Implemented successfully, the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), published by International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), can help auditors boost efficiency, improve documentation, provide better reporting to clients, and enhance audit quality. But implementing ISAs does present a number of practical challenges for auditors.
These guides have been developed to help practitioners performing audits of small and medium-sized entities to better understand ISA requirements and deal with implementation. The guides focus on key implementation issues and do not address all ISAs requirements or look at ISAs already addressed in other ICAEW guidance.
How the guides will help you
The guides are primarily intended to help auditors in jurisdictions that have recently implemented, or are in the process of implementing IAASB ISAs, or where national standards are aligned with these ISAs.
However, auditors in other jurisdictions may also find this content useful for implementing ISAs successfully.
What's in the guides?
These guides cover key ISA implementation issues. They focus specifically on IAASB ISA requirements.
They explore the overall objective of the audit in ISAs and how this impacts on agreeing engagement terms with the client.
The guides cover challenges such as how the auditor deals with understanding internal control in smaller audits, and provide practical guidance on issues, including: management override and accounting estimates.
The guides also deal with:
- the requirement to document significant judgements;
- how judgements are ultimately reported to those charged with governance;
- the need to obtain confirmations from external parties;
- written representations from management; and
- reporting requirements.
The application material in the ISAs includes considerations specific to smaller entities where these are relevant.
These guides build on content originally included in ICAEW’s "Right First Time with the Clarified ISAs" International version which was published in 2011.
| Guide | Relevant ISAs |
| The importance of achieving the objectives in an ISA audit | ISA 200 Overall objectives of the independent auditor and the conduct of the audit in accordance with ISAs |
| Agreeing the terms of audit engagements in an ISA audit | ISA 210 Agreeing the terms of audit engagements |
| Documenting significant professional judgements in an ISA audit | ISA 230 Audit documentation |
| Addressing the risk of management override in an ISA audit | ISA 240 The auditor’s responsibilities in relation to fraud in an audit of financial statements |
| Communication with those charged with governance in an ISA audit | ISA 260 (Revised) Communication with those charged with governance ISA 265 Communicating deficiencies in internal control to those charged with governance |
| Understanding internal control in a smaller ISA audit | ISA 315 (Revised) Identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement through understanding the entity and its environment |
| Using external confirmations in an ISA audit | ISA 505 External confirmations |
| Auditing accounting estimates in an ISA audit (updated August 2019) |
ISA 540 (Revised) Auditing accounting estimates and related disclosures |
| Auditing accounting estimates in an ISA audit | ISA 540 Auditing accounting estimates, including fair value accounting estimates and related disclosures |
| Obtaining written representations in an ISA audit | ISA 580 Written representations |
| Reporting in an ISA audit | ISA 700 (Revised) Forming an opinion and reporting on financial statements ISA 701 Communicating key audit matters in the independent auditor’s report ISA 705 (Revised) Modification to the opinion in the Independent Auditor’s report ISA 706 (Revised) Emphasis of matter paragraphs and other matter paragraphs in the Independent Auditor’s report ISA 570 (Revised) Going concern ISA 720 (Revised) The auditor’s responsibilities relating to other information ISA 260 (Revised) Communication with those charged with governance |
Audit and assurance resources
The Audit and Assurance Faculty and ICAEW provides a range of practical resources including technical releases, guides, webinars and articles to help you meet your continuing professional needs.
Resources hubAudit technical releasesICAEW and ISAs
ICAEW has long been a champion of International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). Through the work of its ISA Panel (established in 2005 as the ISA Implementation sub group) it has overseen numerous roadshows, events and publications and engaged with and sought feedback from firms of all sizes, regulators, international standard-setters and training, methodology and software providers on ISA implementation as well as commented on any revisions to the ISAs.
