Ordinance No. 65/1994 of 19 August 1994 on the organization of the accounting expertise and licensed accountants’ activity *** republished
CHAPTER I
The Qualification of Expert Accountant and Licensed Accountant
ART. 1
The expert accountant and licensed accountant professions are practiced by persons endowed with this qualification, under the conditions provided for in this ordinance.
ART. 2
(1) An expert accountant is the person having obtained this qualification under the terms of this ordinance and having the professional competence to organize and manage the accounting activity, to oversee the management of trading companies, to prepare the financial statements and to perform forensic accounting engagements.
(2) The expert accountant shall prepare a report on his/her findings, conclusions, opinions and recommendations.
(3) The licensed accountant is the person having obtained this qualification under the terms of this ordinance and having the competence to perform bookkeeping and do preliminary work prior to the preparation of the financial statements.
ART. 3
(1) The access to the expert accountant and licensed accountant professions is obtained through an admission examination, with a mandatory minimum average of 7 and a mandatory minimum grade per subject of 6, followed by a practical training period of one to 3 years, and a professional skills examination at the end of the training period, in accordance with the regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
(1^1) Upon request, graduates of Master programs held by specialised faculties may register directly for the training period, based on the agreements to assimilate Master examination disciplines with those of the admission to the profession exams, concluded between Universities and the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
(2) Within 6 months from the publication of this ordinance in the Official Journal of Romania, the Regulations on the Access to the Expert Accountant and Licensed Accountant Professions shall be approved by Government Decision**). The Regulations shall be prepared by the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and approved by the Ministry of Finance and by the Ministry of National Education*).
*) Currently, the attributions of the Ministry of Finance and of the Ministry of National Education have been taken over by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, respectively by the Ministry of Education, Research and Youth.
ART. 4
(1) The admission examination for obtaining the qualification of expert accountant provided for in Art. 3 may be taken by any person meeting the following requirements:
a) is legally competent;
b) has a higher education degree in Economics acknowledged by the Ministry of Education, Research and Youth;
c) has not received any conviction which, according to the legislation in force, prevents him/her from managing and administering a company.
(2) Upon request, any person having the title of academician, professor or lecturer, having a PhD in Economics or having the title of docent, with a specialization in finance or accounting, have access to the profession of expert accountant on the basis of their PhDs, subject to the provisions in paragraph (1) (a) and (c) and under the condition of taking an interview regarding the organizational and operational regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants.
(3) The recognition of the expert and licensed accountant qualification for foreign natural persons who are members of internationally recognised certification institutes shall be awarded based on taking an interview according to the regulations issued on that matter by the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
(4) Upon request, persons holding the licensed accountant qualification and who, further to receiving this qualification, meet the requirement in paragraph (1) (b) have access to the expert accountant profession by means of taking an equivalence examination for the following disciplines: Accounting, Forensic Accounting, Accounting Doctrine and Deontology, Financial Audit, Economic and Financial Business Appraisal. These exams shall be taken during the examination sessions held for the admission to the expert accountant practical training programme.
ART. 5
The admission examination for obtaining the qualification of licensed accountant stated in Art. 3 may be taken by any person meeting the following requirements:
a) is legally competent;
b) has a secondary education degree acknowledged by the Ministry of National Education, Research and Youth;
c) has not received any conviction which, according to the legislation in force, prevents him/her from managing and administering a company.
CHAPTER II
Practicing the Expert Accountant and Licensed Accountant Professions
SECTION 1
The Expert Accountant
ART. 6
The expert accountant may, individually or as a company, provide the following services to natural and legal persons:
a) organizes, manages, provides bookkeeping, verifies and oversees the accounting activity, prepares and signs financial statements and performs fiscal activities, such as calculating taxes and contributions, preparing and submitting tax returns, and representing the client in relation to the tax authorities, as part of an accounting services contract.
