Audit in Europe : a comparison of access requirements into the audit profession across the European Union

Within the EU, various measures have been taken to harmonize access to the audit profession. Nevertheless, only minimum access requirements are defined by EU regulation. Our results show considerable remaining differences between the member states. They are the basis for an Access Requirements Index (ARI) which makes it possible to easily assess and compare requirements placed on prospective auditors. In further analyzes, we show that the EU member states form five clusters based on the underlying parameters of the index. Our paper provides a basis for future research on possible consequences of these differences and gives an overview to regulators and the professions in the EU about the status of harmonization of access requirements.