Please see the Open Consultations and Exposure Drafts section below for more details.

 

To further inform its important auditor reporting initiative, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) is holding three global roundtables during September and October 2012. These events will bring together representatives from a broad range of stakeholder groups to share perspectives on the IAASB’s suggested improvements to the auditor’s report featured in its June 2012 Invitation to Comment (ITC). Space is still available for the roundtables being held in Brussels and Kuala Lumpur, and the IAASB is particularly interested in further participants to represent the views of investors and preparers. For more information, please visit the IAASB Roundtable page. 

 

In a recent article at CFO.com, IFAC Chief Executive Officer Ian Ball discusses the International Integrated Reporting Council and the value of integrated reporting. 

 

September 19, 2012 is the final day to participate in the International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB) online strategy and work plan questionnaire. It is part of the IAESB's broader mandate to consult with key stakeholders to determine which issues should be addressed by the board in the 2014-2016 timeframe. The IAESB is seeking feedback on educational challenges facing the accountancy profession and survey results will be used to develop a formal Consultation Paper outlining the IAESB's strategic focus and the potential projects that might best support this focus. See the questionnaire, which will take no more than 30 minutes to complete, at IAESB 2014-16 Strategic Review Public Consultation Survey.

 

The IFAC SMP Community is a new sub-group of IFAC on LinkedIn. Created by the Small and Medium Practices (SMP) Committee, it is for representatives of IFAC member organizations who are focused on SMP and small- and medium-sized entity (SME) issues. The objectives of the group are to:
 

• facilitate sharing, networking, and collaboration among IFAC members on SMP-related issues;

• open a new channel of communication with SMP representatives of IFAC member bodies; and

• obtain feedback on IFAC SMP activities via instant polling and discussion.
 

IFAC aims to get 1-2 qualified individuals from each member organization to join this restricted group. To request to join, simply click “Join SMP Community.” As a reminder, IFAC has an open LinkedIn Group—all are encouraged to join by clicking “Join IFAC Group.” 

 

The article “How to Cope with Pressure to Lower Fees” offers tips for small- and medium-sized practices (SMPs) in reacting to pressure to lower fees. While this pressure is nothing new, it has been exacerbated in many jurisdictions by the economic climate. The article, developed by SMP Committee Chair Giancarlo Attolini and IFAC Deputy Director, SME and SMP Affairs, Paul Thompson was released as part of the committee’s practice management series to help IFAC members support their SMP constituents. IFAC member and regional organizations are encouraged to reproduce or adapt/translate the article for use in their magazines, journals, websites or other channels. Email permissions@ifac.org for access to the article.

 

IFAC's Small and Medium Practices (SMP) Committee is inviting proposals from member bodies to develop a publication providing explanatory guidance on implementing International Standards on Review Engagements (ISRE) 2400 (Revised), Engagements to Review Historical Financial Statements. The primary purpose of this publication will be to help our member organizations around the world support their SMP members in conducting review engagements, particularly for small- and medium-sized entities (SMEs), in compliance with ISRE 2400 (Revised), while also increasing awareness and understanding of review engagements as a client service offering. The complete project specifications, together with instructions for submitting a proposal, are included in the Request for Proposal, available on the SMP Committee's home page. 

 

Hard copies of the public sector accounting, audit and assurance, and ethics handbooks are now available to purchase or download: 2012 Handbook of International Public Sector Accounting Pronouncements, 2012 Handbook of International Quality Control, Auditing, Review, Other Assurance, and Related Services Pronouncements and 2012 Handbook of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. The International Accounting Education Standards Board is not issuing a new handbook in 2012. Discounts are available for students, educators, and those living in World Trade Organization developing countries.

 

• Italian—ISRS 4410: The Standard for Today's Compilation Engagements—Highlighting the Value to SMPs and SMEs (2011)

• Kazakh—Helping Small- and Medium-Sized Practices Meet the Challenges and Seize the Opportunities of Tomorrow (2012)

• Portuguese—A Single Set of Auditing Standards: Audits of Small- and Medium-Sized Entities Revised Policy Position Paper #2 (2012)

• Russian—Helping Small- and Medium-Sized Practices Meet the Challenges and Seize the Opportunities of Tomorrow (2012), Staff Questions & Answers—Professional Skepticism in an Audit of Financial Statements (2012), Handbook of International Public Sector Accounting Pronouncements (2011)

• Turkish—Guide to Quality Control for Small- and Medium-Sized Practices, Third Edition (2011)
 

 

 

 

1. IFAC Holds PAO Seminar in Vietnam 
 

The recent Realizing the Power of PAOs seminar in Hanoi, Vietnam, brought together more than 50 representatives of IFAC, the World Bank, regional organizations, and professional accountancy organizations (PAOs) from across the East Asia Pacific region. The event was hosted by the Vietnam Association of Certified Public Accountants (VACPA) with the support of the Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants (CAPA). Presentations covered the global and regional accounting landscape, recognizing the importance of the profession and the role of PAOs, and development successes and challenges of PAOs in the region. The event also included a workshop that allowed attendees to discuss their achievements, challenges, and best practices.
 