Bookkeeping refers to making the journal entries for financial and economic operations, in compliance with the accounting law and the applicable accounting regulations, as well as restating or revising accounting. The results of verification or revision activities may consist in a certification signature by the expert accountant. Fiscal activities refer to calculating taxes and contributions, preparing and submitting tax returns, and representing the client in relation to the tax authorities;
b) provides specialized assistance for organizing accounting and bookkeeping;
c) performs financial and economic analyses and valuations, for accounting and financial purposes, other than those defined by Government Ordinance no 24/2011 on certain measures concerning the valuation of goods, approved with amendments by Law no 99/2013, with its subsequent amendments and supplements, and which do not take the form of a valuation report prepared in accordance with the valuation standards adopted by the National Association of Romanian Authorized Valuators (ANEVAR). Such valuations may include, without being limited to, estimates of an entity’s cash flow and financial position, revenue and expense measurement, estimating the level of provisions and value adjustments, as well as other valuations performed by expert accountants during their current activity;
d) undertakes forensic accounting engagements, including forensic accounting engagements with a fiscal component, required by judicial bodies or requested by natural or legal entities, according to the legal requirements and the CECCAR regulations;
e) performs other financial-accounting activities, including maintaining electronic staff records, payroll services, administrative and IT organization activities, information, data and documents certifications;
f) fulfils the tasks provided for in the censor mandate and financial proxy mandate, according to the legal requirements;
g) provides specialized advice for the establishment and restructuring of companies;
h) provides financial-accounting and economic performance management;
i) provides internal management control and risk management for legal entities;
j) provides financial management and accounting consultancy, performs management accounting and integrated reporting specific services;
k) provides professional services that require knowledge related to the activities stated in this article for natural or legal entities.
ART. 7
Natural or legal persons holding the expert accountant qualification may also undertake other activities than those provided for in art. 6, which are specific to financial audit, financial consultancy and valuation activities, only after acquiring, in accordance with the legal provisions, the title of financial auditor, fiscal consultant or certified valuator, as appropriate, and after having registered as members with the institutions coordinating the aforementioned liberal professions.
ART. 8
Expert accountants may practice their profession individually or they may organise themselves as accounting and/or accounting expertise companies, according to the provisions of the law.
ART. 9
(1) Accounting expertise companies shall meet the following requirements:
a) their core activity is to practice the expert accountant profession, and their secondary activities comply with the provisions of this ordinance and the regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania;
b) the majority of their shares or equity interests are held by expert accountants;
c) the company’s management body, in accordance with the Company Law no 31/1990, republished, is elected so as the majority consists of expert accountant shareholders or associates;
d) the shares are registered and each new associate or shareholder is approved by the General Assembly;
e) all benefits are distributed and all losses are incurred in accordance with the share or equity interest percentages held by the shareholders or associates;
(2) In order to register a company at the Trade Register Office, the company’s management body shall request a preliminary approval from the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
(3) The provisions in paragraph (2) shall also apply for any change in the requirements of paragraph (1).
(4) The preliminary approval required in paragraphs (2) and (3) certifies that the associates/administrators and the management personnel meet the requirements specified by the law and entitles them to establish the company, make changes to articles of association and register these operations at the Trade Register Office.
(5) The exclusion or suspension of the right to practice the accounting profession shall be decided by the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and shall be communicated, within 30 days, by the company’s management body to the Trade Register Office where the member company of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania is registered.
SECTION 2
The Licensed Accountant
ART. 10
The licensed accountant may provide the following services to natural and legal persons:
a) bookkeeping for the economic and financial operations stated in the contract;
b) performing the preliminary work necessary for preparing the financial statements;
c) performing activities related to the electronic staff records and payroll services;
ART. 11
(1) Licensed accountants may practice their profession individually or they may organise themselves as accounting companies, established in accordance with the law.
(2) The provisions in Art. 9 shall also apply to accounting companies, as appropriate for the licensed accountant qualification and activity.
SECTION 3
Common Requirements for Expert Accountants and Licensed Accountants
ART. 12
(1) Expert accountants and licensed accountants are prohibited to undertake any engagements for the economic entities or for the institutions where they are employed and for any other parties with whom their employer has contractual relations or with whom their employer competes.
