Autumn is a good time to analyse your company’s financial results for the previous financial year and determine whether you are the subject to have the annual report audited or reviewed. A convenient way to find out whether a company is subject to an audit or review requirement (the criteria are revenue, asset volume and number of employees) is the audit calculator.
Having data protection affairs in order at a company ensures reliable and trustworthy relations with businesspartners and a stronger position at the negotiating table. On the other hand, problems can mean fines running into the millions of euros even long after the issues are resolved.
Many employers have questions about whether and to what extent personal data can be requested from employees in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. In this article, I highlight some practical questions and concepts that employers should factor into processing of employee personal data and provide advice on how to mitigate the main risks for both employer and employee.
The law transposes the EU directive into Estonian law and entails an obligation for organizations to create internal and external reporting channels for reporting internal misconduct. The infringements that whistleblowers can report are very different - breaches of procurement procedures, internal fraud, breaches of environmental requirements, and so on.
It has been a year and a few months since the coronavirus turned a new page in world history and exploded all comfort zones. Since that time, Estonia has beaten back two waves of the virus, and like last spring, we are now facing a calmer period. But this brings up new questions – how to return little by little to ordinary working life and juggle the needs of companies and employees while taking into account the way work will be organized in future.
Companies that sell physical goods to European countries all too often have to grapple with the destination country’s complicated VAT system, but in summer 2021, the situation will become simpler and the administrative expenses related to declaration of taxes will decrease.
In the beginning of the year, several tax changes were introduced in Nordic-Baltic region. In addition we shall highlight tax rates applicable in the Nordic-Baltic region as of 2021.
A new guide has been produced by the Auditors’ Association and the Ministry of Finance for public sector entities conducting procurements for audit services. The manual can also be useful for private sector companies.
Analysis of the correctness of data in the Commercial Register uncovered an astonishing fact: the Commercial Register data on auditors of companies contained many mistakes.
Grant Thornton partner and head of outsourcing Anastasia Borovaja has been working for more than 10 years to ensure that her day-to-day work offers an unforgettable customer experience and high-quality service while the company is also seen as an attractive employer.
The coronavirus crisis, which started a little more than a year ago, changed quite a few things in employment relationships. One of the most important changes has been the widespread use of working from home offices. Provided that the nature of the job had some degree of compatibility with the format, employees were allowed to work remotely by companies and organisations where this had not previously been the practice.
The representatives of the board of the Auditors’ Association met Secretary General of the Ministry of Justice Tõnis Saar and Deputy Secretary General of the Ministry of Justice Viljar Peep in February on the topic of developing the Commercial Register and updating register data.
In January and February 2020, Grant Thornton Baltic conducted a financial and tax due diligence for the Kyyrix OÜ, which has almost 30 years of experience in providing professional cleaning services in Tartu.
Grant Thornton Baltic OÜ experts conducted an analysis of the energy networks belonging to public undertakings at the request of the Strategy Unit of the Government Office of Estonia and it was funded from measure no. 12.2 “Development of quality of policy-making” of priority axis no. 12 “Administrative Capacity” of the Cohesion Fund’s operational programme 2014-2020. The initiator and partner of the project is the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications.
The European Union has adopted new rules on VAT that will simplify and facilitate e-commerce. The rules will come into effect in full on 1 January 2021, but companies that provide electronic services will be able to benefit from the rules already starting 1 January 2019.
It is extremely important for managers to pursue self-improvement. As the saying goes: a fish starts rotting from the head. Unfortunately, managerial culture in Estonia is not at a level we can be satisfied with. We have many companies where money and financial results are managed but where the people are not. Actually, instead of money and results, it’s people who should be managed. If so, the good results will not be long in coming.