed February – AprilControls take place May – JuneContradictory phase

Other controls – Third level controls Audit Requirements The Basics Certifying Authority’s quality controls The Certifying Authority will perform audits, normally once a year, on a different Member State each time. Commission and Member States checks The Commission, in cooperation with the Member States, can perform on-the-spot checks on projects co-financed by the ERDF, with a minimum of one day’s notice. IIIB Experience: one Commission audit during the Programme lifetime, with two phases. The National Authorities can also perform on-the-spot checks at partner level on demand of either the JTS/MA or on its own initiative

First mistakes from Second level control: Audit Requirements The Basics Mistakes in timesheets Usage of wrong budget line Missing original documents and bad quality No project relation Breach of public procurement JTS corrections were not justified Administration costs had no project relation FLC comments in checklist did not correspond to payment claim

Mistakes at JTS level: Audit Requirements The Basics Calculation of Staff costs with hourly rates Administration costs had no project relation Wrong signatures of FLC No clear guidance of the FLC on how the JTS should proceed with findings (cut yes or no) No hourly (daily) rates of external experts are given in the comment boxes Problems with data protection

Most frequent control errors under IIIB Audit Requirements The Basics Public procurement ! Claiming of costs not attributable to project Double financing Overheads miscalculations No invoices/supporting documents Claiming of recoverable VAT and other recoverable charges Publicity Revenues not declared

Public Procurement Audit Requirements The Basics Procurement rules are COMPLEX! If you have DOUBTS about the application of procurement rules, get in touch with a LEGAL ADVISOR.

Public Procurement: lessons learnt Audit Requirements The Basics One of the main findings in the IIIB period was lack of compliance with public procurement (lack of evidence, not respecting procedure, no evaluation grids…). During DG Regio audit, 53% of the findings were related to breech of public procurement rules. The Commission applies a flat rate correction to any breech – up to 100% of the total cost of the contract.

Public Procurement: IVB basics Audit Requirements The Basics National Rules apply from the first euro – rules vary significantly from one Member State to another European threshold applies for ALL tenders above €193,000 (€125,000 in some cases) and €4,845,000 for public works Lead Partner is responsible for ensuring that public procurement is respected by the entire partnership All documents must be retained (publication of tender, evaluation grid) Selection procedure must be retained The procedure cannot be changed in mid-course

Public Procurement: EU rules Audit Requirements The Basics EU Directives apply to contracts to the following types of contracts: Works Services Supply Contracts All relevant EU and national regulations are listed in Guidance note 15 Keep the threshold in mind when granting an extension!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION! The Basics Public procurement