(2) Expert and licensed accountants may not undertake any of the engagements stated in Art. 6 and 10 for third parties, if any evidence of incompatibility exists.
(3) The censor’s activity may be performed, in accordance with the law, by expert accountants, by persons having a higher education degree in Economics, acknowledged by The Ministry of National Education, and a minimum experience of 5 years in the accounting and financial activity, as well as by member companies of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, within which the above-mentioned persons are shareholders/associates and administrators.
(4) The exclusion or suspension of the right to practice the profession individually shall be decided by the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and shall be communicated, within 30 days, by the expert accountant/licensed accountant to the tax authority are registered at.
(5) For forensic accounting engagements, expert accountants may agree on fees with their clients taking in to consideration the reference fees table adopted by the National Conference.
ART. 13
Expert and licensed accountants guarantee their civil liability in relation to the activity they perform by taking out an insurance policy.
ART. 14
Relations between expert accountants, licensed accountants and specialized companies and their clients shall be established by means of a written services contract, signed by both parties.
ART. 15
The fees established for the forensic accounting engagements required during a trial, ex officio, according to Art. 116, 124 and 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code, in cases involving infractions stated in the Criminal Code**) or in special laws, that resulted in damages to public funds, shall be advanced from the state budget through the budgets of the Ministry of Justice, the Public Ministry or the Ministry of Domestic Affairs and Administrative Reform, as the case may be, and the respective amounts shall be subsequently recovered from the guilty parties after the final court ruling is pronounced.
SECTION 4
Accountability of Expert and Licensed Accountants
ART. 16
(1) In practising their profession, expert and licensed accountants are accountable from a disciplinary, administrative, civil and penal point of view, as appropriate, according to the law.
(2) The limits of expert and licensed accountants’ civil accountability are established by services contracts concluded in accordance to the law, by reference to the international and domestic practices of the accounting profession.
ART. 17
(1) The disciplinary sanctions applicable to expert and licensed accountants, depending on the severity of their offence, are the following:
a) admonition;
b) written warning;
c) suspension of the right to practice the profession of expert or licensed accountant for a period of 3 months to 1 year;
d) interdiction of the right to practice the expert or licensed accountant profession.
(2) The offences by reference to which the disciplinary sanctions are applied shall be established by the organizational and operational regulations.
CHAPTER III
Organization and Operation of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants
SECTION 1
Organization and Responsibilities of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants
ART. 18
(1) The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants is established as an autonomous public interest legal entity, consisting of expert accountants and licensed accountants, under the terms established by this ordinance, having its general headquarters in the city of Bucharest.
(2) The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania is a non-profit professional organization.
(3) The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania is the only competent authority that organizes and monitors the expert accountants’ and licensed accountants’ activity, as well as the activity of accounting expertise and accounting companies.
ART. 19
The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants shall establish branches in the county municipalities and in the city of Bucharest.
ART. 20
The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants has the following responsibilities:
a) organizes the admission examination, the practical training and the skills examination for the access to the profession of expert accountant and licensed accountant, in accordance with the provisions of Art. 3. The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants shall draft the curricula for the admission examination for the profession of expert accountant and licensed accountant, and the regulations for the practical training and for the skill examination, with the approval of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, seeking to converge with the provisions of the relevant European Directives;
b) organizes the records of expert accountants, licensed accountants and specialized companies, by registering them in the Records of the Body;
c) ensures the smooth running of the activity of expert accountants, licensed accountants and accounting companies and/or accounting expertise companies.
d) develops and publishes pronouncements regarding the professional activity and the ethical conduct of expert and licensed accountants, as well as professional guides in the financial and accounting field;
e) ensures the smooth running of the expert accountants’ valuation activity on the basis of the International Valuation Standards;
f) supports the professional training and development of expert and licensed accountants through adequate professional training and development programs;
g) safeguards the prestige and the professional independence of its members in their relations with the public authorities, specialized bodies, and with other domestic and foreign legal and natural entities. In its relations with foreign professional bodies, the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania shall be represented by its governing structures or it can delegate certain responsibilities to other specialised entities, with or without legal personality, based on a Superior Council Decision;
h) co-operates with professional specialized bodies in Romania and abroad;
i) issues specialized publications;
j) any other responsibilities established by law or regulations.
