Audit

About Our Audit Services

Collins & Co Audit are able to provide a comprehensive auditing service that can help provide you with clarity and a new sense of direction in your business/ organisation. Auditing is a process that we are glad to be able to facilitate as we love to give businesses a comprehensive audit at a competitive price.

Understanding the true and fair position of your business/ organisation is a crucial aspect of your financial reporting as it provides stakeholders, lenders, and staff members with clarity around your business/ organisation’s financial position.

Businesses/ organisations may seek audit services for a wide range of reasons. Some businesses/ organisations have a legal requirement to undertake audit and assurance services on an annual basis.

We believe that all businesses/ organisations stand to gain knowledge and insight into their operations when they receive audit and assurance services. Please see below if you are unsure if you require an audit from a legal perspective.

We believe that an audit is the in-depth examination of the financial statements of an entity from which insight and a story can be drawn. Obviously, there is a compliance aspect to audit, but when you get a Collins & Co Audit, we go to every length to ensure that your business/ organisation story is understood and told.

The purpose of an audit is for an external person to formulate an opinion based on information and figures about whether or not financial reporting reflects the true and accurate financial position of the business/ organisation at that date. The process is always thorough but fair.

Collins & Co Audit always ensure that audits are done in a respectful and inquisitive manner. Our staff always take the time to understand the story behind the numbers in order to verify your financial accounts. There are reasons why some things don’t quite go to plan in your business/ organisation or why things are going unexpectedly well too.

Gaining an insight into the inner workings of your business/ organisation will not only allow you to make better decisions but also allow you to have accuracy in your understanding of your processes and operations.

An independent audit is a time to take a breath in your business/ organisation and allow a financial professional to help clarify some key matters within your business/ organisation. You will gain a better understanding of your own procedures and internal control, and you’ll gain accurate and up to date financial statements, but we think that you’ll get the most out of the insight into your own business/ organisation that this will provide you with.

If your organisation, business or firm falls under any of the following laws, you may be required to seek audit and assurance services, such as the services provided by Collins & Co Audit:

  • The Corporations Act 2001,
  • The ACNC Act 2012,
  • The various State and Territories Associations Incorporations Acts,
  • The Co-operatives National Law 2013,
  • Legal Professional Uniform General Rules,
  • Estate Agents Act 2020 and
  • APES 310.

Otherwise, you may need our audit and assurance services under these circumstances:

  • The constitution or model rules of your business/ organisation may require an audit irrespective of what the relevant legislation requires.
  • The bank may require an audit if they have extended banking facilities to your business/ organisation.
  • Stakeholders such as owners/directors/investors may require an audit of their business/ organisation to know that their finances are being properly managed
  • The business/ organisation looking to expand and grow and want to provide potential investors or funders with audited financial statements.
  • When the business/ organisation want to investigate certain aspects of their finances or financial procedures, i.e. agreed upon procedures or special engagements
  • Not for Profits Incorporated Associations Audits or Reviews
  • Not for Profits Companies Limited by Guarantee Audits or Reviews
  • Unlisted Public Companies Audits or Reviews
  • Large Proprietary Companies Audits
  • Small Proprietary Companies Audits
  • Foreign Owned Proprietary Companies
  • Real Estate Trust Account Audits
  • Legal Trust Account Audits
  • Accountant Trust Account Audits
  • Body Corporate Audits or Reviews
  • Outgoings Audits
  • Franchise Marketing Fund Audits
  • Grant Acquittal Audits
  • Turnover Audits
  • AFSL (Australian Financial Services Licensee) Audit
  • Due Diligence Reviews
  • Forensic Accounting Work
  • Internal Control Reviews
  • Agreed Upon Procedures or Special Reviews

Your organisation can confidently rely on Collins & Co Audit for specialist auditing, accounting and tax services, as well as advice on compliance and governance matters unique to not-for-profit entities.

