IAASB publishes new FAQs on applying materiality under ISSA 5000 for sustainability assurance engagements. Here's what auditors need to know.
LATEST UPDATE Highlights from the March 2026 IAASB Meeting During the IAASB quarterly board meeting, available on: https://www.iaasb.org/meetings/iaasb-quarterly-board-meeting-0, the following was approved: The exposure draft of ISRE 2410 (Revised), available on: https://www.iaasb.org/consultations-projects/review-interim-financial-information-isre-2410 This will be published for public consultation in early May, with a 120-day comment period. The Technology Quality Management Workstream Action Plan to Develop Non-Authoritative Material, available on: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.iaasb.org/_flysystem/azure-private/2026-03/0260316-Agenda-Item-3F-Approved-Tech-QM-Action-Plan.pdf This sets out the scope, approach, governance, and timeline for developing non-authoritative materials to support consistent and effective application of our quality management standards when technological tools enabled by emerging technologies are used in [...]
When an auditor obtains photographic evidence to support audit procedures, the requirements for audit evidence need to be considered, i.e. Sufficient and appropriate Relevant and reliable Accurate and complete Sufficiently precise for purpose It should be kept in mind that evidence is persuasive, rather than conclusive. ISA 200 para 5: ‘As the basis for the auditor’s opinion, ISAs require the auditor to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance. It is [...]
LATEST UPDATE IESBA and IAASB Launch Joint Stakeholder Survey to Shape 2028-2031 Strategies The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) and the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) have launched a joint global stakeholder survey marking the beginning of work toward their respective Strategies and Work Plans (SWPs) for 2028–2031 – a period of expected significant change in the global audit, assurance and ethics landscape. The joint survey represents the first step in the boards’ strategic planning process and will help inform the development of their respective Consultation Papers. By launching a single, [...]
LATEST UPDATE IRBA Adopts the International Standard on Auditing 240 (Revised) The Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA) announced the adoption, issue and prescription of the International Standard on Auditing (ISA) 240 (Revised), The Auditor’s Responsibilities Relating to Fraud in an Audit of Financial Statements (ISA 240 (Revised)), for use by registered auditors in South Africa. This follows the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board’s (IAASB) release of ISA 240 (Revised) in July 2025. Recent high-profile corporate failures have intensified the public scrutiny of auditors’ responsibilities relating to fraud. As a result, the IAASB undertook [...]
LATEST UPDATE IAASB Technology Position: Technology Catalogue of Issues and Possible Actions As part of the IAASB’s Technology Position, ongoing gap analyses are conducted to ensure standards keep pace with technological developments. This Technology Position is available on: https://www.iaasb.org/publications/technology-position-statement The findings of these analyses are captured in this Catalogue of Issues and Possible Actions. This living document serves as the IAASB’s cross-functional repository for technology-related issues, drawing on stakeholder feedback, outreach activities, and other inputs. It is updated at least semi-annually, or more frequently as needed. The catalogue supports a holistic approach to technology-related developments [...]
What’s News? Your Content Goes Here For decades now, audit firms, especially small firms, or SMPs, as they are known nowadays, have insisted on the substantive approach, without any regard for controls. This was due to fears of blowing the budget, not knowing how to audit systems, or deciding that they would have to go substantive anyway, when controls prove to be ineffective. The result was that the audit client received less bang for their buck, in that feedback on system weaknesses was shoddy, and risks were not properly identified, as the requirements of ISA315 were interpreted as that [...]
LATEST UPDATE External Auditor Assessment Tool: A Tool for Audit Committees The Centre for Audit Quality (CAQ) issued a targeted assessment tool that audit committees can use to evaluate whether to retain the external auditor. The questionnaire focuses on four key areas: service quality and resources, communication effectiveness, and the auditor’s independence and objectivity. Constructive, two-way dialogue with the auditor strengthens audit quality and committee oversight. The evaluation should cover the auditor’s qualifications, firm-wide quality practices, transparency, and professional scepticism. The tool is available on: https://www.thecaq.org/external-auditor-assessment-tool-a-tool-for-audit-committees/ more LEAFQuest Advance [...]
What’s News? Your Content Goes Here With the implementation of quality management systems to comply with ISQM, audit firms are compelled to be aware of threats to the ability of engagement teams to issue appropriate audit reports, and threats to the system of quality management to ensure that the firm as a whole does not issue inappropriate audit reports. When an engagement partner is nervous about a new industry, a very large client, or a complex audit, as examples, this would be seen as a threat. Typically, these threats require immediate attention, and engagement monitoring reviews will address [...]
What’s News? Your Content Goes Here Auditors are all excited about the advancements in AI, and are scrambling to implement this tool in the enhancement of their procedures on the one hand, while trying to figure out policies to curtail its abuse, and guide its proper use, on the other. In the meantime, they don’t have a clue about where its boundaries are, and what it is capable of. The intention is not to give you the solution to any of these mentioned dilemmas, but to pull you back to two basic audit and audit regulation principles. The [...]