SECTION 2
Structure of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants
ART. 21
(1) The activities stated in Art. 6 and Art. 10 may be undertaken by persons having acquired the expert accountant or licensed accountant title, respectively, who are registered with the Records of the Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, hereinafter named the Records of the Body, this title being certified by the membership card, which must be validated annually. The Records of the Body is published annually in the Official Journal of Romania, Part I. All members, natural persons, expert accountants and separately licensed accountants, as well as specialized legal entities, grouped geographically, are registered in the Records of the Body.
(2) The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania is organised in two sections:
- the expert accountants section;
- the licensed accountants section.
(3) The records of persons who passed the admission examination and are attending the practical training program shall be organized according to the Organizational and Operational Regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
(4) The members of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania are natural and legal persons who are active or inactive, from the point of view of their practise right, and are separately registered under sections provided for in paragraph (2).
(5) The Organizational and Operational Regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania shall establish the organization and operation of the sections.
(6) Persons who are active members may change their status into inactive members of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania by submitting a written request that demonstrates the incompatibility condition stipulated by the legislation.
(7) Changing a person’s status from inactive member to active member of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania is subject to meeting all of the following conditions:
(i) submission of a written request by the person in question to the regional branch he or she is registered at;
(ii) submission of the person’s criminal record;
(iii) completing a 20-hour course on specific legislation.
ART. 22
(1) The registration of expert and licensed accountants in the Records of the Body shall be made, upon request, by the county branches and the Bucharest branch, if the applicants prove they meet the provisions of Art. 4 (a) and (c) or Art. 5 (a) and (c), respectively.
(2) The appeal against a refusal to register an applicant in the Records of the Body shall be submitted within 30 days since the date when the notification was received and shall be solved, within 30 days since its registration date, by the management of either the expert accountant’s section or the licensed accountant’s section. The decisions of the management of either the expert accountants section or the licensed accountants section may be appealed at the Superior Council of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, within 30 days of their receipt, and they shall be solved within 15 days since the appeal’s registration. The appeals against the decisions of the Superior Council of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania may be submitted to the Contentious Administrative Office attached to the Bucharest Court.
(3) After registering in the Records of the Body, expert and licensed accountants shall take a written oath.
(4) The oath has the following wording:
«I hereby swear to apply correctly and without bias the national laws, to observe the provisions of the Organizational and Operational Regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and of the Code on the professional and ethical conduct of expert and licensed accountants, to keep the professional secrecy and to scrupulously fulfil the duties I am entrusted with as an expert/licensed accountant».
ART. 23
(1) Members of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania have an obligation to pay professional dues. Defaulting on these dues for one year gives rise to the exclusion of the respective member from the Records of the Body.
(2) In addition, expert accountants or licensed accountants having received a conviction as provided for in Art. 4 (c) or in Art. 5 (c) or having committed other severe transgressions provided for in the regulations, as well as those who did not pay to the government budget, within the time-limit and in the amount stated by the law, the taxes on fees received from natural persons, are also excluded from the Records of the Body.
ART. 24
Accounting expertise companies and accounting companies, members of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, are required to communicate to the Body’s branches any change in the number or status of their associates or shareholders.
ART. 25
Advertising in connection with the practice of the expert accountant or licensed accountant profession shall be made or shall be authorized by the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants, in the interest of the profession.
ART. 26
(1) Foreign natural or legal persons who are not residents of or, as the case may be, do not have their registered office in Romania may practice the expert accountant or licensed accountant activity, in accordance with the provisions of this ordinance, if they hold that qualification in their country and legally practice these activities and if they have, in accordance with the pronouncements developed in this regard by the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, undergone an interview to assess their knowledge of the national legislation regarding the organization and operation of companies, as well as of the fiscal and accounting legislation.
