Auditing

Audits of SEC Issuers

Member firms that audit the financial statements of an SEC issuer are required to perform the audit in accordance with the auditing and related professional practice standards established by the PCAOB, which include auditing standards, related attestation standards, quality control standards, ethical standards, independence standards, and any other professional standards that are established or adopted by the PCAOB in accordance with Section 103 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

The CAQ has created individual Web Resources for the PCAOB and SEC, which can be found at the respective links below.

• CAQ PCAOB Web Resource

• CAQ SEC Web Resource

Other Web Resources

On occasion the auditing and related professional practice standards established by the PCAOB become popular topics among the public accounting profession. In an effort to provide our members with a central location of information on the popular auditing and related professional practice standards, the CAQ has developed Web Resources specific to each topic.

• CAQ Web Resource, Auditing in a Changing Economy: CAQ Resources

• CAQ Employee Benefit Plan Audits and Form 11-K Latest Industry Developments Web Resource

• CAQ Ethics and Independence Web Resource
  
  
• CAQ SEC Disclosure Checklist Web Resource
  

Additional Auditing Guidance

• PCAOB Staff Audit Practice Alert No. 3, Audit Considerations in the Current Economic Environment, December 5, 2008 

• PCAOB Staff Audit Practice Alert No. 2, Matters Related to Auditing Fair Value Measurements of Financial Instruments and the Use of Specialists, December 10, 2007

• PCAOB Staff Q&As: Adjustments to Financial Statements Audited by a Predecessor Auditor, June 9, 2006

• Center for Audit Quality Issues FAQs on Insured Depository Institutions Subject to FDICIA

Audits of Non-SEC Issuers

Member firms that audit the financial statements of a non-SEC issuer are required to comply with generally accepted auditing standards (GAAS) established by the AICPA's Auditing Standards Board.

Refer to the CAQ Guidance for Firms Issuing Audit Reports for Non-Issuers that are Filed with the SEC for additional information and a roadmap to PCAOB Standards.

• PCAOB FAQs on Audits of Nonissuers, June 30, 2004