IAASB issues seven revised ISAs

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board has released seven International Standards on Auditing following the consideration and approval of due process by the Public Interest Oversight Board. The ISAs are in the new style following the conventions developed in the IAASB’s project to improve the clarity, and therefore the application, of its standards. Some of the standards have been substantively revised, while others have been redrafted to apply the new conventions.

The new standards

The clarified ISAs include ISA 200 (revised and redrafted), Overall Objectives of the Independent Auditor and the Conduct of an Audit in Accordance with International Standards on Auditing. This fundamental ISA contains an overview of an audit to help in understanding its purpose and scope; defines the respective authority of the requirements and guidance in ISAs; and contains the most fundamental requirements for auditors. It emphasizes the importance of sound and consistent professional judgment by the auditor, and the necessity for sufficient audit evidence to support the auditor’s opinion.

In addition to ISA 200 (Revised and Redrafted), the IAASB also released:

ISA 320 (revised and redrafted), Materiality in Planning and Performing an Audit;
ISA 450 (revised and redrafted), Evaluation of Misstatements Identified during the Audit;
ISA 530 (redrafted), Audit Sampling;
ISA 610 (redrafted), Using the Work of Internal Auditors;
ISA 705 (revised and redrafted), Modifications to the Opinion in the Independent Auditor’s Report; and
ISA 706 (revised and redrafted), Emphasis of Matter Paragraphs and Other Matter Paragraphs in the Independent Auditor’s Report.

The ISAs can be downloaded free-of-charge from ifac.org/store.