(2) Citizens of another Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation and Romanian citizens who have obtained the required professional qualification in another Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation may obtain the expert accountant or licensed accountant qualification in Romania, in accordance with the provisions of this ordinance, in the same conditions as Romanian citizens. The recognition of diplomas and professional qualifications obtained in another Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation, required to obtain the expert accountant or licensed accountant qualification in Romania, shall be made in accordance with Law No 200/2004 regarding the recognition of diplomas and professional qualifications for the regulated professions in Romania, with its subsequent amendments and supplements.
(3) Citizens of another Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation and Romanian citizens who have obtained the expert accountant or licensed accountant qualification in another Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation, qualification which is certified by the recognized professional bodies in that state, may register in the Records of the Body in order to practice the profession in Romania, in the conditions prescribed by the law, being exempt from the procedures provided for in art. 3 paragraph (1). Based on the requests submitted by the applicant, the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania recognizes the professional certification document issued by the competent authority in the country of origin and registers the applicant in the Records of the Body based on this document, accompanied by copies of documents attesting the acquirement of the expert accountant or licensed accountant qualification or of equivalent qualifications in the country of origin, as well as documents attesting compliance with the procedures provided for in art. 3 paragraph (1), art. 4 and 5, issued by the competent Romanian authorities or by those in the country of origin.
(4) Legal entities established in a Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area, where they legally practice the activities provided for in art. 6 and 10, may register in the Records of the Body in order to practice the profession in Romania, in the conditions prescribed by this ordinance, their right to practice the expert accountant and licensed accountant activity obtained in their state of origin being acknowledged.
(5) The citizens of another Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation and Romanian citizens who have obtained the expert accountant or licensed accountant qualification in another Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation, and who have a permanent right to practice the profession in one of these states may also practice the profession in Romania on a temporary or occasional basis, being exempt from the procedure regarding the registration in the Records of the Body.
(6) Legal entities established in a Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area, where they legally practice the activities provided for in art. 6 and 10, may also practice these activities in Romania on a temporary or occasional basis. In this case, legal entities are exempt from the procedure regarding the registration in the Records of the Body.
(7) If, in regards to practicing the expert accountant or licensed accountant profession on a temporary or occasional basis, the applicant provided for in paragraph (6) is at his or her first request in Romania or if a material change arises in his or her circumstances, the applicant will submit a statement to the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania regarding the services that will be provided, accompanied by the following documents:
a) evidence of citizenship in one of the Member States of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation;
b) a certificate attesting knowledge of the Romanian language;
c) evidence of the professional qualification;
d) evidence attesting the fixed address in a Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation and that there is no interdiction, even on a temporary basis, on practicing the profession at the time of issuance.
e) evidence that the applicant has performed an activity specific to the expert accountant or licensed accountant profession for at least 2 years in the last 10 years, if the profession is not regulated in the state of residence.
(8) If a verification of the legality of the documents submitted for obtaining authorisation is necessary, the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania may contact the competent authorities of the Member State of the European Union or of the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation, through the Internal Market Information System (IMI), in accordance with the legal provisions.
(9) The registration of the expert accountants or licensed accountants provided for in paragraph (3), as well as of the legal entities provided for in paragraph (4) in the Records of the Body, and enrolment by the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania of the expert accountants and licensed accountants provided for in paragraph (5) shall be made within 30 days from the date when the applicant submitted all the documents attesting compliance with the legal provisions.
(10) The authorization procedures and formalities provided by this ordinance may be met through the electronic point of single contact, in accordance with the legal provisions.
(11) For the application of the provisions under paragraphs 1 to 10, the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania issues pronouncement subject to the Superior Council approval.
SECTION 3
Governance of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants
ART. 27
(1) The governing structures of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants are: the National Conference, the Superior Council of the Body and the Standing Bureau of the Superior Council.
