1 July 2015
The prescribed time-frame of four months for the submission of audit reports for the estate agencies with a financial year-end of 28 February 2015 came to an end on 30 June 2015.
Online audit report submissions
With effect from 1 March 2015, the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) determined, in terms of section 32(4) of the Estate Agency Affairs Act (the Act), the sole manner of submission of audit reports to be the MyEAAB Auditors Portal, accessible through the EAAB website.
The EAAB is pleased to inform estate agents and their auditors that the online audit report submissions has exceeded expectations and has been an incredible success. From 1 March 2015 to 30 June 2015, over 5 000 audit reports were successfully submitted online for the 2015 financial year by auditors of estate agencies through the MyEAAB Auditors Portal.
The EAAB would like to thank estate agencies and their auditors for embracing the MyEAAB Auditors Portal and adhering to the pronouncement of 1 March 2015 regarding online audit report submissions.
The estate agencies whose audit reports were submitted online by 30 June 2015 will be able to successfully renew and obtain their 2016 Fidelity Fund Certificates (FFCs) during the renewal period which starts on 1 July 2015 and ends on 31 October 2015.
In order to enhance the MyEAAB Auditors Portal further for the benefit of the estate agencies and their auditors, EAAB will soon send out acknowledgement letters and evaluation forms to the auditors who used the MyEAAB Auditors Portal during this 2015 audit cycle. The evaluation forms will inform further changes that may be required to be made to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the MyEAAB Auditors Portal.
Disqualifications due to non-compliance with audit report submission requirements
All estate agency firms who have not submitted, or submitted outside the prescribed timeframe, audit report(s) for one or more financial years have been disqualified in terms of section 27(aA)(i) of the Act. The principals of these disqualified estate agency firms will soon be notified, through email, of the disqualification and the process to be followed in order to regularise their registration status with EAAB.
All 2015 FFCs in the possession of the disqualified estate agency firms are no longer of any force and effect, and are hereby withdrawn in terms of section 16(4) of the Act. The disqualified estate agency firms will not be able to renew and obtain the 2016 FFCs.
The disqualification of the estate agency firms and the withdrawal of FFCs apply, not only to the estate agency firms, but also to all estate agents, whether principal or non-principal, within the service and/or employment of that disqualified firm.
The EAAB endeavours to expedite the regularisation of the registration status of the disqualified estate agents firms and in this regard, the principal(s) of the disqualified estate agency should:
- Request their auditor to register on MyEAAB Auditors Portal via http://www.eaab.org.za/myaudit and upload the outstanding audit report(s) online via this website link.
- Email the audited financial statements for the financial years relating to the outstanding audit reports to section27applications@eaab.org.za.
- Email an affidavit by the principal(s), signed and stamped by a Commissioner of Oaths, to section27applications@eaab.org.za :
- Detailing the history and experience within the estate agency industry;
- Reasons for non-compliance with the provisions of the Act; and
- Reasons why it is considered to be in the best interest of justice to be issued with a Fidelity Fund Certificate.
On receipt of the audit report(s), audited financial statements and affidavit, the matter will be considered by EAAB’s Section 27 Department and
A. For those estate agency firms:
- whose audit reports, audited financial statements and affidavits meet the conditions and criteria set by the EAAB board;
- who admit guilt; and
- and do not object to the payment of a penalty,
a penalty will be levied for the non-compliance with the audit report submission requirement and the disqualification removed on payment of the penalty
B For those estate agency firms who do not fall in category A above, a charge letter will be issued by EAAB’s Legal Department and the disqualification will be removed subject to the outcome of the disciplinary committee proceedings and the section 27 application processes.
All further queries from disqualified estate agency firms should be directed to the EAAB’s Section 27 Department at section27applications@eaab.org.za
The EAAB reserves the right, at its sole discretion and in addition to any administrative penalty having been levied, to institute formal processes relating to any non-compliance with the provisions of the Act.
AUDIT COMPLIANCE DEPARTMENT ESTATE AGENCY AFFAIRS BOARD Email: audit@eaab.org.za Telephone: 087 285 3222
