Independent Financial Audit of EU-Funded Projects in the 2021-2027 Programming Period: Between Administrative Simplification and Preventive Control

This study examines the status of independent financial audit in EU-funded projects during the 2021-2027 programming period, focusing on whether the engagement is mandatory, the eligibility of its cost, and the role assigned to the auditor's report in expenditure verification. The research distinguishes between the mere mention of audit, the eligibility of the expenditure, the mandatory nature of the engagement, and the requirement to submit the report as a deliverable. The methodology consists of a comparative documentary analysis of final or consolidated applicant guides, corrigenda, aid schemes and official clarifications relating to a purposive sample of calls for proposals. Of the 17 observations analysed, 12 (70.6%) explicitly establish non-mandatory financial audit arrangements; in 10 cases (58.8%) audit is optional and eligible, while in two cases (11.8%) the cost is ineligible. The sample includes one mandatory case and four cases in which the documentary status remains unclear. The results are descriptive and are not extrapolated to all calls launched in Romania. The contribution of the study lies in proposing a distinct reading of audit mandatory status and cost eligibility and in arguing for a proportionate, risk-based model of independent verification for the 2028-2034 financial framework. Maintaining the eligibility of audit costs is examined as an instrument that may facilitate preventive control without imposing a uniform audit requirement on all projects.