Audit season is on its way

As we head into auditing season for the black coal mining industry, here’s some information for employers and auditors which, hopefully, clarifies and simplifies the annual audit process. Who has to provide an audit report? Any employer who employed eligible employees, i.e. paid a levy to Coal LSL, during the financial year must provide an annual audit report to Coal LSL within six months of the end of their financial year. It’s important to be aware that, under Section 10 of the Coal Mining Industry (Long Service Leave) Payroll Levy Act 1992, there are civil and criminal penalties for failing to provide an annual audit report. Your company may incur a penalty of $8,400 (40 penalty units, currently valued at $210 per unit) for an individual or $42,000 (200 penalty units) for a body corporate for each year that this legislative requirement is not met. What is an audit for? The purpose of the audit report is to assess whether the levies paid to, and reimbursements claimed from, Coal LSL for eligible employees have been calculated correctly, by reviewing the employer’s records. It is not the role of the auditor to provide comment on the eligibility of employees, as defined by the employer. What must be in a report? The audit report must state the auditor’s opinion as to whether the employer has or has not:

• Correctly paid all levy and additional levy amounts required.

• Correctly claimed any reimbursements.

• Any inconsistencies within these processes discovered during the review must be detailed in your audit report as described in the audit support resources.

How to lodge an audit report You can lodge an audit report by email or mail to Coal LSL, Locked Bag 2021, Newcastle NSW 2300. Questions If you have any questions, please email us or call 1300 852 625 between 8:30am and 4:00pm Monday to Friday (AEST) and ask for the Technical Compliance team.