Ministry of Finance has been designated as the Audit Authority for following European Union funds and foreign financial assistance in Latvia:
- ESIF - European structural and investment funds (European regional development fund, Cohesion fund and European social fund, including Youth Employment Initiative)
- FEAD - Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived
- ISF and AMIF - Internal Security fund and Asylum, Migration and Integration fund
- EEA and Norwegian Financial instruments - European Economic Area Financial Mechanism and Norwegian Financial Mechanism
The function of Audit Authority is performed by European Union Funds Audit Department, and is separated from other functions of the Ministry of Finance.
The main objective of the Audit Authority is to issue and submit to the European Commission, Donor States and Cabinet of Ministers of Latvia an opinion as to whether the management and control system of the European Union funds and foreign financial assistance functions effectively, so as to provide a reasonable assurance that statements of expenditure are correct and as a consequence give reasonable assurance that the underlying transactions are legal and regular.
The tasks of Audit Authority include checking whether the management and control systems are working efficiently – through system audits. It is also responsible for carrying out controls focusing specifically on declared expenditure – through operational and project audits. Ensuring adequate separation of functions between the main authorities – managing, certifying authorities, intermediate bodies - is an important part of these controls.
Organisational structure of the Audit Authority
Further information on each of the funds and programmes:
ESIF