(2) The governing structures of the branches are: the General Assembly, the Branch Council and its Standing Board.
ART. 28
(1) Annual financial statements of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants are subject to statutory audits, in accordance to the law.
(2) Censors elected by General Assemblies shall review the activity of the branches of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
ART. 29
(1) The organization and operation of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants shall be established by its Organizational and Operational Regulations, with the approval of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Justice.
(2) Any amendment of and/or supplement to the regulations shall be made in accordance with the provisions in paragraph (1).
ART. 30
(1) The National Conference of expert and licensed accountants shall be constituted of the members of the Body’s Superior Council, the council members of the Body’s branches, members of the superior discipline commissions, members of the Branches’ discipline commissions, as well as 1 representative for every 100 members of each branch, designated by the general assembly.
(1^1) *** Rescinded
(2) The National Conference shall be legally constituted with the participation of the majority of the members provided for in paragraph (1), and decisions shall be adopted validly with the vote of the majority of the present members.
(3) The first Conference shall consist of the presidents of the Body branches and the delegates of expert and licensed accountants, under the conditions provided for in paragraph (1).
(4) If, at the first convocation, the required number of members are not present, the National Conference shall be reconvened. At the second convocation, it is legally constituted regardless of the number of members in attendance.
ART. 31
The National Conference shall have the following responsibilities:
a) sets up basic guidelines to ensure the good practice of the expert accountant and licensed accountant professions;
b) approves the Organizational and Operational Regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, as well the amendments and the supplements thereof. The approved Organizational and Operational Regulations shall be then submitted for approval to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Economy and Finance;
b^1) approves the Code of professional and ethical conduct for expert and licensed accountants, in compliance with international provisions on this subject;
c) approves the budget of income and expenses as well as the annual financial statements of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, accompanied by the auditor’s report;
d) approves the remuneration charts for the governance structures of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants and its branches, as well as for the staff;
e) elects and revokes the members of the Superior Council of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania;
f) reviews the activity of the Superior Council and of the branches councils and determines the necessary actions;
g) *** Rescinded
h) approves the annual action plans of the Superior Council and of the Body’s branches’ councils;
i) elects and revokes the president and members of the Superior Discipline Commission;
i^1) decides the disciplinary sanctioning of the Superior Council’s members, following a proposal from the Superior Discipline Commission;
i^2) decides the disciplinary sanctioning of the members and president of the Superior Discipline Commission, following a proposal from the Superior Council;
j) fulfils any other responsibility provided for by this ordinance.
ART. 32
(1) The Superior Council represents the profession in relation to the public authorities through its President, in accordance with the status of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, and coordinates the activity of the county branches.
(2) The Superior Council has the following responsibilities:
a) elects 5 vice-presidents of the Superior Council from among its members;
b) ensures the development and supplementation of the Organizational and Operational Regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants, requesting the approvals of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Justice;
c) ensures the development and supplementation of the National Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, based on the IFAC Code of Ethics;
d) analyses all issues related to the expert and licensed accountant profession;
e) fulfils other responsibilities provided for by the law, the Organizational and Operational Regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and the National Conference’s decisions.
(3) The Standing Board of the Superior Council designates and revokes the general executive director, whose activity is based on a mandate contract; carries out the responsibilities provided for in paragraph (2)(e), including the decisions of the Superior Council.
(4) The National Conference elects the President of the Superior Council from among the members of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants.
(5) The President of the Superior Council is an active member of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and has a good professional and ethical reputation. He or she may only cumulate this position with research activities or activities in the specialised higher education environment.
(6) The President of the Superior Council shall be elected by means of a secret ballot for a 4-year term. The President of the Superior Council may serve for no more than two consecutive terms. After the end of his or her term, in compliance with the provisions of this paragraph, the President may be re-elected after a minimum period equal to that of a term, in accordance with the conditions established by the Organizational and Operational Regulations.
