A qualified opinion is one of four possible auditor’s opinions on a company’s financial statements.
The opinions of the other auditor are unqualified, negative, or a disclaimer of opinion.
A qualified opinion indicates that there was either a limitation in scope, or an issue found during the audit of the financial statements that was not comprehensive, or inadequate footnote disclosure.
A qualified opinion is the auditor’s opinion that the financial statements are presented fairly, except in a specific area.
Unlike an adverse opinion or disclaimer of opinion, a qualified opinion is generally still acceptable to lenders, lenders and investors.
The auditor’s opinion is usually contained in the third and last section of the auditor’s report.