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ISA 540 (Revised), Auditing Accounting Estimates and Related Disclosures replacing ISA 540, Auditing Accounting Estimates, Including Fair Value Accounting Estimates, and Related Disclosures. The handbook also includes conforming and consequential amendments from ISA 540 to other standards, with the exception of International Auditing Practice Note 1000, which will be updated for changes to ISA 540 (Revised), and ISA 315 (Revised 2019) in the 2021 IAASB Handbook. ISA 540 (Revised) is effective for audits of financial statements for periods beginning on or after December 15, 2019.
Changes for the conforming amendments arising from the restructured International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, issued by the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants, have been made in Volume 1 and 2 of the 2020 IAASB Handbook.
The following standards, which are not yet effective, have been included in the back of Volume 1 and 2:
ISA 315 (Revised 2019), Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement
Conforming and Consequential Amendments to Other ISAs Arising from ISA 315 (Revised 2019)
International Standard on Quality Management (ISQM) 1, Quality Management for Firms that Perform Audits or Reviews of Financial Statements, or Other Assurance or Related Services Engagements
ISQM 2, Engagement Quality Reviews
ISA 220 (Revised), Quality Management for an Audit of Financial Statements
Conforming and Consequential Amendments to Other ISAs Arising from the Quality Management Projects
Coming Soon: New Online Platform for Digital Access
The first fully digital IAASB handbook will be available on a new web application, e-International Standards (eIS) soon. The platform is optimized for users through search functions, resources and references, and easy navigation. Follow the IAASB on Twitter and LinkedIn or register and subscribe via the IAASB website for launch details and announcements.
Today, the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) published a framework for implementing global sustainability standards at the local level, focusing on the building blocks approach published in May 2021. IFAC believes that jurisdictions must begin examining how global standards that the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) intends to develop, starting with climate, can fit together with sustainability-related reporting requirements set at the jurisdictional level.
“As work to establish the ISSB advances, PAOs, firms, and professional accountants in business should be engaging now with their policymakers to consider what mechanisms may need to be established to make forthcoming reporting requirements effective in their jurisdiction,” said IFAC CEO Kevin Dancey. “IFAC’s framework sets out various pathways for local implementation of the IFRS initiative that can all lead to the global and harmonized corporate reporting system we need for investors, capital markets, and stakeholders at large.”
IOSCO’s Sustainability-related Issuer Disclosures report proposes a timeline for the ongoing work of the IFRS Foundation–with the ISSB climate standard expected to be completed by June 2022. Jurisdictions that begin engaging with policymakers now will be able to capitalize on the forthcoming standards–and therefore serve the public interest–as soon as they are finalized.
IFAC urges its member organizations to continue their support for the IFRS initiative, to engage now with local policymakers, and to provide feedback on the framework for making global sustainability standards local.
Read more about IFAC’s support for global sustainability-related standards here.
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 180 members and associates in 135 countries and jurisdictions, representing more than 3 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.
IFAC Releases Practical Framework for Deploying Global Standards at Local Level
“Mapping” documents to help users navigate between existing, equivalent International Standards on Auditing and the requirements in the newly proposed International Standard on Auditing for Less Complex Entities (ISA for LCE).
The IAASB strongly encourages all interested stakeholders to provide their feedback on the proposed standard by January 31, 2022. The standard is relevant to users of financial statements, owners, management and those charged with governance of entities, preparers of financial statements, legislative or regulatory authorities, relevant local bodies with standard-setting authority, professional accountancy organizations, academics, regulators and audit oversight bodies, and auditors and audit firms, among others.
IFAC calls on the G20 to focus on two key actions—where the global accountancy profession is a strongly committed partner—that will move the needle on sustainability, inclusivity, and prosperity.
IFAC’s new framework for implementing global sustainability standards set by an International Sustainability Standards Board builds on the previously issued Building Blocks Approach. This framework examines how existing mechanisms already in place for adopting IFRS Standards used in financial reporting may be appropriate or adapted for sustainability-related reporting.
In preparation of its 3rd Research Forum, which will be co-hosted by Comparative International Governmental Accounting Research Network (CIGAR) at its June 2022 conference, the IPSASB is calling for scholarly contributions from the academic community.
Coordinated through the Academic Advisory Group, which includes independent scholars from all parts of the world, as well as the IPSASB members who have an academic background, IPSASB is offering a grant of USD $1,500 for selected scholarly papers submitted covering three research areas with up to six grants available in total.
The research areas of interest are:
Research Area 1: Research on Practical IPSAS Implementation Challenges
Differential Reporting
Discount Rates
Research Area 2: Research on Adoption and Implementation of Specific IPSAS
IPSAS 31, Intangible Assets
IPSAS 33, First-Time Adoption of Accrual Basis IPSAS
Research Area 3: Broad Future Focused Research
Climate Change and Public Sector Financial Reporting Related to Sustainability
Financial Reporting Impacts of Digitization in the Public Sector
The grant recipients, as well as other scholars, will present the first drafts of their full papers at the 2022 Research Forum (date TBD). For more information, see the the IPSASB’s Call for Papers.
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board® (IPSASB®) works to improve public sector financial reporting worldwide through the development of IPSAS®, international accrual-based accounting standards, for use by governments and other public sector entities around the world.
