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International Auditing Standards ISA - Abstract. International Auditing Standards ISA - Abstract Definition, goals and objectives of audit documentation

FPSAD No. 2 "Audit Documentation" - includes all the information contained in the ISA, but is set out in more detail, taking into account Russian documentation practice. So, in the Russian PSAD, details are presented in detail, which should contain documents. The order of storage of documents is described in detail, a list of standard working documents is contained.

Target ISA 230 — setting standards and providing guidance on record keeping during the audit process.

Working audit documentation - a set of material information carriers; is compiled by the auditor, employees of the audited economic entity and third parties at the request of the auditor before, during and after the audit.

The basis for determining the scope of documentation is professional judgment of the auditor. The form and content of documents may depend on various factors: the nature of the audit engagement; the form of the audit report; the nature of the client's business; ICS of the client and organization of his accounting; methods and techniques of verification, etc.

Documentation captures evidence that helps to conclude whether the overall audit objective has been achieved.

These documents are kept by the auditor, because he is responsible for the verification.

Working documentation is drawn up in a complete and detailed form. It should include the following questions:

About work planning;

On the nature, time frame and scope of audit procedures (first of all, accounts 50, 51, 68 are checked, since they are checked by the tax service, and 60, 62 (in the presence of fraud through forgery of documents)), their results;

Conclusions drawn from the evidence obtained;

Significant issues that arose during the audit, the results of their consideration.

The form and content of working documents are affected by:

The nature of the audit engagement;

Audit engagement form;

The nature and complexity of the business;

The nature and state of accounting and internal control;

Specific methods and techniques used in listening.

The minimum list of information reflected in the working documents includes:

Information about the legal and organizational structure, copies of legal. documents;

Extracts/copies from major legal entities. documents

Industry data, economy. and legal environment;

Planning confirmation (documents);

Examination by the auditor of the accounting system and internal control (confirmation);

Evaluation audit. risk and materiality level (confirmation);

Audit evidence and conclusions;

Information about the employees performing the audit. procedures;

The timing of the audit;

Messages from experts, third parties, copies of minutes of meetings, letters related to the audit;

Written statements from aud. faces;

Copies of financial statements and audit. conclusions.

Working documentation is the property of the auditor. He must ensure the confidentiality of the documentation and the conditions for its storage for the necessary time.

31. ISA 800. Auditor's report on audit engagements for special purposes

Along with the audit of accounting (financial) statements, auditors are faced with situations that require economic entities to take different approaches to the formation of accounting (financial) information support.

In this case, we are talking about information, which includes:

Accounting (financial) statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles that differ from the principles of International Financial Reporting Standards or relevant national standards;

Reports on individual components of accounting (financial) statements;

Compliance of the actions of the management of the economic entity with the provisions of agreements (contracts or agreements);

Generalized accounting (financial) statements.

ISA 800 “Auditor's report (conclusion) on audit assignments for special purposes” regulates the auditor's actions when performing special assignments. The nature, timing and scope of work, as a rule, depend on the task itself.

Before starting a special assignment, the auditor must agree with the management of the economic entity on the nature, form and content of the audit report.

Even at the stage of planning the audit work, it is important to determine the purpose and user for whom the final reporting information will be prepared. Based on this, it is necessary to make a reservation in the report both in relation to the purpose itself and the circle of people for whom it was prepared.

Main sections:

Name.

Destination.

Introduction– provisions on the responsibility of the management of the entity and the auditor, as well as a description of all verified financial information.

Paragraph describing the scope and nature of the audit.

Paragraph, reflecting the auditor's opinion about audited accounting (financial) information.

Report date.

Auditor address.

Auditor's signature.

If the audited reporting form does not have an appropriate name, or if the applied accounting framework is inadequate to the situation in practice, then the auditor is obliged to modify the audit report.

The auditor may receive an order to perform a special audit engagement to express an opinion on any one or more components of the accounting (financial) statements. Such an audit is carried out as an independent special task as part of the audit of accounting (financial) statements. Upon completion of such an audit, an audit opinion on all accounting (financial) statements is not issued.

The auditor's report on the generalized reporting should include the following main sections.

Name. It is advisable to single out the term “independent” in it, which makes it possible to distinguish the audit report from other reporting documents.

Destination indicates the interested user to whom the report is being submitted for a specific audit engagement.

The paragraph discloses information about the audited accounting (financial) statements, which is the basis for the formation of generalized reporting.

A paragraph reflecting the auditor's opinion on the compliance of the summarized information with the data contained in the complete accounting (financial) statements. If at the same time the main auditor's report is modified, but the generalized reporting satisfies the auditor, then he is obliged to make this reservation in the auditor's report.

Information reflecting the explanations to the generalized accounting (financial) statements, which disclose the need to use such reporting in conjunction with the full one.

Report date.

Auditor address.

Auditor's signature.

The preface to the ISA notes that they should be applied only to material matters, which indicates that national regulations governing the audit of financial or other information in each individual country can be used. In this regard, it is advisable to develop national standards for auditing and related services to better take into account the peculiarities of national systems of legislation, taxation, accounting and other aspects of the financial and economic activities of organizations and enterprises.

Federal rules (standards) are based on international auditing standards.

The rules (standards) of audit activity are, as noted in the law on audit activity in the Russian Federation, uniform requirements for the procedure for carrying out audit activities, the design and assessment of the quality of an audit and related services, as well as for the procedure for training auditors and assessing their qualifications.

The rules (standards) of audit activity are divided into:

federal rules (standards) of audit activity;
internal rules (standards) of audit activity in force in professional audit associations, as well as rules (standards) of audit organizations (firms) and individual auditors.

Federal rules (standards) of audit activity are obligatory for audit organizations, individual auditors, as well as for audited entities, with the exception of provisions in respect of which it is indicated that they are advisory in nature.

Not only approaches to audit differ, but also the content of audit standards. Comparison of international auditing standards and Russian ones is necessary for:

Understanding the significant aspects of the audit procedure and forming the auditor's professional opinion on the reliability of financial statements;

Formulating proposals for improving the current Russian legislation on audit.

