The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA, the Ethics Board) today released final changes to the definition of “those charged with governance” in its Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (the Code).

The changes are intended to more closely align the definition of “those charged with governance” in the Code with that in the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB)’s International Standard on Auditing (ISA) 260, Communication with Those Charged with Governance, thereby eliminating any potential confusion. The Ethics Board does not expect any changes will be necessary to accounting firms’ systems and methodologies or common practice.

The changes clarify that a subgroup of those charged with governance of an entity, such as an audit committee, may assist the governing body in meeting its responsibilities. In those cases, if a professional accountant or firm communicates with such a subgroup, the Code requires the professional accountant or firm to determine whether communication with all of those charged with governance is also necessary so that they are adequately informed.

“The changes to the definition reflect the Ethics Board’s ongoing commitment to eliminate unnecessary differences with the IAASB’s standards, which serves to enhance our shared stakeholders’ understanding of our standards and guidance,” said Jörgen Holmquist, chair of the IESBA. “Furthermore, by clarifying the definition, the Ethics Board aims to promote more consistent application of the Code, which is critical to its mission to ultimately foster a consistent and high level of ethical behavior by professional accountants around the world.”

As with all revisions to the Code, the changes have been approved following confirmation by the Public Interest Oversight Board that due process in developing the changes was followed. The changes, effective on July 1, 2014, will be printed in the 2014 Handbook of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. The 2013 Handbook is currently available to download or purchase.

About the IESBA
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) is an independent standard-setting board that develops and issues, in the public interest, high-quality ethical standards and other pronouncements for professional accountants worldwide. Through its activities, the IESBA develops the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, which establishes ethical requirements for professional accountants. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IESBA are facilitated by IFAC. Please visit www.ethicsboard.org for more information.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

#   #   #

Prof. Arnold Schilder has been reappointed as chairman of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) for the period 2015–2017.

As chairman, Prof. Schilder will continue to lead the IAASB as it works to set high-quality international auditing, assurance, and related services standards. Since his appointment in 2009, he has played a key role in guiding the IAASB as it strives to enhance the quality and consistency of practice throughout the world. With 90 jurisdictions around the world already using or in the process of adopting or incorporating International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), his leadership will be critical in expanding this broadly based acceptance more widely.

Additionally, he will steer the board into the future as it works to enhance public confidence in financial reporting. Part of this agenda includes the IAASB’s leading edge proposals for significant changes to the content of the auditor’s report and considering the results of the implementation reviews of the ISAs. Also, the IAASB will closely monitor new developments, such as integrated reporting, and their implications for assurance and related services standards.

"It has been my great pleasure to chair the IAASB, and I am honored to have been reappointed to continue to lead the board,” said Prof. Schilder. “We are now preparing a global consultation for the IAASB’s Strategy and Work Program for 2015-2019. I look forward to the dialogue with many key stakeholders. As a result, I expect a challenging program in my third term to serve the public interest with high-quality standards, ongoing implementation support, and cooperation with regulators, other standard setters, and more.”

Prof. Schilder's appointment to a third three-year term as IAASB chairman begins on January 1, 2015. The Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB) approved the appointment at its last meeting in Madrid, Spain.

From 1998 to 2008, Prof. Schilder was a member of the Managing Board of the Dutch Central Bank, responsible in particular for banking regulation and supervision. He served as the chairman of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision's Accounting Task Force from 1999–2006, and from 2005–2008 as a member of the PIOB. During 1994 and 1995 he served also as president of Royal NIVRA (now Nederlandse Beroepsorganisatie van Accountants).

From 1972 to 1998 he worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers, first in the small- and medium-sized entities practice and since 1985 as an international audit partner. Prof. Schilder served as part-time professor of auditing at the Universities of Amsterdam and Maastricht from 1988 to 2009.

For more information about the work of the IAASB, visit its homepage at www.iaasb.org.

About the IAASB
The IAASB develops auditing and assurance standards and guidance for use by all professional accountants under a shared standard-setting process involving the Public Interest Oversight Board, which oversees the activities of the IAASB, and the IAASB Consultative Advisory Group, which provides public interest input into the development of the standards and guidance. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IAASB are facilitated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC).