(7) Full members and alternate members shall be elected by means of a secret ballot, for a 4-year term. After the end of their term, members may be re-elected after a minimum period equal to that of a term, in accordance with the conditions established by the Organizational and Operational Regulations.
(8) The provisions in paragraphs (5) – (7) regarding the election process shall also apply to the branches of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
(9) The President of the Superior Council represents the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania both before the public authorities and in the relations with domestic and foreign natural and legal persons.
ART. 33
(1) The Superior Discipline Commission is attached to the Superior Council of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, and it consists of 5 full members and 5 alternate members. The members of the Superior Discipline Commission are elected by the National Conference for a 4 year term from among the expert accountants registered in the Records of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania with a high professional and ethical reputation.
(2) *** Rescinded
(3) The Superior Discipline Commission shall apply disciplinary sanctions provided for in Art. 17 and shall solve appeals against the disciplinary decisions pronounced by the branches’ discipline commissions.
(4) *** Rescinded
(5) The Superior Discipline Commission has the authority to:
a) analyse complaints regarding breaches of the ethical and professional conduct requirements committed by the Superior Council’s members, proposing sanctions, if needed, to the National Conference, who will then decide on the matter;
b) resolves complaints regarding breaches of the ethical and professional conduct requirements committed by the branches’ presidents and council members, the presidents and members of the discipline commissions attached to the branches’ councils, and the foreign natural persons whose right to practice the profession of expert or licensed accountant in Romania was acknowledged, and applies the sanctions provided for in art. 17 (1), if necessary.
c) resolves the appeals submitted against the disciplinary decisions pronounced by the branches’ discipline commissions.
d) applies the sanction of withdrawing the right to practice the profession of expert or licensed accountant for the members of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania who committed material breaches, in accordance with the regulations.
(6) *** Rescinded
ART. 34
(1) The General Assemblies of the branches consist of expert and licensed accountants having a fixed address in the respective county or in the city of Bucharest, as the case may be.
(2) The General Assembly of the branch shall be legally constituted with the participation of the majority of members provided for in paragraph (1), and its decisions are considered valid if voted by a majority of those in attendance.
(3) If, at the first convocation, the required number of members are not present, the General Assembly shall be reconvened. At the second convocation, it is legally constituted regardless of the number of members in attendance.
ART. 35
The General Assembly of the branch has the following responsibilities:
a) approves the budget of income and expenses of the branch and the execution thereof;
b) ensures the good practice of the expert accountant and licensed accountant professions at a local level;
c) elects and to revokes the council members for the respective branch of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants and the censors thereof;
d) nominates, from among its members, candidates for the Superior Council of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants;
e) assesses the activity of the branch’s council and the activity of the discipline commission attached to it and to decide thereon;
f) fulfils any other responsibility established by the law and by the regulations or decided upon by the Superior Council of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants.
ART. 36
(1) A discipline commission is attached to the council of the branch, consisting of 5 titular members and 5 alternate members: the president and 4 members elected by the General Assembly for a 4-year term, from among the expert accountant members who have a high professional and ethical reputation.
(2) The alternate members are designated under the same conditions.
(3) The discipline commission of the branch shall apply the disciplinary sanctions provided for under Art. 17 (a), (b), and (c).
ART. 37
(1) The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and its branches shall cover their expenses from the following income sources:
a) the registration fee for the admission examination related to the qualifications of expert accountant and licensed accountant;
b) the fee for registering in the records of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania;
c) fixed and variable membership dues;
d) revenues from the sale of its own publications;
e) donations, sponsorships;
f) other revenues generated by the activity of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and its branches, as established by Organizational and Operational Regulations.
(2) The registration fees and membership dues are established annually by the National Conference of Expert and Licensed Accountants.
CHAPTER IV
Public Oversight
Art.38 *** Rescinded
Art.39 *** Rescinded
Art.40 *** Rescinded
Art.41 *** Rescinded
Art.42 *** Rescinded
ART. 43
(1) Undertaking any responsibility specific to the expert or licensed accountant qualification by unauthorized persons shall be considered an infraction and shall be sanctioned according to the provisions of criminal law.
