Spain

Abstract

Spanish accounting regulation is eminently public, since financial statements are drawn up and presented essentially in line with statutory accounting standards which are set forth in legislative instruments of varying status — Law (Ley), Royal Decree (Real Decreto, RD), Ministerial Order (Orden Ministerial), Resolution (Resolución) or Circular (Circular). The standards are drawn up by various government bodies. They are published in the Official Gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado, BOE) and in the Official Gazette of the Accounting and Audit Institute (Boletín Oficial del Instituto de Contabilidad y Auditoria de Cuentas, BOICAC) in the case of resolutions issued by the institute. The following bodies are currently empowered to issue accounting regulations: The Parliament and Council of Ministers (in the form of laws and Royal Decrees). The Ministry of Economic and Financial Affairs. The Accounting and Audit Institute (Instituto de Contabilidad y Auditoria de Cuentas, ICAC). Additionally, in association with the ICAC, the Bank of Spain (Banco de España), the National Securities and Exchange Commission (Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores, CNMV) and the Directorate General of Insurance (Dirección General de Seguros) may regulate the accounting systems of the entities and groups under their surveillance.KeywordsBalance SheetAudit FirmFixed AssetLimited Liability CompanyRoyal DecreeThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.