Based on the existing international auditing standards, a number of domestic analogues have been developed. In general, the standards can be divided into several groups: 1) Russian rules (standards) that have analogues among international auditing standards; 2) Russian rules (standards) that differ significantly from international auditing standards; 3) Russian rules (standards) that have no analogues in the system of international auditing standards; 4) international standards that have no analogues in the system of Russian auditing standards. A significant part of Russian auditing standards is identical or, in significant respects, close to international auditing standards. The existing discrepancies are due to:

1) differences in approaches to audit;

2) formal differences - style and execution of documents, details of presentation; practical examples, etc.;

3) reform of international auditing standards.

Thirteen documents from among the international auditing standards and regulations on international auditing practice currently have no Russian analogues. This is due to the fact that Russian regulatory documents are still under development, and the preparation of the entire package of standards has not yet been completed.

3. Characteristics of MCA 230

This federal rule (standard) of audit activity was developed taking into account the international standard ISA 230 "Documentation in the audit". Both domestic and international standards consist of three sections:

Introduction;

- form and content of working documents;

Confidentiality, ensuring the safety of working documents and ownership of them.

The federal rule (standard) establishes uniform requirements for the preparation of working documentation in the process of auditing financial (accounting) statements.

In paragraph 3 of the commented standard, the following definition of the term “documentation” is given - working documents and materials prepared by the auditor and for the auditor or received and stored by the auditor in connection with the audit. We are talking about a set of paper, as well as photo and electronic media, which are compiled by auditors and other members of the group of inspectors, employees of the audited economic entity, as well as third parties in accordance with the requests of the audit firm.

In paragraph 4, the following areas for the use of working papers are named:

- application of documentation at the stages of planning and conducting an audit;

Use of documentation for the purposes of ongoing planning for the progress of work and for checking its results;

Documentation of audit evidence that can serve as confirmation of one or another opinion of the auditor on the reliability of the financial (accounting) statements.

All of the above positions need clarification. Mandatory elements of the audit working papers are the audit plan and program, which should be based on the studied and recorded data on the client’s business, accounting and internal control systems (including justification of the level of trust placed in the control environment of the audited entity), as well as information on the features software used by the audited entity. The obligatory nature of documentation procedures directly in the course of the audit is fundamentally important, first of all, to combat the so-called "black audit" - the issuance of an audit report without actually conducting an audit. The fact is that it is extremely problematic to fabricate a convincing audit file, which would provide information about the numbers and dates of the studied primary accounting documents.

The use of working papers to monitor the progress of an audit should also improve the overall quality of the audit. In the practice of reputable audit firms, documents that have long been drawn up during the verification process must contain not only the signature of the compiler, but also the signature of the person who checked these working papers.

Working papers are also a kind of proof of the proper conduct of the audit and justification for the adequacy of the audit findings. This direction of using working documentation is especially relevant in the light of the established Art. 14 of the Law on Auditing Activities of external quality control of the work of audit organizations and individual auditors. The main evaluation criterion is the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the documentation drawn up during the audit. In addition, the probative value of the working documentation may be useful in the event of any claims from the client. With the help of working documentation, an audit firm can reasonably defend its point of view or, having convinced itself of the validity of the claims of the audited entity, establish which of the group of auditors made mistakes or is an unscrupulous performer.

Paragraph 5 of the document defines the requirements regarding the scope of working papers. The documentation should be complete and sufficiently detailed to provide a general understanding of the audit performed. From the point of view of the sufficiency of working documentation, it is important to ensure the possibility of end-to-end tracking of the formation of reporting data.

Paragraphs 6 and 7 briefly describe the scope of the issues reflected in the working papers. Noteworthy is the provision that the working papers should contain the auditor's justification of all important points on which he needs to express his professional judgment, along with conclusions. Thus, the documentation covers a wide range of issues, but the auditor is not required to document every issue considered during the audit - these are important points.

The right of the auditor, fixed in paragraph 7, to determine the amount of documentation for each specific audit, guided by his professional opinion, logically follows from the previous provision. In this case, the auditor must take into account the following factors given in clause 8 of the document:

The nature of the audit engagement

Requirements for an auditor's report;

The nature and complexity of the activities of the audited entity;

The nature and condition of the accounting and internal

control of the audited entity;

- the need to give instructions to the auditor's employees, to control and check the work assigned to them;

Specific methods and techniques used in the audit process.

Paragraph 9 contains both a mandatory requirement for the systematization of working documents and a recommendation on the advisability of developing standard forms of documentation. It should be noted that in the practice of many audit firms, formalized working papers, questionnaires, forms, folders of uniform structure, tables, questionnaires, timesheets, and auxiliary papers are widely used. When checking accounting information, symbols to be deciphered are used; the auditor's comments are given in the margins or in separate working papers.

Paragraph 10 provides that during the audit it is allowed to use schedules, analytical and other documentation prepared by the entity being audited. But before the auditor should be convinced that such materials are prepared properly.

The following paragraph 11 provides a summary of the composition of the working papers. The documentation usually contains:

Information relating to industry specifics and organizational and legal form of the audited entity;

Evidence of audit planning performed by the auditors and

achieved understanding of the systems of formation and control of accounting and financial information of the audited entity;

Information about the assessments of the elements of audit risk;

Results of the analysis of key economic indicators of the client;

Evidence of the analysis of financial and economic transactions and balances of accounting accounts;

Data on performers, results and significant details

performed audit procedures;

Copies of correspondence carried out in connection with the audit with persons inside and outside the audited economic entity;

The conclusions drawn by the auditor on the most significant audit issues, including noted errors and unusual circumstances;

Copies of financial (accounting) statements and an auditor's report on them.

According to paragraph 12, it is advisable to subdivide the files of working documents into permanent (including information that changes little from year to year) and current (related mainly to the audit of a particular period). This technique is especially convenient when working with regular customers.

