The IAASB in collaboration with IFAC invite you to join our quality management webinar series on June 24, July 29, and August 5 and 18 on Zoom with livestreaming on the IAASB’s YouTube channel. The webinars will take a deep dive into aspects of the IAASB’s International Standard on Quality Management 1, Quality Management for Firms that Perform Audits or Reviews of Financial Statements, or Other Assurance or Related Services Engagements.

ISQM 1 is part of the IAASB’s suite of quality management standards, issued in late 2020. The standards strengthen and modernize how firms approach quality management. They also mark an evolution from a traditional, more linear approach for quality control to an integrated quality management approach.

The webinars will be held in English and will be available on the IAASB’s YouTube Channel following the session. Participants joining live via Zoom will be able to submit questions.

• Webinar One: All You Need to Know about the Firm’s Risk Assessment Process
  • June 24, 11 am–12 pm GMT
  • Featuring IAASB members Julie Corden and Chun Wee Chiew and IAASB Deputy Director Natalie Klonaridis
  • Register Now
• Webinar Two: Resources: Expectations for Firms and Engagement Partners
  • July 29, 11 am–12 pm GMT
  • Featuring IAASB members Josephine Jackson and Sue Almond and IAASB Deputy Director Natalie Klonaridis
  • Discussion will include the linkage between ISQM 1 and  International Standard on Auditing 220 (Revised), Quality Management for an Audit of Financial Statements
  • Register Now
• Webinar Three: What’s New for Firms’ Monitoring and Remediation Processes
  • August 5, 11 am–12 pm GMT
  • Featuring IAASB member Chun Wee Chiew,  IAASB technical advisor Denise Weber, and IAASB Deputy Director Natalie Klonaridis
  • Register Now
• Webinar Four: Bringing it All Together: Exploring all the Components of a Quality Management System
  • August 18, 11 am–12 pm GMT
  • Featuring IAASB members Julie Corden and Sachiko Kai and IAASB Deputy Director Natalie Klonaridis
  • Register Now

This webinar series is part of the IAASB’s implementation support efforts. Looking for additional resources on the suite of quality management standards? Check out the IAASB’s dedicated web page: iaasb.org/quality-management

The IAASB is consulting on its Work Plan for 2022–2023 through an online survey. Guided by its strategic objectives for 2020-2023, the IAASB’s current—and future—work is tailored to serve the public interest. The survey is designed to help the IAASB develop its Work Plan for 2022–2023 through understanding what is important to its stakeholders.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today issued a survey on its Work Plan for 2022–2023. Guided by its strategic objectives for 2020-2023, the IAASB’s current—and future—work is tailored to serve the public interest. The survey is designed to help the IAASB develop its Work Plan for 2022–2023 through understanding what is important to its stakeholders.

The survey asks respondents for their views on the IAASB’s ongoing projects and possible future topic priorities. It will be open until Thursday, August 5, 2021. Respondents must submit their views using our survey online tool.

To help stakeholders thoughtfully consider and respond, and conduct any appropriate outreach to consolidate feedback, a Word version of the survey is available on the IAASB website to share questions and prepare responses. The IAASB and this work plan survey will benefit from the new Framework for Activities, developed to provide clearer criteria and increased transparency for project selection and prioritization.

After consultations with the Public Interest Oversight Board, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) has published a revised detailed work plan that supersedes the work plan published on February 1, 2021.

The IAASB revised the work plan to account for the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on both board operations and stakeholders’ capacity to implement new standards and participate in the IAASB’s due process. Facing the reality of reduced plenary time resulting from remote plenary meetings throughout the remainder of the calendar year, the IAASB is prioritizing the on-time completion of two significant public interest documents—the finalization of ISA 600 (Revised) on Group Audits (expected after the December 2021 IAASB meeting) and a proposed standard for Audits of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities for public consultation (expected after the June 2021 IAASB meeting).

Other updates include that the IAASB will now discuss project proposals for Fraud and Going Concern in September 2021 and March 2022, respectively. The shift in the dates of the project proposals should not materially impact the work timelines for those two projects. The revised work plan also includes an exposure draft for ISA 500 (Audit Evidence) in September 2022.

The detailed quarterly forward work plan sets out the expected progression of the IAASB’s projects for the IAASB’s proposed Work Plan for 2022‒2023 to be approved at the IAASB’s December 2021 meeting, and is subject to approval by the Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB) in the first quarter of 2022. If necessary, an updated version of the work plan table will be published on the IAASB website, subsequent to these meetings.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today published its new Framework for Activities. The Framework describes the IAASB’s operating processes and procedures for advancing standard setting and other related activities.