(2) Persons undertaking any responsibility specific to the expert and licensed accountant qualifications without the annual visa shall receive a disciplinary sanction according to the provisions of the Organizational and Operational Regulations of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania.
ART. 44
(1) General interest resolutions and decisions adopted by the Superior Council, the Standing Board and the National Conference shall be published in the Official Journal of Romania, Part I, within 30 days since their adoption.
(2) If the resolutions and decisions are not published in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1, they are not applicable to the members of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania or to other natural and legal entities.
(3) The Organizational and Operational Regulations establishes the general interest resolutions and decisions.
ART. 44^1
The provisions in this ordinance shall be supplemented by Government Emergency Ordinance no. 49/2009 on the free establishment of service providers and on the free provision of services in Romania, approved with amendments and supplements by Law 68/2010.
ART. 44^2
The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania develops proposals to amend and supplement pronouncements regulating the activity of expert and licensed accountants and submits them to the Ministry of Public Finance for analysis and support.
ART. 44^3
The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania, the Ministry of Public Finances and/or the National Agency for Fiscal Administration may share, based on an agreement, the information necessary to apply the Law of Accounting no. 82/1991, republished, with its subsequent amendments and supplements, and this ordinance.
ART. 44^4
The Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania and the National Trade Register Office mutually share, free of charge, the information necessary to apply this ordinance.
CHAPTER V
Transition and final requirements
ART. 45
Persons that have been granted the qualification of expert accountant according to the provisions of the Decree no. 79/1971*) on Accounting and Technical Expertise shall retain this qualification if they meet the requirements provided for in Art.4 (a) and (c).
ART. 46
The organization of the general assemblies for the establishment of branches, as well as the organization of the first national conference of expert and licensed accountants, shall be carried out by the Ministry of Economy and Finance within 90 days of the publication of this ordinance in the Official Journal of Romania.
ART. 47
(1) The responsibilities of the general directorates for public finances and state financial control of the counties and of the city of Bucharest*) regarding the judiciary accounting and technical expertise, in relation to the registration and recommendation of experts, the follow up of the receipt of fees and the payment thereof, shall be transferred, according to the law, to the county courts and to the court of the city of Bucharest.
(2) The general directorates for public finances and state financial control of the national counties and of the city of Bucharest shall forward to the county courts and to the court of the city of Bucharest, within 30 days from the establishment of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants, the records of the expert accountants and of technical experts, the technical expertise archives, as well as the current accounting expertise and judiciary technical expertise works, in order to ensure that the judiciary expertise activity is carried out according to the legal regulations.
(3) For the fulfilment of the responsibilities provided for in paragraphs (1) and (2), each organizational chart of the courts shall be supplemented with a position of specialized inspector or referent, and the organizational chart of the Court of the city of Bucharest**) shall be supplemented with 3 such positions.
*) Currently, within the Ministry of Economy and Finance, according to Government Decision No 386/2007, operate the Directorates-General of the County Public Finance and the city of Bucharest
**) According to the Law No. 304/2004 on judicial organization, republished, “The Court of the city of Bucharest” has been replaced with “the Bucharest Court”.
ART. 48
(1) The General directorates for public finances and state financial control of the national counties and of the city of Bucharest shall transfer into the accounts of the branches of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania the balance resulting from the 10% quota retained from the fees received for any accounting expertise.
(2) The balance resulting from the 10% quota on the fees for any technical expertise shall be transferred to the account of the Ministry of Justice – the Central Office for Technical Expertise – opened at the Savings Bank CEC – S.A.
ART. 49
(1) This ordinance shall become effective on the date of its publication in the Official Journal of Romania, Part I.
(2) On the date when this ordinance becomes effective, the provisions referring to the organization of accounting expertise in Decree no.79/1971*) on Accounting and Technical Expertise shall be abrogated. The provisions of Decree no. 79/1971*) regarding technical expertise shall continue to be effective.