An audit requirement is not determined by whether a company already pays for bookkeeping. Preparing accounts and independently auditing them are different functions. The starting question is which legal, contractual or specific corporate circumstances apply to the entity and financial year concerned. Company size may matter, but it is not a complete substitute for reviewing all potential grounds and any relevant exemptions.
Prepare the annual accounts, recent financial figures, ownership structure and information about the company's activities. Identify whether it belongs to a group and whether sector rules or particular transactions need attention. Review financing agreements and shareholder requests separately from general statutory requirements. A lender's request for audited accounts may create a practical need even when the initial discussion focused only on the usual company size tests.
Ask for a written determination covering the relevant year, rules considered and factual assumptions. Where financial tests apply, verify their current wording and the required observation periods rather than relying on a remembered threshold. A single year's figures may not answer the question. Changes in group structure or activity should be brought into the review, especially when using last year's conclusion as the starting point.
In a hypothetical distributor, rapid growth leads the owner to ask whether an external audit is now needed. The review examines more than the latest turnover figure: it includes other relevant financial data, prior periods, group relationships and financing commitments. The result could affect appointment and preparation planning. It should not be inferred from the accountant's ability to produce a set of annual accounts.
If an audit is required, discuss appointment, timing and information needs with an appropriately authorised independent auditor. In Spain, the relevant professional register is the Registro Oficial de Auditores de Cuentas, commonly called ROAC. Verify the status appropriate to the engagement. Administrative preparation support does not confer authority to sign an audit opinion, and a service provider's general accounting experience is not proof of that authorisation.
Keep the obligation assessment with the year's reporting file and assign responsibility for reviewing changes. A preliminary audit requirement review can identify the grounds needing confirmation and the documents necessary for a formal conclusion, giving management time to organise the process without confusing an independent assurance engagement with ordinary accounts preparation or routine financial administration.