Jordan Securities Commission brings into force revised auditor qualification, independence and tenure requirements for supervised entities

The Jordan Securities Commission has brought into effect amendments to its Standards and Conditions Instructions for auditors qualified to audit entities under the Commission’s supervision, effective upon publication in the Official Gazette. The changes update eligibility, independence and appointment rules for audit engagements. Key amendments include a requirement for auditors to have at least five years of practical experience inside and outside Jordan, with the experience not required to have been obtained after registration in the Jordanian Association of Chartered Auditors’ practitioners register. The revised instructions also introduce restrictions relating to the full-time status and Social Security Institution registration of audit-office employees involved in audit work, cap the suspension of an auditor’s registration for professional errors or serious legal violations at a maximum of five years, and tighten independence rules by restricting audits where the auditor or a relative is part of the entity’s board or senior executive management. In addition, the amendments prohibit the auditor and audit team from buying, selling or owning shares in supervised entities during the engagement and prohibit relatives from holding more than 1% of an entity’s capital, directly or indirectly. Auditor appointment rules were also revised to provide for election of the audit office for one fiscal year, renewable annually up to seven consecutive years (calculated from 1 January 2020), after which re-election or reappointment by the same supervised entity is prohibited until two consecutive years have passed.