The IAASB developed the Framework to support a more agile standard-setting process. The Framework also provides additional public transparency around the IAASB’s prioritization activities, beyond the formally approved due process. The Framework sets out the different components within the IAASB’s due process for advancing topics onto and through the IAASB’s work plan.

The Framework describes the IAASB’s operating processes and procedures for advancing standard-setting and other related activities. By being more deliberate and evidence-based, the IAASB will be more responsive to the key public interest challenges in audit and assurance. The Framework sets out the following key components:

• Information gathering and research activities;
• Revising and developing standards;
• Narrow scope maintenance of standards; and
• Activities to support standards’ implementation.

A new video on the suite of quality management standards is now available from the IAASB. It addresses considerations for firms when preparing to implement the standards, such as what may be retained from current systems, the time and resources needed, the impact on the firm as a whole, and various ways to approach implementation. The video emphasizes the need for firms to start early and prepare for implementation.

The IAASB suite of new and revised quality management standards was released in December 2020; they will become effective on December 15, 2022.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today published its Public Report detailing its progress to support the public interest between July 2019 and December 2020. During this 18-month period, the IAASB completed five major standards aimed at enhancing audit and assurance quality, adopted a four-year strategy focused on the public interest, and established a new work plan focused on emerging issues. The IAASB also responded to a new environment sparked by the global pandemic by issuing guidance and engaging with a broad range of stakeholders in order to sustain trust in audit and assurance.

The Public Report showcases the IAASB’s efforts to be a responsive, agile and innovative standard setter, closely connected with its stakeholders. The report highlights completed and in progress standard-setting projects, other new initiatives to respond to stakeholder needs, and our efforts to improve the agility of the standard-setting process. The report also includes reflections from IAASB Chair Tom Seidenstein on his first 18 months in this role.

Marking a significant step forward in supporting assurance for non-financial reporting, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today published Non-Authoritative Guidance on Applying ISAE 3000 (Revised) to Extended External Reporting (EER) Assurance Engagements.

The Guidance responds to ten key stakeholder-identified challenges commonly encountered in applying International Standard on Assurance Engagements 3000 (Revised), Assurance Engagements Other than Audits or Reviews of Historical Financial Information. The guidance promotes consistent high-quality application of ISAE 3000 (Revised) in extended external reporting assurance engagements to:

• strengthen the influence of such engagements on the quality of extended external reporting;
• enhance trust in the resulting assurance reports; and
• increase the credibility of extended external reports so that they can be trusted and relied upon by their intended users.

“The IAASB is not a newcomer to assurance of what is commonly referred to as non-financial information reporting. For years, we have been active in this area as the landscape has continued to evolve,” according to IAASB Chair Tom Seidenstein. “Together with ISAE 3000 (Revised) and ISAE 3410, Assurance Engagements on Greenhouse Gas Statements, this guidance forms a strong package that will help enhance confidence in assurance reports and improve their reliability, including enabling practitioners to respond to new reporting regimes. We will continue to closely monitor current global developments to establish a coherent set of sustainability reporting standards, and are prepared to act to enhance our standards, frameworks and guidance to support progress.”

The Guidance addresses a number of overarching matters, including applying appropriate competence and capabilities, exercising professional skepticism and professional judgement, and the preconditions for an assurance engagement, as well as more specific technical matters. The Guidance also provides further explanation and examples to better understand the distinction between limited assurance and reasonable assurance engagements.

The IAASB expresses its sincere appreciation for the collaboration and funding provided by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

Extended External Reporting
Extended external reporting encapsulates many different forms of reporting, including but not limited to, sustainability or environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting, integrated reporting, reporting on corporate social responsibility, greenhouse gas statements, and service performance reporting in the public sector. These kinds of extended reporting are growing in frequency and importance, and address matters that are becoming increasingly critical to decision-making by investors and other users.

Additional Support Material
Two additional items of non-authoritative support material have also been published. These are not integral to the Guidance—the Guidance can be used without the need to refer to these materials but they are available as additional resources should practitioners wish to refer to them: (1) Credibility and Trust Model Relating to EER Reporting, and (2) Illustrative Examples of Selected Aspects of EER Assurance Engagements. The latter includes examples that cover a broad range of reporting frameworks.

About the IAASB
The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board 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). For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please go to permissions or contact permissions@ifac.org.