Nearly 3,200 companies in Hungary have recently received a notice regarding their failure to conduct a statutory audit, meaning they fulfilled their obligation to publish their financial statements without attaching the required auditor’s report.
The Hungarian Chamber of Auditors sent a letter to all companies that deposited their financial statements by 31 August 2025 without the auditor’s report, despite being subject to statutory audit under the Hungarian Accounting Act.
Which companies are subject to statutory audit?
A failure to conduct a statutory audit may pose a serious issue for any company keeping double-entry bookkeeping in Hungary, as these entities are generally required to undergo a statutory audit under the applicable Accounting Act. The obligation for statutory audit is determined based on two core criteria:
- Threshold-based criteria: the company’s net sales revenue exceeds HUF 600 million on average over the two previous financial years, and the average number of employees exceeds 50 over the same period.
- Other criteria: the legal form of the entity (e.g. branch office in Hungary of a company registered in a non-EU country, joint-stock company), the nature of its activities (e.g. credit institution, listed company), or other factors (e.g. entity included in a consolidation) may also trigger statutory audit requirements.
It is important to note that the HUF 600 million threshold may only be applied for financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2025, due to the amendment of the Hungarian Accounting Act at the end of 2024. For the period examined by the Chamber (typically the financial year 2024), the previous HUF 300 million net sales revenue threshold must still be used when determining the statutory audit obligation.
What should companies do in case of failure to conduct a statutory audit?
Companies that have missed their statutory audit have until 30 June 2026 to carry out the audit retroactively and have the auditor’s report prepared. The financial statements audited in this manner do not need to be republished; the auditor will report the fact of the audit to the Chamber. However, it is advisable to notify the Chamber via email that the omission has been rectified.
They must elect an auditor and specify that the appointment covers the audit of the 2024 financial year (as well). A mandate agreement must also be concluded. If the company is no longer subject to statutory audit in 2025, the auditor does not need to be appointed for at least one full year; both the appointment and termination may occur in 2026. A permanent auditor must be a registered auditor or audit firm listed in the Hungarian auditor registry. If an audit firm performs the statutory audit, it must designate the individual auditor responsible for completing the audit.
The company’s corporate documents must be amended to include the appointed auditor, and the auditor’s details must be filed with the Hungarian Court of Registration.
Other cases of non-compliance
If the company has an auditor’s report but simply forgot to submit it, the omission can now be remedied by filing it with the Chamber within 15 days. The same 15‑day deadline applies to companies that are not subject to statutory audit but still received a notice. They must submit a justification to the Chamber explaining why they were not required to undergo audit.
Legal consequences of failure to conduct a statutory audit
If the company fails to remedy the missed statutory audit, meaning it does not have the auditor’s report by the given deadline, the Chamber will initiate a legal compliance procedure before the Hungarian Court of Registration. This procedure may even lead to the dissolution of the company.
In the event of failure to conduct a statutory audit, the non-compliant company may still avoid the legal consequences – such as the default penalty or a cancelled tax number – if the management takes the necessary steps in time. The accountants at WTS Klient Hungary have helped prepare and publish countless financial statements in the nearly 25-year history of the company, and have in-depth experience with statutory audit obligations. Feel free to contact us if you have a question on this topic, or would like to entrust us with your company’s accounting.
This article provides general information and does not constitute advice.
