Accountancy, Bookkeeping Services and Auditing Services Under the Economic Partnership Agreement

For those engaged in Accountancy and Bookkeeping Services and Auditing Services, following are a series of questions and answers designed to address many of the issues you may have  regarding access to the EC market for your business. Under the EPA, Accounting and Bookkeeping Services are treated separately from Auditing Services.

May 07 2012 | Research

I’m an independent Accountant, working for myself and I’ve been awarded a contract to provide my services to a company in the EC. Does the EPA allow me to do that?

Yes it does, with some conditions.

Generally, these conditions are:

• When you are applying for temporary entry as an Independent Professional, you must be a self-employed person established in Barbados and you must have obtained a service contract with the entity in the European Community for a period that is not more than 12 months.
• You also must have at least 6 years professional experience in the Accounting field.
• When you apply, you must have a university degree or equivalent qualification, and professional qualifications where they are required by law.
• Once it is approved, your temporary entry will be for a cumulative period not exceeding 6 months (or 25 weeks in Luxembourg) during a 12-month period, or for the duration of the contract (whichever is less).
• Your visa will only allow you to work on the contracted service activity.  You are not permitted to work on other business activities.

Note that there are some individual countries in the EC that impose additional conditions on Independent Professionals wishing to contract with local businesses.

Accounting and Bookkeeping

Is our Accounting Firm allowed to provide services to a customer located in the EC from our offices here in Barbados?

There is nothing in the EPA that prohibits you from providing services from Barbados to an EC customer.  However, you should be aware that France, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Romania, & Slovenia are not required to allow you to supply these services.

In addition, Austrian rules under the EPA require Accountants and Bookkeepers to meet a nationality condition for representation before competent authorities.

Accounting and Bookkeeping

What happens if I don’t want to open an office in the EC, but just want to contract my company’s Accounting and Bookkeeping services to an entity in the EC?

Generally, the following provisions apply to personnel of Barbadian companies that wish to enter into a contract to provide services to a company in the EC:

In addition to these provisions, some countries impose their own restrictions on Accounting and Bookkeeping Services from CARIFORUM countries (including Barbados) wishing to provide contract services in the EC. Those countries and the conditions are:

• In Austria, the Barbadian employer must be a member of the relevant professional body where such a body exists;
• In Belgium, Barbadian companies may be subject to an economic needs test;
• In France there is an authorisation requirement; and
• In the following countries, economic needs tests will be applied: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Finland, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Malta, Romania, & Slovakia.  

Accounting and Bookkeeping

In the event that I do gain the necessary permissions to open a branch in France, what personnel can I send to work there and for how long?

The answer to this question is dependent on the level of staffing you want to send to France.  The senior staff of a Barbadian entity responsible for setting up the business may remain for ninety (90) days during any 12-month period.

Key personnel (described under the EPA as managers and specialists) are allowed to remain in France (and other EC countries) for up to three years.  And if you are planning on sending graduate trainees to the EC, they may remain for one year.

Of course, all of these provisions are subject to the Barbadian staff meeting the normal visa and immigration requirements for the EC country in question.

Accounting and Bookkeeping