Paragraph 13 fixes the requirement to ensure the confidentiality and safety of working documents, which must be stored in the archives of an audit firm for at least 5 years. The question of the content of the concept of "confidentiality" is of great interest to the management and accountants of audited economic entities. The commented rule (standard) only indicates the principle of confidentiality, since a more complete description of confidentiality-related issues is available in the Law on Auditing.

According to Art. 11 and sub. 4 p. 2 art. 5 of the above law, audit firms and individual auditors are required to ensure the safety of documents and information received and (or) compiled by them in the course of audit activities, and are not entitled to disclose their content or transfer this information to third parties without the written consent of the audited entity or the person who has entered into a contract for the provision of audit services. Exceptions are cases provided for by federal law (for example, when information is requested in court).

International Standard on Auditing 230 Audit Documentation

The purpose of this International Standard on Auditing (ISA 230) is to set standards and provide guidance on record keeping in the audit of financial statements.

The auditor should document matters that are important in terms of providing evidence to support the audit opinion and evidence that the audit was conducted in accordance with ISAs.

The term “documentation” refers to material (working papers) prepared by and for the auditor, or received and retained by the auditor in connection with the audit. Working documents can be presented in the form of data recorded on paper, photographic film, in electronic form or in another form of information storage.

Working papers are used:

when planning and conducting an audit;
in the implementation of current control and verification of the work performed by the auditor;
To record the audit evidence obtained to support the auditor's opinion.

The auditor should write working papers in a form that is sufficiently complete and detailed to provide an overall understanding of the audit.

The auditor should reflect in the working papers information about the planning of the audit work, the nature, timing and extent of the audit procedures performed, their results, as well as the conclusions drawn from the obtained audit evidence. The working papers should contain the auditor's rationale for all significant points on which it is necessary to express his professional judgment, together with the auditor's conclusions on them. In cases where the auditor has reviewed complex matters of principle or expressed professional judgment on any matters important to the audit, the working papers should include the facts that were known to the auditor at the time of formulating the conclusions, and the necessary arguments.

The auditor has the right to determine the scope of documentation for each specific audit, guided by his professional opinion. Reflection in the documentation of each document or issue considered by the auditor during the audit is not necessary. At the same time, the scope of the audit documentation should be such that, if it becomes necessary to transfer work to another auditor who does not have experience in this assignment, the new auditor could solely on the basis of this documentation (without resorting to additional conversations or correspondence with the previous auditor) to understand the work done and the validity of the previous auditor's decisions and conclusions.

the nature of the audit engagement;
the requirements for an audit report;
the nature and complexity of the activities of the audited entity;
the nature and condition of the accounting and internal control systems of the entity being audited;
the need to give instructions to the auditor's employees, to monitor them and check their work;
· specific methods and techniques used in the audit process.

Working papers should be drawn up and systematized in such a way as to meet the circumstances of each specific audit and the needs of the auditor during its implementation. In order to increase the efficiency of preparation and verification of working documents, it is recommended that standard forms of documentation be developed in an audit organization (for example, a standard structure of an audit file (folder) of working documents, forms, questionnaires, standard letters and appeals, etc.). This standardization of documentation makes it easier to assign work to subordinates and at the same time allows you to reliably control the results of their work.

To improve the efficiency of the audit, it is allowed to use graphics, analytical and other documentation prepared by the audited entity during the audit. In these cases, the auditor must ensure that such materials are properly prepared.

Working papers usually contain:

information regarding the legal form and organizational structure of the audited entity;
· excerpts or copies of necessary legal documents, agreements and protocols;
information about the industry, economic and legal environment in which the entity operates;
information reflecting the planning process, including audit programs and any changes to them;
Evidence of the auditor's understanding of the accounting and internal control systems;
· evidence supporting the assessment of inherent risk, the level of risk of controls and any adjustments to those assessments;
Evidence confirming the fact of the auditor's analysis of the auditee's work on internal audit and the conclusions drawn by the auditor;
· analysis of financial and economic operations and balances of accounting accounts;
· analysis of the most important economic indicators and their trends;
information about the nature, time frame, scope of audit procedures and the results of their implementation;
Evidence confirming that the work performed by the auditor's employees was carried out under the supervision of qualified specialists and was verified;
information about who performed the audit procedures, with an indication of the time of their implementation;
· Detailed information on the procedures applied to the financial (accounting) statements of divisions and/or subsidiaries audited by another auditor;
· copies of communications sent to and received from other auditors, experts and third parties;
Copies of letters and telegrams on audit issues brought to the attention of the heads of the audited entity or discussed with them, including the terms of the audit agreement or identified significant shortcomings in the internal control system;
Written statements received from the audited entity;
the auditor's conclusions on the most significant audit matters, including errors and unusual circumstances that the auditor has identified in the course of performing the audit procedures, and information about the actions taken in connection with this auditor;
· copies of financial (accounting) statements and audit report.

In the case of audits conducted over a number of years, some files of working documents (folders) may be categorized as permanent, updated as new information becomes available, but still significant, in contrast to the current audit files (folders) that contain information relating primarily to the audit of a particular period.

The auditor needs to establish appropriate procedures to ensure confidentiality, safety of working documents, as well as for their storage for a sufficient period of time, based on the characteristics of the auditor's activities, as well as legal and professional requirements, but not less than 5 years.

Working papers are the property of the auditor. Although parts of the documents or excerpts from them may be provided to the audited entity at the discretion of the auditor, they cannot serve as a substitute for the accounting records of the audited entity.

Bibliography

1. Zharylgasova B.T., Suglobov A.E. International Auditing Standards. Tutorial. - M.: KNORUS, 2008
2. Danilevsky Yu.A., Shapiguzov S.M., Remizov N.A., Starovoitova E.V. Audit: Textbook. - M.: ID FBK-PRESS, 2009
3. Audit: Textbook for universities / Ed. IN AND. Podolsky. 5th ed., revised. and additional - M .: UNITY-DANA, 2008
4. Audit. Ed. V.V. Staple. - M.: Enlightenment, 2008

Question 1. What is the name of ISA No. 230?

