Benchmarking International Independence Standards

The staff of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ (IESBA) has completed a study comparing the provisions of International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards) — in particular the independence provisions applicable to audits of financial statements of public interest entities (PIEs)—with the relevant rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). The study focuses primarily on the SEC rules and includes a reference to the PCAOB's independence requirements only where those requirements are incremental.

The Report reflects the IESBA Staff's understanding of the respective frameworks being compared, and incorporates input received from the IESBA's Benchmarking Working Group.