About IFAC

IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. It is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

#  #  #

IFAC SMP Committee Chair Giancarlo Attolini spoke at CReCER 2013 on the following:

• Importance of SMEs and SMPs
• IFAC SMP Quick Poll
• Role of IFAC SMP Committee
• Implementation Guides

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA, the Ethics Board) today released its 2012 Annual Report, Connecting and Engaging with Our Global Stakeholders.

The report introduces Jörgen Holmquist, the first independent chair of the Ethics Board, and details the board’s ongoing commitment to developing high-quality ethics standards for the global accountancy profession. It emphasizes the board’s further commitment to promoting and facilitating the adoption and effective implementation of these standards around the world, thus supporting professional accountants in their commitment to act in the public interest within their diverse roles in business and practice.

The report summarizes the progress made on the IESBA's Work Plan, which in 2012 included finalizing three pronouncements—breach of a requirement of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (the Code), conflicts of interest, and a revised definition of the term “engagement team.” The report also highlights the board’s efforts in exploring appropriate ethics standards for professional accountants in one of the most challenging projects the board has undertaken so far—responding to a suspected illegal act.

“The Annual Report is one of the ways through which the board demonstrates the transparency of its activities. This year’s report focuses on our activities in further building on the strong base of ethics standards contained in the revised Code released in 2009. Additionally, it elaborates on the renewed focus we’ve placed on stakeholder outreach,” said Mr. Holmquist. “As the first independent chair of the board, I see it as an important priority to increase the trust of stakeholders, particularly the regulatory community, in the board’s work, and extending and deepening the board’s engagement with them.”

The Annual Report also includes a report from Richard Fleck, outgoing chair of the IESBA Consultative Advisory Group (CAG), which outlines the work of the CAG in providing input to the IESBA.

To access and download the 2012 IESBA Annual Report, visit www.ethicsboard.org.

About the IESBA
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) is an independent standard-setting board that develops and issues, in the public interest, high-quality ethical standards and other pronouncements for professional accountants worldwide. Through its activities, the IESBA develops the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, which establishes ethical requirements for professional accountants. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IESBA are facilitated by IFAC. Please visit www.ethicsboard.org for more information.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

###

Introduction

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) has released proposals that could fundamentally transform the auditor's report, greatly enhancing its communicative value. The Exposure Draft (ED) proposes a new standard, International Standard on Auditing (ISA) 701, Communicating Key Audit Matters in the Independent Auditor’s Report, and a number of revisions to existing standards, including ISA 700, Forming an Opinion and Reporting on Financial Statements (see IAASB press release). While the proposals stand to significantly change the shape of auditor reporting for listed entities, the impact on unlisted entities is likely to be much smaller. Nevertheless, there are proposed requirements that apply to all audits. These are intended to help demonstrate the value of the audit and, furthermore, may improve service and promote engagement efficiency.

This article summarizes this impact and suggests how small- and medium-sized practices (SMPs) and small- and medium-sized entities (SMEs) can get involved to help ensure the best possible outcome.

Proposals

The proposed new and revised standards deal mainly with reporting considerations, which typically involve decisions by the auditor toward the end of the audit process. There are, however, aspects that may have implications for what the auditor does at or near the beginning of the audit, such as agreeing the terms of and planning the engagement, as well as communicating with those charged with governance. The most significant implications for the audits of unlisted entities are described below.

Content of the Auditor’s Report

The centerpiece of the proposals is proposed ISA 701. This completely new standard establishes requirements and guidance for the auditor’s determination and communication of key audit matters in the auditor’s report. Key audit matters, which are selected from matters communicated with those charged with governance, are required to be communicated in the auditor’s report for listed entities. Auditors of financial statements of unlisted entities may also be required, or may decide, to communicate key audit matters in the auditor’s report.

