The voice of your professional accountancy organization (PAO) matters.

The accountancy profession is most successful and sustainable with the support of healthy national and regional professional accountancy organizations (PAOs) that have robust, effective relationships with their national and regional stakeholders, including government and regulators.

The success of any PAO relies in large part on its ability to effectively communicate, and demonstrate, its relevance to society. This begins early in a PAO’s development with promotion of:

Developed in conjunction with CPA Canada, this guide aims to help professional accountants in practice, especially those operating in small- and medium-sized practices (SMPs), in conducting review engagements in compliance with International Standard on Review Engagements (ISRE) 2400 (Revised), Engagements to Review Historical Financial Statements. 

This guidance was written for all organizations, regardless of their size or structure, private or public, to support the accountancy profession’s facilitation of sustainable organizations, financial markets, and economies by providing guiding principles to manage the complexities of performing a robust project and investment appraisal. Greater rigor in the appraisal and decision process can be achieved by using the principles as a benchmark against which to assess an organization’s current practice.

A strong and well-governed professional accountancy organization (PAO) produces and sustains a strong accountancy profession that is able to serve the public interest and contribute to economic stability and growth. A successful PAO gains much of its strength from the sense of identity, benefits, and rights that members derive from membership; and from the contributions that individual members and firms make to the PAO in recognition of its public interest perspective.

This third edition of the guide features enhancements to the two sample manuals, as well as other refinements for clarity and consistency with International Standard on Quality Control (ISQC) 1. The guide contains the requirements set out in ISQC 1 in addition to implementation guidance, including discussion material and an integrated case study that can be used as the basis for education and training.

Public sector accounting (PSA) and reporting underpin the effectiveness of a public financial management (PFM) system and practice. Enhanced budget accountability and control, transparency of public finances and effective management of assets and liabilities/debt can only be achieved through accurate and reliable financial accounting and reporting.

In this eNews you will find:

•    An update on our projects following our March 2025 meeting
•    A look ahead at 2025
•    Submission form for ISSA 5000 implementation feedback
•    Key dates for this quarter

Latest Updates from Our March Meeting

During our March 2025 meeting, we approved:

• ISA 240 (Revised), The Auditor’s Responsibilities Relating to Fraud in an Audit of Financial Statements. The standard will be effective for periods beginning on or after December 15, 2026, which is the same effective date as for our recently revised going concern standard.
• A project proposal and exposure draft on narrow-scope amendments to IAASB standards arising from the IESBA’s Using the Work of an External Expert project.

In addition, we approved the withdrawal of ISAE 3410, Assurance Engagements on Greenhouse Gas Statements, once ISSA 5000 on sustainability assurance becomes effective as ISSA 5000 addresses all sustainability assurance engagements, including greenhouse gas-related information.

We also discussed projects and initiatives on:

• Audit Evidence and Risk Response (Project Stage: Exposure Draft Development) – We discussed selected topics related to the revision of ISA 330, The Auditor’s Responses to Assessed Risks; ISA 500, Audit Evidence; and ISA 520, Analytical Procedures. The topics discussed included stand-back requirements, the description and placement of automated tools and techniques, and tests of controls and substantive procedures.
• Review of Interim Financial Information (ISRE 2410) (Project Stage: Information Gathering) – We discussed issues and challenges resulting from the project team’s information gathering activities and a draft version of the project proposal.
• Technology Position – We discussed a revised version of the catalog of issues relating to technology to further shape our work program to consider the impact of technology.
• ISSA 5000 Implementation – We discussed the adoption and implementation activities related to ISSA 5000.

More information on our projects can be found on the Latest on Our Projects web page.

Looking Ahead: Our Plans for Q2 2025

Looking ahead, our work efforts over the coming months will focus on:

• Releasing of the exposure draft on proposed narrow-scope amendments to IAASB standards arising from the IESBA’s Using the Work of an External Expert project.
• Continuing work related to our Technology, including starting a project to modernize standards in the ISA 500 series and starting information-gathering relating to quality management matters specific to technology. We will also continue our work on the Audit Evidence and Risk Response project, which has a significant technology component.
• Developing and issuing of a range of materials to support the implementation of our standards:

• ISSA 5000 on sustainability assurance: We expect to publish a joint IAASB-IESBA frequently asked questions document, example assurance reports and hold a webinar series.
• ISA for LCE: We expect to publish a frequently asked questions document.
• Going Concern: We expect to publish a frequently asked questions document and video content.

Submission Form for ISSA 5000 Implementation

To support effective implementation of ISSA 5000, our sustainability assurance standard, the IAASB invites stakeholders to submit implementation questions or matters for the IAASB’s consideration.

Submission Criteria

Submissions should meet the following criteria:

• Be directly related to the implementation of ISSA 5000.
• Provide a detailed description of the question or matter, including sufficient context for proper understanding.
• Be relevant to a broad group of stakeholders or common across multiple jurisdictions, as ISSA 5000 serves as a global baseline. The IAASB does not focus on national implementation or adoption issues, nor on assurance methodology.

Submitting Process

Once you have confirmed that your question or matter meets the criteria above and have completed the submission form, your submission will be lodged electronically and remain private. However, the issues raised may be discussed publicly or referenced in the IAASB’s public materials without specific attribution. While submission forms will remain private and confidential, please refrain from including any confidential information.

IAASB Consideration of Submissions

The IAASB will review and consider submissions and may also collaborate with the IESBA in doing so. The IAASB reserves the right to identify and explore relevant implementation issues and determine whether and the most appropriate means of addressing them. The IAASB will not issue responses to, or report back on, individual submissions. However, submissions will inform the IAASB’s priorities for guidance as well as the urgency and nature of the appropriate response.

Key Dates for this Quarter

Meetings 

• Stakeholder Advisory Council: May 5-6, 2025, New York, USA 
• Jurisdictional Standard-setters: May 8-9, 2025, New York, USA
• IAASB: June 16-18, 2025, New York, USA