While in Vietnam, IFAC also participated in a conference held by VACPA and CAPA, The Vital Role of PAOs, designed to highlight to Vietnamese policymakers the crucial role PAOs play. IFAC staff also held outreach meetings with additional key representatives of the profession in Vietnam, including the Ministry of Finance and the Vietnam Association of Accountants and Auditors.

 

 

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) has released a milestone consultation document. The IAASB’s Invitation to Comment (ITC): Improving the Auditor’s Report sets out the indicative direction of the board’s future standard-setting proposals to improve how and what auditors report in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). The IAASB invites all stakeholders to respond to this ITC. To access the ITC and submit a comment, visit the IAASB’s website. Comment Deadline: October 8, 2012
 

Dan Montgomery, deputy chairman of the IAASB and chairman of its Auditor Reporting Task Force, spoke to Accountancy Age on the IAASB’s ITC on auditor reporting reform. For more press coverage of the June 2012 ITC, see the IAASB’s Auditor Reporting page. 

 

The International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB) has released IES 4, Initial Professional Development—Professional Values, Ethics, and Attitudes, which prescribes the values, ethics, and attitudes that professional accountants should acquire during the education program leading to qualification. This Exposure Draft is primarily aimed at IFAC members but will also be of interest to educational organizations, employers, regulators, government authorities, and other stakeholders who support the learning and development of professional accountants. Comment Deadline: October 11, 2012
 

The IAESB has also released for public exposure proposed revisions of IES 2, Initial Professional Development—Technical Competence, and IES 3, Initial Professional Development—Professional Skills. Both are part of the IAESB’s project to improve the clarity of its standards and address the development of technical competence and professional skills by an aspiring professional accountant. IESs 2 and 3 also prescribe the knowledge content and mix of professional skills aspiring professional accountants should acquire during initial career development. The revisions focus on prescribing learning outcomes that demonstrate the competence required to become professional accountants. Comment Deadline: November 1, 2012
 

Additionally, the IAESB has released proposed revisions of International Education Standard (IES) 8, Professional Development for Engagement Partners Responsible for Audits of Financial Statements, which is part of a project to improve the clarity of the IAESB’s eight standards. Each standard addresses an aspect of developing the technical competence, professional skills, and professional values, ethics, and attitudes of an aspiring professional accountant or aspiring engagement partner. Comment Deadline: December 11, 2012

 

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) has proposed a change to the definition of “those charged with governance” in the Code. The objective of the change is to more closely align the definition of “those charged with governance” in the Code with that in the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board’s International Standard on Auditing (ISA) 260, Communication with Those Charged with Governance. The IESBA has proposed that in each instance when the Code refers to communication by “those charged with governance” the language should be changed to “those charged with governance or a subgroup thereof.” The change aims to clarify that in cases when a subgroup, such as an audit committee, assists the governing body in meeting its responsibilities, the auditor shall determine with whom within the entity’s governance structure to communicate. Comment Deadline: October 31, 2012
 

The IESBA has also released Responding to a Suspected Illegal Act, which addresses a professional accountant’s responsibilities regarding the disclosure of suspected illegal acts committed by a client or employer. The proposals describe the circumstances in which a professional accountant is required or expected to breach confidentiality and disclose the act to an appropriate authority. The IESBA proposes adding two new sections addressing illegal acts to the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (the Code)—one each for professional accountants in public practice and in business—and several revisions to other related sections. Comment Deadline: December 15, 2012

The IESBA recently spoke to Stuart Gittleman of Thomson Reuters, Compliance Complete, and Tammy Whitehouse of Compliance Week on the proposed changes to address illegal acts. See the press coverage in the IESBA In the News pages.

 

The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) has released for comment the Consultation Paper, Consultation on IPSASB Work Program 2013–2014. It is the first public consultation by the IPSASB on its work program and signals the IPSASB’s intent to continue this practice and consult publicly on future work programs. This public consultation is limited to the work program for the period 2013–2014. The Public Sector Conceptual Framework project, the IPSASB’s highest priority project, is scheduled to be completed in 2014. In addition, it is anticipated that public interest oversight and related governance changes for the IPSASB will be implemented in 2014–2015. Comment Deadline: October 31, 2012
 

The IPSASB has also issued the Consultation Paper, Public Sector Combinations. Its objective is to initiate discussion on the possible accounting treatment for public sector combinations in the general purpose financial statements of entities that use accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs). The Consultation Paper considers matters such as the timing of recognition and the initial measurement basis or approach that could be adopted for the wide range of combinations that may occur in the public sector. Comment Deadline: October 31, 2012