Commenting on Mr. Wolfe’s appointment, Gabriela Figueiredo Dias and Tom Seidenstein, IESBA and IAASB Chairs, respectively, said: “We are delighted to welcome Mr. Wolfe as the new Chair of the Monitoring Group. His extensive experience in regulatory oversight roles and his new role as Acting Chief Accountant of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will bring invaluable perspective and expertise to this important position.
“The Monitoring Group plays a crucial role in advancing the public interest in international standard setting. We are confident that under Mr. Wolfe's leadership, the Monitoring Group will continue to promote high-quality international audit, assurance, ethics, and independence standards, benefiting investors and other stakeholders in global capital markets.
“We look forward to working closely with Mr. Wolfe, and continuing to partner with the Monitoring Group. Together, we will strive to ensure that our standards remain relevant and aligned with evolving international practices.
“Congratulations, Mr. Wolfe, on this new role. We wish you great success.”
The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today released a new first-time implementation guide for the ISA for LCE—the standalone global auditing standard designed specifically for audits of financial statements of smaller and less complex entities (LCE). The guide provides an overview of the standard’s concepts, structure, and format. It offers step-by-step insights into each Part of the standard with examples and comparisons to ISAs, equipping practitioners with the tools to effectively implement the ISA for LCE.
Available on the IAASB website, the guide complements previously released resources, including an adoption guide, supplementary guidance on the authority of the standard and on auditor reporting, videos, and webinars. Together, these materials form a comprehensive toolkit to support effective implementation.
This guidance does not amend or override the authoritative text of the ISA for LCE but serves as a valuable resource to facilitate understanding and application. Explore the guide and additional resources at: www.iaasb.org/ISAforLCE.
About the ISA for LCE Built on the foundation of the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), theInternational Standard on Auditing for Audits of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities, or the ISA for LCE, is proportionate and tailored to the specific needs of audits of less complex entities. Its streamlined approach enhances usability for practitioners performing these engagements.
The Public Interest Oversight Board’s (PIOB) Standard-Setting Boards Nominations Committee is now accepting applications for an upcoming vacancy on the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA), with the term beginning January 1, 2026. The application window remains open until May 11, 2025.
Serving as a member of the IESBA is a unique opportunity for experienced professionals from diverse backgrounds to help shape global ethics standards for the accountancy profession in the public interest. The PIOB welcomes applications from individuals across all sectors, including investors, corporate governance experts, regulators, national standard setters, audit practitioners, professional accountancy organizations, public sector representatives, and academia. A parallel invitation for applications has been issued for the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), with the same application deadline of May 11, 2025.
Joining the IESBA offers professionals a platform to influence the development of globally recognized ethics standards that support trust, integrity, and confidence in the accountancy profession and global financial markets. Board members play a vital role in strengthening ethical practices in the public interest.
For more details on the nomination process for IESBA, visit the PIOB’s nominations web page or contact SSBNominations@ipiob.org.
The Public Interest Oversight Board’s (PIOB) Standard-Setting Boards Nominations Committee is now accepting applications for an upcoming vacancy on the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), with the term beginning January 1, 2026. The application window remains open until May 11, 2025.
Serving as a member of the IAASB is a unique opportunity for experienced professionals from diverse backgrounds to help shape global audit, assurance, and related standards in the public interest. The PIOB welcomes applications from individuals across all sectors, including investors, corporate governance experts, regulators, national standard setters, audit practitioners, professional accountancy organizations, public sector representatives, and academia. A parallel invitation for applications has been issued for the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA), with the same application deadline of May 11, 2025.
Joining the IAASB offers professionals a platform to influence the development of high-quality standards that support trust and confidence in financial reporting worldwide. Board members play a vital role in strengthening global financial markets and economies through their contributions to international standard setting.
This consultation sets out the IAASB’s final position, rationale, and pathway to broader differential requirements relating to the definitions of listed and public interest entities in the International Standards on Quality Management (ISQMs) and International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). It includes an Invitation to Comment for stakeholders to share observations that might be relevant to the IAASB prior to finalizing the narrow scope amendments to the ISQMs and ISAs, and to answer a few specific questions about related forward-looking matters.
