Clifford Chance

Changes regarding the signing of financial statements and annual reports

8 March 2022

As of 1 January 2022, significant changes related to the signing of financial statements and annual reports entered into force.

They allow these documents to be signed with a so-called qualified electronic signature by only one member of the management board, provided that the other members of the management board submit an appropriate declaration in traditional written form. In practice, this may improve the process of the signing of such documents, which, in particular in the case of management board members residing abroad, was often time-consuming and burdensome. The changes shall apply starting from the financial statements and annual reports prepared for 2021.

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