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.

Today, the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) published a revised building blocks approach to reporting sustainability information—enhancing its previously issued roadmap, The Way Forward. IFAC hopes to foster discussion on how this approach can deliver a global system for consistent, comparable, and assurable sustainability-related information that best meets the needs of investors and other stakeholders.

IFAC CEO Kevin Dancey said, “As the IFRS Foundation continues to consider establishing a new International Sustainability Standards Board and as jurisdiction-specific initiatives progress, IFAC is lending its voice to clarify how components can best fit together to meet the needs of all stakeholders. The IFRS initiative—as well as jurisdiction-specific initiatives—should build on what already exists, help create or contribute to a global system, and accommodate different views of what information stakeholders require. The building blocks approach makes this possible.”

IFAC supports a new standard-setting board under the IFRS Foundation that can lead to the coordination and harmonization of reporting and provide a baseline of requirements addressing sustainability information that is material to enterprise value. The IFRS Foundation has proposed amendments to the Constitution of the Foundation as it continues to consider establishing a new board. IFAC encourages its member organizations to submit comments to this IFRS Foundation consultation.

IFAC welcomes feedback on the building blocks approach and plans to engage with stakeholders at future IFAC events addressing the broader journey to an enhanced corporate reporting world.

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.

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 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.

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.

IFAC supports steps announced today by the IFRS Foundation in its ongoing consideration of whether to establish a new Sustainability Standards Board (SSB) alongside the IASB and under the existing governance structure of the IFRS Foundation. IFAC welcomes the engagement of IOSCO in this important initiative, as outlined in the IFRS Trustee statement as well as in IOSCO’s February 24 media release.

We agree with the Trustees’ strategic views that the new SSB should focus on information material to decisions of investors and other providers of capital and that the new board would initially focus its efforts on climate-related reporting, while also working toward meeting the information needs of investors on other ESG (environmental, social and governance) matters.

Likewise, we agree that a building blocks approach facilitates both the use of existing standards and frameworks (including TCFD) and the flexibility for coordination on reporting requirements that capture wider sustainability impacts, as IFAC articulated in its Way Forward roadmap.

IFAC CEO Kevin Dancey said, “IFAC continues to support the ongoing rationalization of a coherent global system. The IFRS Foundation is uniquely qualified and positioned to lead here, including engagement with existing sustainability-related initiatives and standard setters from key jurisdictions. IFAC looks forward to providing input to the forthcoming IFRS Foundation Constitution consultation and encourages our member bodies and stakeholders to take an active interest in these next steps.”

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.

The Technology Working Group of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today released non-authoritative support material to help auditors address the risk of overreliance on technology, whether it arises from using automated tools and techniques or from using information produced by an entity’s systems.  

The publication does not amend or override the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), the texts of which alone are authoritative. Reading the publication is not a substitute for reading the ISAs.

Together with ICAEW, The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) today released the fifth installment in its Anti-Money Laundering: The Basics educational series: Installment 5: Tax Advice.  

The publication is part of a 6-month short series helping accountants enhance their understanding of how money laundering works, the risks they face, and what they can do to mitigate these risks and make a positive contribution to the public interest. Installment five examines tax advice and the multiple ways in which tax services may be vulnerable to money laundering.

The installment series, with its focus on accessibility and ease of use, will be a resource for Small and Medium Practices (SMPs,) and accountants less familiar with AML, while also providing guidance for those looking for a quick refresher or reference.

Anti-Money Laundering: The Basics is featured on both the IFAC (landing page) and ICAEW websites and available for download for free. To be globally relevant, the series uses the risk-based approach of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) -- the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog -- as a starting point. 

For more information about IFAC, visit www.ifac.org.

For more information about ICAEW, visit https://www.icaew.com/.