For example, law, regulation, or national auditing standards may require auditors of unlisted entities in a particular jurisdiction to communicate key audit matters. Moreover, the auditors of other unlisted entities may wish to use the new mechanism of key audit matters on a voluntary basis. Where key audit matters are communicated for audits of financial statements of unlisted entities (either voluntarily or when required by law or regulation) then such matters should be determined and communicated in the same manner as for listed entities (see paragraph 4 of proposed ISA 701 and paragraphs 30 and A30–A31 of proposed ISA 700 [Revised]).

ISA 700 has been revised to establish new required reporting elements, including a requirement for the auditor to include an explicit statement of auditor independence and disclose the source(s) of relevant ethics requirements, for all audits including those of unlisted entities. Similarly, ISA 570, Going Concern, has been amended to establish auditor reporting requirements applicable to all audits. The IAASB believes it is in the public interest for this to have universal application.

Agreeing the Terms of the Engagement

In light of the possibility of auditors of unlisted entities communicating key audit matters in the auditor’s report, or being requested by management or those charged with governance to do so, the IAASB has proposed limited amendments to other ISAs, including ISA 210, Agreeing the Terms of Audit Engagements. Specifically, if the auditor is not required to communicate key audit matters but intends to do so, a new requirement has been established for the auditor to include a statement in the audit engagement letter regarding such intent. This will provide an additional opportunity for the auditor to communicate with management and those charged with governance to ensure there’s a clear understanding as to the nature of the key audit matters to be disclosed.

Communicating with Those Charged with Governance

In light of proposed ISA 701, amendments are proposed to the required auditor communications with those charged with governance for all audits. The most significant proposed change to ISA 260 relates to the existing requirement for the auditor to communicate an overview of the planned scope and timing of the audit with those charged with governance. Proposed ISA 260 (Revised), Communication with Those Charged with Governance, expands this requirement to include communicating about the significant risks identified by the auditor (see paragraph 15 of proposed ISA 260 [Revised]).

Communication with those charged with governance about significant risks is likely already occurring in many audits, including those of SMEs, as ISAs demand a risk-based approach to the audit. But the IAASB believes audit quality could benefit from explicitly requiring such communication in every audit. The proposed requirement would provide those charged with governance with insight into those areas for which the auditor determined special audit consideration was necessary and, in so doing, help those charged with governance to fulfill their responsibility to oversee the financial reporting process. This will also provide the auditor with an opportunity to garner additional insights into significant risks from those charged with governance and, thereby, help ensure the audit program is appropriately focused.

The IAASB believes it is in the public interest to establish this requirement for audits of financial statements of all entities, not only for listed entities. Communicating with those charged with governance about significant risks is not expected to result in a significant burden on auditors who are not required to communicate key audit matters in the auditor’s report (e.g., auditors of unlisted entities), as proposed ISA 260 (Revised) remains flexible for such communication to be made orally. In addition, the IAASB proposes requiring the auditor to communicate, as part of communicating the significant findings from the audit, circumstances that require significant modification of the auditor’s planned approach to the audit, to align with the factors the auditor considers in determining key audit matters (see paragraph 16(c) of proposed ISA 260 [Revised]). This will provide further opportunity for dialogue with those charged with governance to help ensure all responsible parties have a full understanding of areas of significant auditor attention.

Feedback

The IAASB believes that the proposed ISAs can be implemented in a manner proportionate to the size and complexity of an entity and welcomes the views of both preparers and auditors of financial statements of unlisted entities, including SMEs, in this regard. The IAASB also invites respondents to comment on areas where additional guidance may be helpful to illustrate how the proposed ISAs can be implemented in a proportionate manner. The IFAC SMP Committee has been providing regular and robust input to the IAASB throughout the ED's development, starting with a response letter to the Invitation to Comment. Please tell us and the IAASB (click on Submit Comment) what you think about the ED and consider field testing ISA 701 on unlisted entities.

Revised Definition of the Professional Accountant

Project Status

Active

Objective

To develop an international definition of the term professional accountant.

Scope

To support IFAC's members and other professional accountancy organizations in the adoption and implementation of the International Education Standards by clarifying the definition of the professional accountant.  

PROJECT CONTACT

David McPeak