1) Audit of estimated value
2) Documentation
3) Terms of audit assignments

Question 2. Is it necessary to reflect in the documentation of each document or issue considered by the auditor during the audit?

1) Yes
2) No

Question 3: How long should auditor working papers be kept?

1) At least 1 year
2) At least 5 years
3) At least 3 years

Question 4. Who owns the right to keep audit working papers?

1) Auditor
2) To the audited entity

Question 5. Are the information contained in the working documentation confidential?

1) Yes
2) No

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Topic: “Documentation. ISA 230"

Introduction

2. Comparative analysis of the Rule (standard) No. 2 "Documentation

audit” and International Standard on Auditing 230 “Documentation”

Conclusion

Introduction

The development of market relations in Russia is accompanied by its integration into the world community. In the process of reforming the accounting system in Russia, problems arose in the transition to international accounting and reporting standards (IFRS). Many audited legal entities have a share of foreign investments in the authorized capital or are fully financed by foreign persons. Authentication, first of all, of such organizations should be carried out in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (ISA). In addition, according to the legislation of the Russian Federation, certain types of enterprises and organizations have switched and continue to switch to the preparation of financial statements in accordance with IFRS, the audit of which must be carried out in accordance with ISA.

It is very important that the audit organizations of different countries and the auditors of different audit companies express not only an objective, but also a comparable opinion on the information being checked. That is, in the case of checking the same economic entity, its branches and representative offices in different countries by different auditors, the conclusions should be identical. Therefore, it is necessary that all auditors be guided by uniform requirements for the procedure for conducting an audit, reporting the results and assessing its quality, and apply comparable criteria when expressing an opinion on the audited information. For this purpose, international auditing standards are being developed.

In each country, the audit of financial and other information is regulated, to a greater or lesser extent, by national regulations. Such acts may have the force of law, as in the Russian Federation, or may be presented in the form of separate provisions developed by the regulatory authorities or professional public organizations of the given country.

International Standards on Auditing contain the main principles and necessary procedures, as well as related recommendations, presented in the form of explanatory and other material and provide guidance on their application.

The study of ISA is intended to help specialists of audit firms and individual auditors competently organize their work in accordance with the conceptual requirements of international audit standards, without which it will be impossible to justify the quality of the audits carried out.

1. Auditing Standard N 2 "Audit Documentation"

One of the essential elements of professional auditing is audit documentation. In the Russian Federation, the requirements for its preparation are established by the federal rule (standard) of audit activity N 2 "Documentation of the audit". This rule was developed on the basis of the International Standard on Auditing (ISA) 230 "Documentation" and almost completely coincides with it in text.

It establishes uniform requirements for the preparation of documentation in the process of auditing financial (accounting) statements.

The audit organization and the individual auditor must document all information that is important in terms of providing evidence supporting the audit opinion, as well as evidence that the audit was conducted in accordance with federal rules (standards) of auditing.

The in-house document must be drawn up on the basis of the International Auditing Standard (hereinafter - ISA) 230 "Documentation" and the rules (standard) of auditing activity No. 2 "Documentation of the audit", approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of September 23, 2006 No. 696, which contain the requirement about the need for the auditor to issue information that is important in terms of generating evidence supporting the audit opinion, as well as evidence that the audit was conducted in accordance with auditing standards.

The purpose of the Standard should be to establish uniform requirements and make recommendations for maintaining records in the process of auditing financial statements.

The objectives of the Standard are:

* the formulation of the general principles of documenting the audit;

* approval of the requirements for the form and content of the working documentation of the audit;

* establishing the procedure for compiling and storing working documentation.

The term "documentation" is interpreted in ISA 230 as materials (working papers) compiled by and for the auditor or obtained and stored by the auditors in connection with the audit.

Working papers are records in which the auditor records the procedures used, tests, information obtained, and related conclusions drawn during the audit. They include information that the auditor considers important to the correct performance of the audit and that may support the conclusions he draws in his auditor's report. Working papers allow the auditor to be reasonably confident that he is conducting the audit in accordance with accepted standards.

The working papers relevant to the audit for the current year constitute the basis for planning the audit, as they are a record of the collected evidence as well as the results of the audits.

The most important sources of information for planning can be: descriptive information about the system of on-farm control, the audit program and the results of the audit for the past year.

The quantitative and qualitative composition of the working documentation should be formed in such a way that, if necessary, the auditor can demonstrate that his audit was well planned and properly controlled, that the evidence collected is reliable, sufficient and timely, and that the audit report is consistent with the results of the audit (Table 1 ). The information contained in the working papers enables the auditor to decide on the appropriate type of audit report. They can also serve as the basis for preparing tax returns and for other purposes that improve the performance of the audit firm's clients. The requirements of the Standard should be mandatory when performing an audit involving the preparation of a formal auditor's report. If the Standard deviates from the mandatory requirements, the lead auditor (auditor) must necessarily note this in his working documentation and in a written report to the management of the economic entity that ordered the audit and (or) related services.

Audit Documentation Flow Chart Responsibility for audit documentation rests with the lead auditor. The lead auditor, in turn, can assign the work of documenting the audit to the assistant, while retaining the function of monitoring the process of documenting the audit. However, this requires coordination with the management of the audit firm and is permissible only during periods of high workload of lead auditors and if there is a sufficient level of competence of assistants in audit documentation.

The lead auditor first of all refines the audit program, taking into account the specifics of the forthcoming audit services and the specific client. The program is based on the audit program given in the appendix to the internal standard "Audit Planning". After the elements of the revised audit program are identified, the lead auditor compiles an updated list of working documentation for the upcoming audit, using the data from the annexes to the Standard:

* Appendix No. 1 "Storage system for working documentation" Client's file ";

* Appendix No. 2 "List of documents that can be included in the working documentation" Current Dossier ";

* Appendix No. 3 "List of documents that can be included in the working documentation" Permanent dossier ";

* Appendix No. 4 "List of documents that can be included in the working documentation" Special dossier ".

