- 1. Are companies required to submit an Annual Return?
Yes. Every company is obliged to submit an Annual Return (AR) to the Companies Registration Office (CRO) annually. The AR consists of a completed Form (B1) and is accompanied by a copy of the company’s financial statements.
- 2. Are companies required to prepare annual financial statements?
Yes. Companies are required to prepare financial statements on an annual basis from the information contained in the company’s books of account and other relevant information. The statements should give a true and fair view of the company’s financial position and may include a profit and loss account or an income and expenditure account, a balance sheet, a directors’ report and an audit report.
- 3. Are companies obliged to keep proper books of account?
Yes. Every company must correctly record and explain all its transactions. This will enable the financial position of the company to be determined with reasonable accuracy at any time. These records must be preserved for a period of at least 6 years from the latest dates to which they relate
- 4. What happens if proper books of account are not kept?
A failure by a company to keep proper books of account is a breach of company law and a reportable offence by an auditor who becomes aware of such failure in the normal course of an audit
- 5. What are the consequences of not keeping proper books of accounts?
Failure to keep proper books can be prosecuted summarily by the ODCE at District Court level, or, in more serious cases, it can be prosecuted on indictment by the Director of Public Prosecutions. If a company that failed to keep proper books of account is being wound up, and is unable to pay all of its debts, a court on the application of a liquidator or any creditor or any contributor may declare that one or more of the officers and former officers of the company may be made personally liable, without any limitation of liability for the debts of the company.