FRC increases membership levy by 5%

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has increased its fees on preparers by 5% to £14.8m while accountancy professional bodies face a 2.5% increase, outlined in the regulator’s annual plan and budget for 2017/18.

The fees will range from a 2.5% increase for those with a market capitalisation below £1bn and up to a 9.5% increase for market capitalisations above £1bn. The highest levy will rise to approximately £66,000 for a company with a market capitalisation of £100bn.

The overall funding requirement for 2017/18 will be £36m, up from £33.3m in 2016/17, and the FRC says its core costs will increase by 6.3% compared to the budget for 2016/17.

The spend for the annual audit quality review (AQR) programme has been slashed by £1.1m to £7.7m after it spent £8.8m in 2016/17, when it actually ran over budget by £1.5m. The FRC plans to review around 155 individual audit engagements, plus review firms’ wider arrangements in 2017/18. Priority sectors will be companies in the property, travel and leisure, financial services and support services sectors.

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