The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today released its plan for a post-implementation review of the clarified International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). In 2009 the IAASB concluded its five-year Clarity project to redraft and revise the ISAs. The post-implementation review is the second phase of the IAASB’s efforts to monitor the implementation of these standards. The review is focused on whether the clarified ISAs are being consistently understood and implemented in a way that achieves the IAASB’s goals in revising and redrafting them.

“With extensive uptake of the clarified ISAs throughout the world, in already more than seventy-five countries, now is the time to gain a deeper understanding of how the clarified ISAs are being used and implemented,” said Prof. Arnold Schilder, Chairman of the IAASB. “When this review is completed in 2013, the IAASB will be better able to assess whether there is need for further changes to the ISAs. Timely feedback on the clarified ISAs from a variety of stakeholders is therefore essential for this purpose and the IAASB’s objective of ensuring that its standards continue to be of the highest quality.”

Features of the post-implementation review, which involves gathering information about the use of the clarified ISAs during 2012, are set out in the IAASB’s Plan for a Post-Implementation Review of the Clarified International Standards on Auditing.

Recognizing the broad range of stakeholders that may be interested in providing feedback to the IAASB about the clarified ISAs and their implementation, the IAASB encourages and welcomes input from all interested parties for the purpose of the review.

How to Comment

To access the plan and details on how to provide input, visit the IAASB’s website. Input for the purpose of the review is requested by no later than October 31, 2012.

About the IAASB
The IAASB 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 IFAC.

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 164 members and associates in 125 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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This plan is the second phase of the IAASB’s efforts to monitor the implementation of clarified ISAs. The review is focused on whether these standards are being consistently understood and implemented in a way that achieves the IAASB’s goals in revising and redrafting them. Recognizing the broad range of stakeholders that may be interested in providing feedback to the IAASB about the clarified ISAs and their implementation, the IAASB encourages and welcomes input from all interested parties for the purpose of the review.

Objective

To review the appropriateness of the content of the IAPSs and determine whether they should be withdrawn or revised and the authority of IAPSs and any other implementation guidance that the IAASB may develop.

Background

Six IAPSs are currently effective:

Objective

To develop guidance for auditors dealing with complex financial instruments.

Wolfgang Böhm is Technical Director Assurance Standards, Director International Affairs, at the Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer (IDW) in Germany. Among other roles, Mr. Böhm supports the Assurance Board of the IDW, and other IDW committees and working groups, in their development of IDW assurance and related services pronouncements, including the adoption of International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) into German auditing standards and quality control over the translation of ISAs.

He has also served on numerous IAASB/IAPC subcommittees, working groups, and task forces over the last 22 years and previously served as a technical advisor for the International Accounting Education Standards Board.

Mr. Böhm is a member of, and for most of the last decade was also secretary to, the Steering Group (the governing body) of the Common Content Project, which seeks to harmonize the education of professional accountants within the EU and internationally.

Prior to joining the IDW, Mr. Böhm worked for 14 years in primarily small- and mid-sized accounting firms in Canada and Germany, largely in assurance and related services. He obtained his B.Com. degree from the University of British Columbia (Canada), is qualified as a Chartered Professional Accountant in Canada, as a Chartered Accountant in the UK, and as a Certified Public Accountant in the US.

This report highlights the progress made to date and key findings from the first phase (Pre-Implementation Monitoring) of a two-phase initiative to evaluate whether the IAASB needs to make further changes to the 36 clarified International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) and clarified International Standard on Quality Control (ISQC) 1, which became effective January 15, 2009. 

Phase 1 began in June 2009 with the an information-gathering exercise to learn about the experiences of practitioners in preparing to implement the clarified ISAs.

Susan Jones is the Director, Global Services Center, Audit Methodology and Implementation at KPMG LLP.  She works to ensure that the auditing standards are appropriately incorporated into the firm’s audit methodology.

Prior to KPMG, Ms. Jones worked for Grant Thornton, where she was the National Partner in Charge – Auditing Standards, and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) as the Director – International. While with the AICPA, Ms. Jones served on the staff of the Auditing Standard Board (ASB) and was seconded to IFAC to serve on the staff of the International Auditing Practices Committee (now the IAASB).

Ms. Jones also represented Grant Thornton as a member of the IAASB, and in activities with the ASB, and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. She is a Certified Public Accountant and a member of the AICPA and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants. She has a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Delaware, and a Masters in Business Administration from New York University. 

Sachiko Kai is a former member of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), serving from 2019 to 2024, and was nominated by the Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants (JICPA).

She previously served as an IFEA Staff Fellow with the IAASB from 2014 to 2015 and has recently rejoined the IAASB staff and Fellowship program on a part-time basis as IAASB Senior Advisor.

Ms. Kai is Technical Director of the JICPA. Since 2007, she has been actively involved in IAASB activities and has supported JICPA committees on auditing standards. Prior to joining the JICPA, she worked at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.

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