Working papers should be prepared in a timely manner: before, during and after the audit. They can be created by auditors or received from an economic entity, or from other persons. Regardless of the stage of documentation, working documents should be grouped into appropriate files - "permanent dossier", "current dossier", "special dossier".

The "permanent dossier" includes audit files that are updated as new information becomes available, but are still relevant. They lose value over a number of years. Their composition can

include a revised audit program. As the audit proceeds, each auditor notes in the audit program the procedures performed and enters the date of their completion. The inclusion of a well-planned and updated audit program in the working documents indicates that the audit was carried out at a high quality level.

The "special dossier" includes documents of an instructive and regulatory nature - laws and regulations, instructions, guidelines, data from statistical agencies, data from periodicals (articles) and other supporting materials that contribute to the successful conduct of the audit. When generating working documentation, it should be assumed that evidence obtained outside the client's economic system is more reliable than evidence obtained within this system. In addition, the reliability of evidence is significantly affected by the degree of effectiveness of on-farm control set by the client. Working documentation contains:

* audit planning records;

* records of the nature, timing and extent of audit procedures performed;

* conclusions drawn on the basis of information obtained during the audit.

Entries in the documents are made by means that ensure their safety during the time set for the storage of working documentation in the archive.

By the time the audit report is submitted to the economic entity, all working documentation must be created (received) and finalized.

The composition, number and content of the working documents included in the audit working documentation are determined based on:

* the nature of the audit engagement;

* forms of the auditor's report;

* the nature and complexity of the activities of the economic entity;

* the state of accounting of an economic entity;

* reliability of the internal control system of the economic entity;

* the required level of leadership and control over the work of the personnel of the audit organization when performing certain procedures;

* specific methods and techniques used in the audit process.

The working documentation is the property of the audit organization, which has the right, at its discretion, to perform any actions with respect to the working documentation belonging to it that do not contradict the law, other legal acts and professional ethics. Part of the documents or excerpts from them may be provided to the client at the discretion of the auditor, but they cannot serve as a substitute for his accounting records.

The audit organization is not obliged to provide the working documentation or its copies in full or in any part (except as expressly provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation) to the economic entity in respect of which the audit is being carried out, to other persons, as well as representatives of tax or other state bodies. The information contained in the working documentation is confidential and is not subject to disclosure by the audit organization.

In the event of an increase in the volume of work or size of the audit firm and the burden on lead auditors, the responsibility for formalizing and monitoring compliance with the provisions of the Standard may be assigned by the head to an internal audit employee.

When preparing an updated list of working documentation in the "note" column, the auditor must indicate which documents are included in it without fail, and which ones, depending on the impact they have on the expression of the auditor's opinion on the reliability of the financial statements. The list of working documentation can be expanded (supplemented) taking into account the specifics of the audit.

Issues relating to the procedure for storing working documentation should be highlighted in a special section of the Standard.

At the end of the audit, working documents are subject to submission for mandatory storage in the archive of the audit organization. Working documentation should be stored in a bound form, completed in files (folders) entered for each audit conducted by the audit organization separately. Working papers stored in the files "current dossier" and "permanent dossier" should be stitched together with the obligatory indication of pages.

Working documents of regular customers should be stored in one set in chronological order.

At the same time, the files of the "permanent" and "special" dossier can be transferred from year to year into the new working documentation. The lead auditor (or other auditors under his control) must mark the changes that have occurred on the documents, if any, indicate the date the changes were made and sign.

The safety of the working documentation, its execution and transfer to the archive is organized by the lead auditor responsible for a specific audit, and during periods of a busy schedule - by a person authorized by the management of the audit firm. Surname, name, patronymic of the responsible person and his signature are indicated at the end of the working documentation.

The issuance of working documentation fixing the current and previous audit to employees of the audit organization who are not involved in the audit of this economic entity is not allowed. Only the heads of the audit organization, auditors responsible for this audit, as well as employees involved in the development of internal audit standards can have free access to working documentation.

In case of loss or destruction of working documentation, the head of the audit organization appoints an internal investigation. The results of an internal investigation must be formalized in an appropriate act.

Working documentation is stored in the archive of the audit organization for at least five years. In cases of repeated audits of the client, the retention period is extended for an additional five years from the date of signing the audit report.

When withdrawing working documentation from the archive in order to transfer them to the composition of certificates for a new audit, in the "note" column of the form for reflecting documentation on the previous audit, the lead auditor notes against the name of the withdrawn document the date and reason for the withdrawal of the working document, securing this with his signature. Each working document must have identification parameters (client's name, period covered by the audit, description of the content, last name and initials of the person who prepared the document, date of preparation of the document and index code).

Working papers should be indexed and cross-referenced to help file them.

The finished working papers should clearly and clearly describe the work done in the framework of the audit. For this, reports drawn up in writing and in the form of a memorandum, notes on audit procedures to the audit program, marks directly in the records available in the working documents are used. Working documents may be stored as data recorded on paper, on photographic film, electronically, or in another form.

2. Comparative analysis of Rule (standard) No. 2 "Audit Documentation" and International Standard on Auditing 230 "Documentation"

Comparing the Russian Rule (standard) of audit activity Documenting the audit and the corresponding ISA 230, one can be convinced of their similarity. The Russian Rule (standard) includes all the information of the international counterpart, but set out in more detail.

