Ms. Akiko has been the Technical Director of the Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants (JICPA) since 2024. She previously worked for Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu in Japan.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) has developed an approach for maintaining its auditing standard for smaller and less complex entities, known as the International Standard on Auditing for Audits of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities (the ISA for LCE).

The approach is detailed in an Approach Statement that promotes transparency and execution consistency. It establishes a mechanism for updating the ISA for LCE that emphasizes that revisions to the ISA for LCE should be:

• Relevant in the context of the typical nature and circumstances of an audit of a less complex entity; and
• Aligned, in a proportionate manner, with the core requirements and concepts of the International Standards on Auditing.

The Approach Statement sets out the context, purpose, process, responsibilities, outputs, and timing for maintaining the ISA for LCE. It also describes the steps the IAASB will follow when developing revisions to the ISA for LCE in response to new or revised auditing standards.

To learn more about the maintenance of the ISA for LCE, visit www.iaasb.org/ISAforLCE.

About the IAASB
The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board develops auditing, assurance, related services, and quality management standards and guidance in the public interest that support consistent performance of quality engagements. Along with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants, the IAASB is part of the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit. The Public Interest Oversight Board oversees IAASB and IESBA activities and the public interest responsiveness of the standards. For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please visit Permissions.

Dan has served as a consultant to the IAASB since 2016, working with the technical staff on various projects and activities. He currently is involved with the revision of ISRE 2410 and the post-implementation review of ISA 540 (Revised). Past projects included auditor reporting, accounting estimates, group audits and serving as the co-lead on sustainability assurance.

Dan has been actively involved in the development of auditing and assurance standards in the United States and globally since 2001. He was a member of the IAASB from 2009-2014, including serving as Deputy Chair from 2012-2014. He was a partner at Ernst & Young prior to his retirement in December 2014 following a 40-year career with the firm. He was the firm’s Global Director of Assurance Standards, Methodology and Implementation from 2009-2012, having previously served in a similar capacity in the Americas. Dan also has many years of experience in auditing listed and private companies in the manufacturing, consumer products, and financial services sectors, as well as entrepreneurial and venture-capital-backed businesses in the software and medical technology sectors.

Dan is a member of the AICPA and also served on the AICPA’s Auditing Standards Board from 2004-2006 and from 2016-2018. He has a B.S. degree in accounting from Saint John’s University in Minnesota and resides in Fort Myers, Florida.

James Ferris joined the IAASB in January 2026. He is current Director for Audit Policy at the UK Financial Reporting Council. Mr. Ferris was also Chair of the International Forum of Independent Audit Regulators (IFIAR) Standards Coordination Working Group until December 2025.

Prior to joining the FRC in 2015, Mr. Ferris was a Financial Audit Director at the UK’s National Audit Office.

Mr. Ferris is a qualified Chartered Accountant.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) has published narrow-scope amendments to its standards arising from the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ (IESBA) Using the Work of an External Expert project.

These amendments respond to the IESBA’s recently approved revisions to its International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards), which introduced, among other provisions, explicit ethical requirements for using the work of external experts in audit, assurance, and non-assurance engagements. The IAASB’s updates reflect ongoing collaboration and coordination between the IAASB and IESBA and help to maintain interoperability between the IAASB standards and the IESBA Code.

The targeted amendments affect the following IAASB standards:

• ISA 620, Using the Work of an Auditor’s Expert
• ISRE 2400 (Revised), Engagements to Review Historical Financial Statements
• ISAE 3000 (Revised), Assurance Engagements Other than Audits or Reviews of Historical Financial Information
• ISRS 4400 (Revised), Agreed-upon Procedures Engagements

To learn more and access the amendments and Basis for Conclusions, visit the IAASB website.

About the IAASB
The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board develops auditing, assurance, related services, and quality management standards and guidance in the public interest that support consistent performance of quality engagements. Along with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants, the IAASB is part of the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit. The Public Interest Oversight Board oversees IAASB and IESBA activities and the public interest responsiveness of the standards. For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please visit Permissions.

These amendments respond to the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ recently approved revisions to its International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards), which introduced, among other provisions, explicit ethical requirements for using the work of external experts in audit, assurance, and non-assurance engagements.

In June 2025, the IAASB launched the Technology Quality Management Workstream. This Workstream aims to:

The IAASB is undertaking a maintenance project to revise the International Standard on Auditing for Audis of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities (the ISA for LCE), as a result of the following IAASB projects:

Please contact IDW directly for reproduction of the German translation of ISSA 5000. 

Expected publication Date: 2025-12-31