Internal audit is a contributive function to government performance. To achieve its objective of providing reasonable assurance of an organization’s risk management, international standards and the texts governing the function require that it must be objective and independent. This article reviews the independence of internal auditors in the Québec public administration and presents an analysis of its implications. The data for this study come from a descriptive study of the internal audit function in departments and agencies produced by the Treasury Board Secretariat. According to our results, if the rules of perceived independence are well established in Quebec’s public administration, the real independence of internal auditors could be strengthened and, the audit committee could play an important role in that respect.