So, in the domestic standard, details are detailed that should be contained in working documents; in the West it is taken for granted. Quite a lot of attention in the Russian standard is paid to the procedure for storing documents, the confidentiality of the information contained in them, the inadmissibility for anyone, including the tax authorities, to demand them from the auditor, and in the international standard two small paragraphs are devoted to this. Not in the ISA and applications with a typical list of working documents. In the Russian document, such a list is necessary, since for most domestic audit organizations it may be of significant interest. The Russian rule (standard) is quite close in content to ISA 250. Minor discrepancies are largely due to the specifics of the current economic situation in Russia and the features of the previously published Rules (standards) of auditing. Obviously, the ISA could not deal with the problems of classification of Russian legal acts, which is given in paragraph 2.1 of the Russian document. The ISA does not contain such important points for our practice as an ambiguous interpretation of regulatory documents (clause 2.4). There are no recommendations like “send a written request ... to the body that is the source of the disputed normative document” (subparagraph “a”, paragraph 2.4.1). In the event of a disagreement between the views of the auditor and the client regarding the question of whether the provisions of a particular regulatory act were observed, an international document instructs to discuss the problem (paragraphs 28-29 of ISA 250):

* with the management of the economic entity;

* with a lawyer of an economic entity;

* with a lawyer of an audit firm. It should be noted that in the practice of many economically developed countries, the lawyers of a firm usually mean not its full-time employees, but a law office serving this organization on a regular basis, i.e. more or less impartial. The draft has been prepared on the basis of our revised and revised translation of the relevant ISA into Russian. Differences from ISA are primarily editorial in nature. There are no other discrepancies.

standard audit documentation international

Conclusion

Auditing standards regulate the professional activities of auditors and are widely recognized throughout the world, as they allow achieving the greatest objectivity in expressing an audit opinion on the compliance of financial statements with generally accepted principles of accounting and financial reporting, and also establish uniform qualitative criteria for comparing audit results. The uniformity of audit activity is its necessary condition due to the variety of methods used in audit practice, and the complexity of their comparison.

Auditing standards formulate uniform basic requirements that define standards for the quality and reliability of the audit and provide a certain level of assurance of the results of the audit if these requirements are met. They establish uniform requirements for the auditing procedure, the audit report and the auditor himself. As the economic situation changes, auditing standards are subject to periodic revision in order to best meet the needs of users of financial statements. On the basis of auditing standards, programs are formed for the training of auditors, as well as requirements for conducting examinations for the right to engage in auditing activities. Auditing standards are the basis for proving in court the quality of an audit and determining the degree of responsibility of auditors.

Any audit, as a rule, begins with the development of a general plan and audit program. Starting this development, auditors should be based on prior knowledge of the economic entity, as well as on the results of the analytical procedures performed. With the help of such analytical procedures, auditors identify areas of significance to the audit.

In the process of preparing the general plan and the audit program, the effectiveness of the internal control system operating in the economic entity is assessed and its risk is assessed. An internal control system can be considered effective if it promptly warns of the occurrence of inaccurate information, and also identifies inaccurate information. In addition, when preparing the general plan and audit program, auditors should also establish an acceptable level of materiality and audit risk for it, allowing them to consider the financial statements reliable.

Bibliography

1. Federal Law "On Auditing Activities" dated August 7, 2001 No. 119-FZ / Rossiyskaya Gazeta. 2001. 9 Aug. No. 152-153.

2. International Auditing Standards and the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (1999). M.: MTsRSBU, 2000.

3. International Accounting Standards (drafts, comments to them and discussion materials. Part I - VIII / Edited by Prof. V. G. Getman. M .: Financial Academy under the Government of the Russian Federation, 2000.

4. Arens E.A., Lobbek J.K. Audit / Per. from English. M.: Finance and statistics, 1995.

5. Basalai S.I., Khoruzhy L.I. Actual problems of audit in Russia. M.: Letter, 2000.

6. Danilevsky Yu.A., Shapiguzov S.M., Remizov N.A., Starovoitova E.V. Audit: Textbook.- M.: ID FBK-PRESS, 2000.

7. Pankova S.V. Relationship between international financial reporting and auditing standards // International Accounting. 2002. No. 1;

8. Pankova S.V. On the organization of external audit quality control // Auditorskie Vedomosti. 2000. No. 2. S. 71-74.

9. Podolsky V.I., Polyak G.B., Savin A.A., Sotnikova L.V. Audit: Textbook for universities / Ed. prof. IN AND. Podolsky. M.: Audit, UNITY-DANA, 2000.

10. Remizov N.A. From the history of Russian audit / / Financial and accounting consultations. - 2000 - No. 9 (58) .- P. 83-87.

11. Sheremet A.D., Suits V.L. Audit: Textbook. M.: Infra-M, 2000.

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Introduction

The development of market relations in Russia is accompanied by its integration into the world community. Many audited legal entities have a share of foreign investments in the authorized capital or are fully financed by foreign persons. Authentication, first of all, of such organizations should be carried out in accordance with the International Standards on Auditing (ISA) - international auditing standards (hereinafter - ISA). In addition, according to the legislation of the Russian Federation, certain types of enterprises and organizations have switched and continue to switch to the preparation of financial statements in accordance with IFRS, the audit of which must be carried out in accordance with ISA.

ISA 230 Audit Documentation includes the following sections: Introduction, Form and Content of Working Papers, Confidentiality, Preservation, Storage and Ownership of Working Papers. This standard establishes general requirements for maintaining records in the process of auditing financial statements.

I Main provisions of the international standard 230 "Audit documentation"

1.1 Definition, purpose and objectives of audit documentation

Audit documentation, as defined in ISA 230 Audit Documentation, is a written record of audit procedures performed, audit evidence obtained, and conclusions made by the auditor (sometimes the term “working papers” is used).

Compliance with the requirements of ISA 230, along with the documentation requirements of other relevant ISAs, is generally sufficient for the preparation of appropriate audit documentation.

Audit documentation serves important purposes such as:

assistance to participants in the audit in planning and conducting the audit;

facilitating the audit management and control procedures during its implementation, as well as ensuring compliance with the requirements of ISA 220 “Quality Control of an Audit of Financial Statements”;

enabling the audit team to be accountable for their work (is the rationale for a particular audit opinion);

fixing and preserving important materials that are important in future periods (for subsequent audits);

providing the opportunity to conduct a review and inspection for the purpose of quality control by an experienced auditor in accordance with the requirements of ISQC 1 (International Standard on Quality Control) - the international standard for quality control (hereinafter - ISQC) "Quality control in organizations performing audit, review checks of reported financial information and other assurance and audit-related engagements”;

providing an opportunity for external audits to be carried out by an experienced auditor in accordance with established legislative, regulatory and other requirements.