We understand the unique issues you face and can assist with:

  • The impact of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Act 2012 and the Corporations Act 2001 on your organisation;
  • Funding and grant acquittals;
  • Fringe Benefits Tax and its impact on FBT exempt & FBT rebatable employers;
  • State and Territory stamp duty and payroll tax exemptions;
  • GST and other tax concessions;
  • Changes to the relevant State and Federal legislation; and
  • Advice to Boards and Committees on Best Practice Governance.

We keep abreast of these issues and ensure we keep our clients up to date with our quarterly NFP newsletter, the Collins & Co Audit NFP Newsletter.

We are your referral source and your soundboard on topical issues and can introduce you to the relevant professionals who may be able to assist your organisation.

We currently audit or review more than 275 NFP organisations, including registered charities; companies limited by guarantee; public benevolent institutions; clubs and incorporated associations; deductible gift recipients; income tax exempt funds; community service organisations; disability services organisations; health organisations; educational organisations; employment organisations, sports clubs and many more.

  • We provide the following services:
  • Compliance audits & reviews;
  • Acquittal audits;
  • Agreed upon procedures or special reviews;
  • Internal control reviews and recommendations for improvements; and
  • Preparation of statutory financial reports.

We will perform your audit and financial review with maximum effectiveness and accuracy while keeping the disruptions to your organisation to a minimum.

At the completion of our audit, we will provide your organisation with a management recommendation letter identifying any weaknesses we have noted in your accounting and internal controls environment and recommending improvements.

Furthermore, if we assist you with your financial report preparation, you will have the peace of mind that it is fully compliant with all regulatory requirements.

Our Other Not-for-Profit Services

We can provide a cost-effective accounting solution as a platform for your organisation to achieve its goals. We can also help your organisation to grow its NFP footprint and benefit the community you serve.

We have a team of trusted and qualified accountants we can refer your organisation to who can assist you with the following:

  • Accounting software advice, transitions, installation and training;
  • Monthly management accounting e.g. monthly bank reconciliations and bookkeeping;
  • Monthly management reporting e.g. dashboard reports for the Board of Management;
  • Monthly or quarterly reviews of your accounting information to ensure accuracy, transparency and reliability;
  • Budgeting and cash flow projections;
  • Preparation of general purpose, RDR general purpose and special purpose financial reports;
  • Preparation and lodgement of Business Activity Statements (BAS) and Instalment Activity Statements (IAS);
  • State taxes, including payroll tax, stamp duty on property, land tax, and duty on trust deeds; and
  • FBT and salary packaging advice.

Collins & Co Audit is experienced in providing business advice in a range of specialist areas including:

  • Assistance with start-ups (including advice on the appropriate entity structure);
  • Reviewing existing entity structures;
  • Tax concessions, monitoring and compliance;
  • Preparation of annual returns; and
  • Assistance with day-to-day administration and advice on winding up.

Where we don’t have the necessary expertise ourselves, we can refer you to a trusted NFP Professional we work with.

A War Story

A NFP approached Collins & Co Audit to provide an audit of a childcare centre.

As part of our audit, we performed a high-level analytical review of childcare payment receipts from the parents and childcare subsidies (CCS).

We noticed that the receipts per the client’s MYOB software for parent childcare receipts were approx. $56K below the amount of parent childcare receipts recorded as receipts in the Childcare Management System.

The manual records showing the actual receipts from parents ( by Cash, EFT or Direct Deposit) were then reconciled with the parent receipts per MYOB for the last month of the financial year.

We noticed that some of the parents’ receipts in cash per the manual records did not appear in the MYOB receipts for that date or expected date range.

We notified the Committee of Management that there was a potential fraud problem in the Association.

An independent accountant was engaged to perform a forensic reconciliation/review of the receipts per the manual receipts records in comparison with the MYOB receipts.

The independent accountant found fraud of more than $200,000 over four years, which was committed by a long-serving “trusted” employee.

The Association lodged a claim with their insurance company to recover some, but not all of the stolen monies. Criminal charges were laid against the employee involved.

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