The IAASB’s final position is different from the position that was presented in the Exposure Draft of the IAASB PIE Track 2 Project due to a divergence issue between the IAASB PIE proposals and the IESBA PIE Revisions. The IAASB’s Post-Exposure Consultation provides stakeholders the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the identified divergence issue and how this has informed the IAASB as it advanced the IAASB PIE proposals, including the IAASB’s rationale in arriving at its final position.
The IAASB remains committed to the key elements of its original proposals that were presented in the Exposure Draft of the PIE Track 2 Project. Therefore, the IAASB has agreed to revisit at a future date the decision to adopt the definition of PIE in the IESBA Code (adapted as necessary for the ISQMs and ISAs) and extending differential requirements to apply to audits of PIEs.
International auditors have been given new guidance on what to check when assessing firms' environmental, social and governance claims - and how - as part of efforts to increase rigour and consistency, the chair of the industry's global ethics watchdog told Reuters. Continue reading at Reuters.com.
The IAASB is pleased to contribute to the new book, For the World’s Profit: How Business Can Support Sustainable Development, published by The Brookings Institute. IAASB Chair Tom Seidenstein and Former Board Member Warren Maroun co-authored a chapter on the rollout of International Standard on Sustainability Assurance (ISSA) 5000 and the evolving assurance ecosystem.
This volume explores key debates shaping the future of business and sustainability, including value creation, risk management, and corporate accountability. The IAASB’s contribution highlights the importance of high-quality assurance for sustainability reporting and the global adoption of ISSA 5000, ensuring transparency, credibility, and trust in sustainability-related information.
The potential for an internationally agreed baseline on which to build the sustainability reporting ecosystem is within reach, says IAASB Chair Tom Seidenstein, but collaboration is key.
The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) have formalized plans to collaborate, reinforcing a shared commitment to high-quality sustainability assurance. This partnership aims to enhance trust in corporate sustainability disclosures by establishing a strong global framework for assurance.
In its letter of intent, IAF highlighted its alignment with the IAASB’s goal of promoting consistency and quality in assurance practices worldwide. A key aspect of this collaboration includes IAF’s commitment to supporting the use of the IAASB’s International Standard on Sustainability Assurance 5000, in accredited verification activities where appropriate. Additionally, IAF will engage with the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) to seek agreement on intellectual property considerations related to referencing IAASB standards.
IAASB Chair Tom Seidenstein welcomed IAF’s proposals, emphasizing the importance of this collaboration in strengthening global sustainability assurance. He highlighted ISSA 5000 as a global baseline for assurance engagements on general-purpose reported sustainability information and underscored the broader opportunity to advance a comprehensive suite of engagement performance, quality management, and ethics and independence standards for use by all sustainability assurance practitioners. Mr. Seidenstein expressed enthusiasm for this partnership, noting that it will help ensure consistency and quality in sustainability assurance engagements in the public interest and reduce the risk of fragmentation. The IAASB looks forward to supporting discussions between IAF and IFAC regarding the use of ISSA 5000 and other IAASB standards for accreditation purposes.
“This collaboration signifies our shared commitment to enhancing the reliability of sustainability disclosures, which are essential for building trust with stakeholders and promoting sustainable practices worldwide,” said Emanuele Riva, IAF Chair. “We recognize the value of IAASB standards, which integrate well and complement the verification activities on ESG issues that accredited conformity assessment bodies have been carrying out for years, even in regulated areas. We look forward to working with IAASB to further integrate IAASB standards into our accredited verification activities, reinforcing our ongoing commitment to sustainability assurance.”
Japanese Institute of Certified Public AccountantsEnglish
From January 21 to 24, 2025, Tom Seidenstein, IAASB Chair and Josephine Jackson, IAASB Vice-Chair visited Japan. Tetsuya Mogi, JICPA Chairman and President and Takako Fujimoto, JICPA Deputy President interviewed with Mr. Seidenstein and Ms. Jackson.
Mr. Mogi, JICPA Chairman and President: Firstly, I would like to talk about International Standard on Sustainability Assurance 5000 "General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements" (ISSA 5000), which was published in November 2024. We believe the publication of ISSA 5000 is a great milestone for the IAASB as well as for stakeholders across the globe. Tom, could you please briefly introduce the key features of ISSA 5000?
Continue reading the article on the JICPA website in English or Japanese.
Interview with IAASB Chair Tom Seidenstein and Vice-Chair Josephine Jackson
