• IAASB 2012-2014 Strategy and Work Program Sets Auditor Reporting as Top Priority and Highlights Other Relevant Audit and Assurance Initiatives

    New York, New York English

    The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today released its Strategy and Work Program, 2012–2014. Developed through wide public consultation, it sets the direction and priorities for the IAASB’s activities over the next three years with a focus on:

    • Supporting global financial stability;
    • Enhancing the role, relevance, and quality of assurance and related services in today’s evolving world; and
    • Facilitating adoption and implementation of the IAASB’s standards.

    “Our forward strategy is to build on the strong base of standards that has been developed to date, to address new assurance topics, and to further promote the benefits of the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) and our other international standards,” said Prof. Arnold Schilder, IAASB chairman. “The IAASB is constantly challenged to respond to growing demands from a diverse range of stakeholders in a continuously changing international environment. The areas addressed in our strategy are those we have heard to be the most important in the public interest, in particular our work on auditor reporting.”

    As the main priority for 2012–2014, the IAASB’s Strategy and Work Program identifies the enhancement of auditor reporting standards, a topic that the IAASB will again deliberate intensively at its June 2012 meeting in Edinburgh. The strategy is in keeping with the IAASB’s commitment to continue work on a number of its key initiatives related to audit quality, disclosures, review engagements, and assurance engagements, including assurance on greenhouse gas statements. In addition, the IAASB will continue to monitor the adoption and implementation of ISAs globally and focus on standards and initiatives relevant to small- and medium-sized entities. It will also explore appropriate actions stemming from the global financial crisis relating to banking and fair values.

    “Constructive dialogue and collaboration with others will be critical to identifying areas for innovation and improvement and to finding solutions to global issues, both now and in the future,” explained James Gunn, IAASB technical director. “The IAASB also recognizes its responsibility to identify matters within its mandate that have significant longer-term implications and to ensure that assurance and related services are relevant and responsive to the public interest, for example in emerging areas like integrated reporting. I am confident that the IAASB’s strategy and planned initiatives will assist it in fulfilling this responsibility.”

    For additional information on the IAASB’s current projects and the current project timetable, visit the IAASB’s project pages on its website.

    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 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. IFAC is comprised of 167 members and associates in 127 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

     

     

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  • IAASB Strategy and Work Program, 2012–2014

    This Strategy and Work Program sets the direction and priorities for the activities of the IAASB for the three-year period from January 2012 to December 2014, set within the stated objective and strategic initiatives of the IAASB’s Terms of Reference. It responds to significant developments in the environment in which audit, other assurance and related services are performed and in which standards for such services are set.

    IAASB
    English

  • IAASB Releases 2011 Annual Report - Foundations for the Future

    New York, New York English

    The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today released its 2011 Annual Report, Foundations for the Future.

    The annual report highlights the IAASB’s work in the public interest to strengthen audits globally and build robust standards for audit, assurance and related services, and its commitment to enhance the communicative value and relevance of auditor reporting.

    The report covers new and enhanced international standards issued by the IAASB, and draws attention to the IAASB’s new guidance material and implementation support.  It also spotlights IAASB’s continual outreach activities, efforts to maintain strong platforms for dialogue with stakeholders, and to promote the adoption and effective implementation of the clarified International Standards on Auditing (ISAs).

    “In 2011, the IAASB continued building on the clarified ISAs. It has explored many new and challenging auditing topics, from auditor reporting and financial statement disclosures to new pronouncements on auditing financial instruments and using the work of internal audit functions.  Our work has been propelled by the global financial crisis and the renewed importance of strong financial infrastructures to support financial stability,” said IAASB chairman Prof. Arnold Schilder. “Our efforts have also extended to new standards supporting other assurance and related services engagements, particularly those of relevance to practitioners serving the needs of smaller entities. I am pleased how proactive the board has been in helping to address a number of the important issues facing the profession and its many stakeholders today, while laying the foundation for further progress in the future,” added Schilder.

    The annual report details over 100 outreach activities undertaken during 2011, including liaisons with regulators and investor groups whose input is critical to the future of auditing. It includes a report from Prof. Linda de Beer, the chairman of the IAASB Consultative Advisory Group (CAG), which outlines the work of the CAG in providing input to the IAASB.

    The 2011 IAASB annual report can be downloaded 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 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. IFAC is comprised of 167 members and associates in 127 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

     

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  • IAASB Strengthens Standard on Using the Work of Internal Auditors

    New York, New York English

    Many entities establish internal audit functions as part of their internal control, risk management, and governance structures; effective coordination and communication between the external and internal auditors can contribute positively to the external audit. Recognizing this, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today released International Standard on Auditing (ISA) 610 (Revised), Using the Work of Internal Auditors, which addresses the external auditor’s responsibilities if using the work of an internal audit function in obtaining audit evidence.

    “Internal auditing standards and practices have continued to develop, as has the relationship between external and internal auditors. Equally, the expectations on the external auditor continue to evolve, particularly with recent heightened emphasis on audit quality and accountability,” stated Prof. Arnold Schilder, IAASB chairman. “Our standards must also evolve to take account of these changes. Our revision of this standard involved extensive input from, and liaison with, the regulatory community, which we believe has helped enhance the quality of the final standard.”

    The revised standard is aimed at enhancing the external auditor’s performance by providing a more robust framework for evaluating and using the work of an entity’s internal audit function. Related changes have also been made to ISA 315 (Revised), Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement through Understanding the Entity and Its Environment, to explain how the internal audit function and its findings can usefully inform the external auditor’s risk assessments.

    “The external auditor may be able to use the work of a robust internal audit function. Nevertheless, the external auditor has sole responsibility for the audit opinion expressed, and that responsibility is not reduced by the external auditor’s use of the work of the internal audit function,” notes James Gunn, IAASB technical director. “This revised ISA defines the conditions that are necessary for the external auditor to be able to use the work of internal auditors, including ensuring that the internal audit function’s work is adequate for the audit, and preventing overuse or undue use of such work.”

    Both ISA 610 (Revised) and ISA 315 (Revised) are effective for audits of financial statements for periods ending on or after December 15, 2013.

    Using Internal Auditors to Provide Direct Assistance
    In revising ISA 610, the IAASB also agreed on requirements and guidance that specify the conditions and establish responsibilities of the external auditor if the external auditor intends to use internal auditors to provide direct assistance during the audit.

    The IAASB has engaged closely with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) in relation to this matter. While the IAASB has concluded its deliberations on the requirements addressing direct assistance, it intends to incorporate such material in ISA 610 (Revised) only after the IESBA concludes its deliberations on its February 2012 exposure draft of proposed changes to the definition of “engagement team” in the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (IESBA Code). The IESBA exposure draft proposes to resolve a perceived inconsistency between the ISAs and the IESBA Code regarding the ability of external auditors to use internal auditors to provide direct assistance.

    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 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. IFAC is comprised of 167 members and associates in 127 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

     

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