Communicating with OCA

Pursuant to Section 10A(b) of the Exchange Act, an issuer or its registered public accounting firm may be required to notify the Commission regarding illegal acts.

Rule 10A-1(a)(1) indicates that notices required under Section 10A(b)(3) of the Exchange Act may be provided via “facsimile, telegraph, personal delivery, or any other means, provided it is received by the Office of the Chief Accountant within the required time period.”

The staff believes that, generally, the most timely receipt and attention to correspondence is facilitated through the use of electronic mail and prefers that notices to the Office of the Chief Accountant required by Rule 10A-1 be submitted via this means. Notices that must be submitted to the Office of the Chief Accountant pursuant to Rule 10A-1 should be submitted to: 10Aletters@sec.gov.

Section 1000.08(m) of the SEC Practice Section (SECPS) (as adopted by the PCAOB under Rule 3400T, Interim Quality Control Standards) requires a firm to notify OCA of the cessation of an auditor's relationship with an audit client under certain circumstances.

Registrants required to file current reports on form 8-K

When the cessation of the auditor-client relationship relates to a registrant that is required to file current reports on Form 8-K, the firm is only required to notify OCA if the former audit client has not reported the change in auditor in a timely filed Form 8-K.

See Release No. 34-72087 (May 2, 2014), approving amendments to certain of the PCAOB's rules including an amendment to Section 1000.08(m) of the SEC Practice Section.

Registrants not required to file current reports on form 8-K

For SEC Registrants that are not required to file current reports on Form 8-K, including foreign private issuers required to make reports on Form 6-K and investment companies required to file reports under Rule 30b1-1 of the Investment Company Act (other than business development companies), the firm is required to notify OCA by the end of the fifth business day following the firm's determination that the client-auditor relationship has ended, irrespective of whether or not the registrant reported the change in auditors in a timely filed report).

Submitting notifications of resignations and dismissals from audit engagements

When notification is required, firms may email a copy of the SECPS letter to OCA at SECPSletters@sec.gov. The SEC staff strongly encourages sending the notification letter by e-mail, and the staff will accept the date the e-mail is received as the notification date.

The exact name of the registrant and the Commission File Number as it appears on the cover page of the annual report should be used in the e-mail. If the cessation of the client-auditor relationship affects multiple SEC registrants (e.g., a parent with publicly-registered subsidiaries, series of mutual funds), the exact name of each registrant and each Commission File Number should be set forth in the e-mail.

Rule 102(e)(5) of the Commission’s Rules of Practice generally provides that an individual suspended from appearing and practicing before the Commission pursuant to Rule 102(e) may submit an application for reinstatement. The order of suspension may also contain additional material relating to the information required for the Commission to process an application for reinstatement. Accountants suspended from appearance and practice before Commission may submit, or make inquiries regarding the submission of, an application for reinstatement via OCA-Reinstatements@sec.gov.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has awarded more than $250 million to whistleblowers since the inception of the agency’s whistleblower program in 2011.

The whistleblower program was established by Congress to incentivize whistleblowers with specific, timely and credible information about federal securities laws violations to report to the SEC.

Office of the Whistleblower