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International Standards on Auditing (ISA) are professional standards for the performance of financial audit of financial information. These standards are issued by International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) through the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB). ISA guides the auditor to add value to the assignment hence building confidence of investors.
The final set of clarified standards comprise 36 International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) and International Standard on Quality Control (ISQC) 1, including:
One new standard, addressing communication of deficiencies in internal control;
16 ISAs containing new and revised requirements (these have been referred to as "revised and redrafted ISAs"); and
20 ISAs that have been redrafted to apply the new conventions and reflect matters of general clarity only (these have been referred to as "redrafted ISAs and redrafted ISQC 1").
Structure of the ISAs: The ISAs have a new structure, in which information is presented in separate sections: Introduction, Objective, Definitions, Requirements, and Application and Other Explanatory Material.
Introduction: Introductory material may include information regarding the purpose, scope, and subject matter of the ISA, in addition to the responsibilities of the auditors and others in the context in which the ISA is set.
Objective: Each ISA contains a clear statement of the objective of the auditor in the audit area addressed by that ISA.
Definitions: For greater understanding of the ISAs, applicable terms have been defined in each ISA.
Requirements: Each objective is supported by clearly stated requirements. Requirements are always expressed by the phrase "the auditor shall."
Application and Other Explanatory Material: The application and other explanatory material explains more precisely what a requirement means or is intended to cover, or includes examples of procedures that may be appropriate under given circumstances.
The standards can be accessed through the IAASB Handbook, available in full text from the IFAC website.
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