There are four standard levels of control on EMB financial management: purchase and expenditure approvals processes, internal monitoring, internal review, and external review or evaluation. These controls are necessary to ensure that errors are corrected and corrupt or illegal practices are prevented.

The basic level of control is in the EMB’s procedures for approvals for purchasing and for authorizing expenditure. Approvals of expenditure up to defined financial limits may often be effectively delegated to secretariat staff with appropriate seniority (e.g., Chief of Operations). The important factor is some diffusion of control, for example by requiring transaction approvals from each of

• the operational area which requests the financial commitment, and
• the finance control area which checks that the commitment is in line with EMB strategic directions and financial policies, and
• the finance disbursement area which authorizes payment for the transaction.

Internal monitoring is applied by the EMB staff who are responsible for managing the EMB’s financial resources at all levels. This includes the heads of division who are responsible for monitoring and reviewing staff performance, and managing their divisional budgets. Overall financial monitoring is the responsibility of the division, usually the finance division, which is responsible for managing EMB expenses and financial transactions through accounting records such as general ledgers, journals, and suspense accounts. This division would usually also control the entire budget and produce regular financial reports including cash projections. Some EMBs have a special members' subcommittee on financial matters, which advises the secretariat on financial issues and may also have the mandate to approve the proposed EMB budget and appoint the EMB’s external auditors. For example, some of these tasks are undertaken by the Finance, Planning, and Logistics Committee of the Kenyan EMB, which includes both EMB members and secretariat staff.

The EMB may also have an internal auditor, a member of the secretariat whose objective is to ensure financial regularity and the alignment of the EMB budget and staff performance with the strategic direction of the EMB. To maintain the independence of internal audit, it usually reports directly to a member of the EMB or the head of the secretariat, rather than through a division of the secretariat. While a primary function of internal audit is to provide assurance to the EMB of the accuracy and integrity of its financial management, it can also play a wide internal development and evaluation role within the EMB. It can advise on the audit requirements of systems, especially those based on new technology, and can lead change advocacy through undertaking internal evaluations of the EMB’s operational processes.

The financial control process also includes external audit. External audits are usually required at least annually and often after significant electoral events. Audits of electoral processes in Governmental Model EMBs and the implementation component of Mixed Model EMBs may not be separate audits, but part of the external audit of the host department. External audits may be done by a government audit agency (if this exists) or by a private contractor, which examines the EMB’s financial transactions for the relevant period and reports to the government on whether they were free of irregularities, and also identifies areas of financial management where improvement is required.

The final stage of financial control includes public submission, often to the legislature, as in Guyana and Nigeria, of the EMB’s election or annual reports and audited financial statements. Accountability mechanisms for EMBs are discussed in detail in Performance and Financial Accountability.