Note that the term “experienced auditor” means a person who is an employee of the firm or an external professional who has a reasonable understanding of:

first, audit processes;

secondly, ISAs and relevant legal and regulatory requirements;

thirdly, the business environment in which the audited enterprise operates;

fourthly, the issues of conducting an audit and preparing financial statements in the industry in which the enterprise operates.

ISA 230 requires the auditor to prepare audit documentation in a timely manner to ensure:

first, sufficient and appropriate evidence to support the audit opinion;

second, evidence that the audit was conducted in accordance with ISAs and relevant statutory and regulatory requirements.

The timely preparation of sufficient and appropriate audit documentation contributes to improving the quality of the audit, the effectiveness of testing and evaluating the audit evidence obtained and the conclusions drawn from it before the finalization of the auditor's report. Documentation prepared in the course of the work is more reliable than that prepared at the end of the work.

1.2 Documentation of deviations from the basic principles and necessary procedures

The main principles and necessary procedures in accordance with ISAs are intended to assist the auditor in achieving the overall objective of the audit. Thus, the auditor must follow each basic principle and follow the necessary procedures that are appropriate to the circumstances of the audit engagement.

If, in exceptional circumstances, the auditor decides that a departure from the essential principles and necessary procedures appropriate to the circumstances of the engagement is necessary, the auditor should document how the alternative audit procedures performed meet the audit objective and, if it is not obvious, the reasons for the departure. In doing so, the auditor should provide evidence that the alternative audit procedures performed are sufficient and appropriately replace the essential principles and required procedures.

The requirement to document deviations does not apply to policies and procedures that are inconsistent with the circumstances of the engagement. For example, for an ongoing audit, none of the procedures in ISA 510, Initial Audit—Opening Balances, apply. Similarly, if an ISA contains conditional requirements, then the application of those requirements is not appropriate if the specified conditions are not present (for example, a requirement to modify the auditor's report in the event of a limitation on the scope of the audit is only satisfied if there is such a limitation).

1.3 Changes to the Audit Documentation in Exceptional Circumstances after the Date of the Auditor's Report

If exceptional circumstances arise after the date of the auditor's report that require the auditor to perform new or additional audit procedures or draw new conclusions, the auditor shall document:

a) the circumstances that have arisen;

b) newly performed or additional audit procedures, audit evidence obtained and conclusions reached;

c) when and by whom changes were made to the audit documentation and when and by whom they were checked.

Exceptional circumstances include discoveries of facts about the audited financial information that existed at the date of the auditor's report and that could have influenced the auditor's report if known earlier.

II Basic requirements for the execution of audit documentation

2.1 Form, content and scope of audit documentation

The auditor should prepare the audit documentation in such a way that an experienced auditor not previously involved in the engagement can understand:

a) the nature, timing and extent of audit procedures performed in accordance with ISAs and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements;

b) the results of audit procedures and audit evidence obtained;

c) significant issues that arose during the audit, and the conclusions drawn from them.

the nature of the audit procedures performed;

the level of risk of material misstatement;

the degree of professional judgment required in performing work and evaluating results;

the significance of the audit evidence obtained;

the nature and extent of unusual transactions;

the need to document findings or the basis for findings that are difficult to determine;

applied methodology and methods of audit.

Audit documentation may be presented in the form of data recorded on paper, in electronic form or in other form of information storage. Audit documentation includes:

audit programs;

analytical calculations;

memoranda;

descriptions of significant issues;

written confirmations and letters of representation;

checklists;

correspondence, incl. electronic, regarding the most significant issues.

Copies and descriptions of company documents, such as certain significant contracts and agreements, may be used as audit documentation, if necessary. At the same time, audit documentation cannot replace the entity's accounting records.

It is not necessary to document every matter considered by the auditor. In particular, it is inappropriate to include in the working documentation copies of primary documents that are duly executed, do not contain errors and correspond to business transactions described by these primary documents. Instead of copies of such documents, it is permissible to compile a summary table indicating the list of verified operations and putting a mark on the availability and correctness of the relevant primary documents. The auditor, as a rule, excludes from the audit documentation draft versions of working documents and draft financial statements, records containing incomplete or preliminary conclusions, copies of documents containing corrections, as well as duplicate documents.

Oral explanations of the auditor do not provide sufficient confirmation of the work performed and the conclusions reached, however, they can be used as an explanation and clarification of the information contained in the audit documentation.

2.2 Documenting significant matters and professional judgments

Assessing the significance of an issue requires an objective analysis of the facts and circumstances. In particular, significant issues include:

Matters that give rise to significant risks as described in SA 315, Understanding an Entity's Business, Environment, and Assessing the Risk of Material Misstatement;

results of audit procedures that indicate that the financial information may be materially misstated or that the auditor needs to revisit the auditor's previous assessment of the risks of material misstatement and the auditor's response to the assessed risks;

circumstances that give the auditor significant difficulty in applying the necessary audit procedures;

conclusions that may lead to a modification of the auditor's report.

The auditor should document in a timely manner discussions with management and other responsible persons of significant issues that arose during the course of the audit.

Audit documentation includes records (minutes) of discussions of significant issues, indicating when and with whom the discussions were held. This may include not only records prepared by the auditor, but also other relevant records, such as agreed-upon minutes of meetings prepared by members of the auditee. Other responsible persons with whom the auditor may have significant discussions include those responsible for governance (representatives of the owner), other staff members of the entity, outside experts such as those providing professional advice to the entity.

If the auditor has identified information that is inconsistent or inconsistent with the final conclusion regarding significant matters, then the auditor should document how he drew attention to the inconsistencies and inconsistencies in forming the final conclusion. This does not imply that the auditor needs to retain documentation that contained incorrect information and was subject to replacement.

The auditor may find it useful to prepare and retain as part of the audit documentation a summary report (memorandum) that describes the significant issues identified during the audit and the order in which they were addressed, or indicate cross-references to other working documents that reflect such information. The preparation of such a memorandum can contribute to the effectiveness and efficiency of the review and inspection of audit documentation, especially for large and complex audits. In the future, the preparation of such a memorandum may facilitate the consideration of significant issues by the auditor.

2.3 Documenting the identification features of individual articles or test questions

When documenting the nature, timing, and extent of the audit procedures performed, the auditor should reflect the identities of the individual items or items being tested.

Identification features are documented for various purposes. For example, it enables the audit team to be held accountable for its work and facilitates the investigation of unusual situations and inconsistencies. Identifiers depend on the nature of the audit procedures and the items or matters to be audited. For example:

during a detailed check of the purchase orders made by the client, the auditor can reflect in the working documents the name of the documents selected for verification, the date of their compilation and order numbers;

when performing selective or review procedures for those items that exceed a certain amount in a given population, the auditor may document the scope of the procedures and identify the population being tested (for example, indicate that all business transactions in excess of a certain amount are included in the population being tested);

when carrying out systematic sampling procedures from the general set of documents, the auditor can identify and indicate in the working documents the name of the selected documents, their sources, the starting point and sampling interval;

when conducting inquiry procedures for certain employees of the audited organization, the auditor may indicate in the working documents the date of the request, the names and positions of the company's employees;

when conducting monitoring procedures, the auditor may indicate in the working documents the observed processes or objects, responsible persons, their responsibilities, as well as the place and date of the observation.

2.4 Identification of performers and persons responsible for verification

In documenting the nature, timing and extent of the audit procedures performed, the auditor should indicate in the working papers:

who performed the audit work and when that work was completed;

who reviewed the audit work, and the date and extent of that review.

The requirement to include in working papers data on the persons who performed the verification of the audit work performed does not imply that each individual working paper must contain a note on the audit. However, audit documentation should contain information about who and when reviewed individual elements of the audit work performed.

2.5 Formation of the final audit file

Audit documentation for each individual audit engagement is generated in the form of an audit file, which is one or more folders or other means of storing information, both tangible and electronic, containing records that constitute audit documentation on a specific issue.

The auditor should complete the formation of the final audit file in a timely manner after the date of signing the auditor's report.

ISQC 1 contains requirements for audit firms to establish policies and procedures for generating an audit file on a timely basis. According to this standard, the period of 60 days after the date of the auditor's report is usually the deadline within which the formation of the final audit file must be completed. Although the requirement of ISQC 1 is not mandatory, it is highly desirable not to exceed the specified period in order to complete the formation of the audit file in a timely manner.

Completing the final audit file after the date of the auditor's report is an administrative process that does not require the performance of new audit procedures or the formulation of new conclusions. However, changes can be made to the audit documentation during the formation of the audit file only if they are of an administrative nature. Examples of such changes could be:

destruction or seizure of the replaced documentation;

ordering, reconciliation and cross-references in working documents;

signing the final control sheets in connection with the completion of the process of forming the audit file;

documenting the audit evidence that has been collected, discussed and agreed by the auditor with relevant members of the audit team prior to the date of the auditor's report.

After the formation of the final audit file is completed, the auditor should not destroy or remove the audit documentation before the expiration of the retention period.

ISQC 1 contains requirements for establishing policies and procedures for how engagement documentation should be retained. In accordance with this standard, the period of retention of audit documentation is, as a rule, not less than five years from the date of the auditor's report or, if the report of the audit team is later, from the date of the report of the audit team.

If the auditor considers it necessary to change the existing audit documentation or supplement it after the completion of the formation of the final audit file, he should, regardless of the nature of the modifications, include the following information in the working papers:

a) when and by whom the changes were made, and, if applicable, when and by whom it was checked;

b) specific reasons for making changes (additions);

c) impact on the auditor's conclusions.

Upon completion of work with the client, the head of the audit is obliged to check the order of registration of the client's folder:

the correct placement of documents in the folder;

completeness of documents related to the audit engagement;

presence and correctness of page numbering;

availability, where necessary, of cross-references to other working documents.

Conclusion

ISAs regulate the professional activities of auditors and are widely recognized throughout the world, as they allow achieving the greatest objectivity in expressing an audit opinion on the compliance of financial statements with generally accepted principles of accounting and financial reporting, and also establish uniform qualitative criteria for comparing audit results. The uniformity of audit activity is its necessary condition due to the variety of methods used in audit practice, and the complexity of their comparison. As the economic situation changes, auditing standards are subject to periodic revision in order to best meet the needs of users of financial statements.

Standards supplementing provisions on issues international practices audit ...

Standards audit (4)

Code >> Accounting and auditing

Subject: Basics audit" Topic: " Standards audit". Prepared by: International standards audit ISA have their... Standards, regulating concomitant audit services ( ISA 900-999). Standards supplementing provisions on issues international practices audit ...

International Auditing Standards ISA - Abstract. International Auditing Standards ISA - Abstract Definition, goals and objectives of audit documentation

31. ISA 800. Auditor's report on audit engagements for special purposes

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Similar Documents

Introduction

I Main provisions of the international standard 230 "Audit documentation"

1.1 Definition, purpose and objectives of audit documentation

1.2 Documentation of deviations from the basic principles and necessary procedures

1.3 Changes to the Audit Documentation in Exceptional Circumstances after the Date of the Auditor's Report

II Basic requirements for the execution of audit documentation

2.1 Form, content and scope of audit documentation

2.2 Documenting significant matters and professional judgments

2.3 Documenting the identification features of individual articles or test questions

2.4 Identification of performers and persons responsible for verification

2.5 Formation of the final audit file

Conclusion

Standards audit (4)