Key Facts Flashcards
How long should a private limited company keep its accounting records for?
3 years
How long should public limited companies keep their accounting records?
Six years from the date of preparation
Where should accounting records be kept?
At it’s registered office or another place where the directors seem fit - and must be open at all times to be open for inspection.
What is assurance?
A degree of confidence
How to qualify for the audit exemption?
Meet at least 2 of the following at least two of the following requirements for 2 consecutive years:
- turnover of not more than £10.2mil
- balance sheet total of not more than £5.1mil
- not more than 50 employees
When can the audit exemption not be claimed:
A public, listed or limited company
A bank or insurance company
A company that is part of a group of companies that are public companies, banks or insurance companies
What about exemptions for dormant companies?
They are exempt if no transactions recorded in the last accounting period: provided they: are not a bank or insurance company, or not required to produce group accounts, and they fulfill at least 2 of the 3 criteria.
What are the benefits gained from assurance?
Independent qualified accountant reviewing the business
Satisfies external stakeholders
Can act as a deterrent against threat of fraud
Business may grow past exemption limits in future so an audit prior to this can help process run smoothly.
Which ISA covers the basics of audit?
ISA 200 - overall objectives of the independent auditor and the conduct of an audit in accordance with international standards on auditing.
What are the overall objectives of the auditor?
Obtain reasonable assurance that the financial statements are free from material misstatements
Report on the financial statements and communicate as required by the ISAs
What does GAAP stand for?
Generally accepted accounting principles.
Who are the FRC?
Financial reporting council - they’re the independent regulator of auditing and accounting in the UK.
What is indicative of a good control environment?
Directors communicate and enforce integrity
Directors and staff are committed to competence
Directors participate in control activities.
HR policies
Authorities and responsibilities delegated out to staff
What are examples of information systems?
A filing cabinet
An integrated IT system
What are general IT controls?
Policies and procedures relating to applications supporting the effective functioning of application controls.
Examples of general IT controls?
Data centre and networks
Access security
Program change
Systems software change
What are control activities?
Policies and procedures that help to ensure that management directives are carried out.
What are performance reviews of balances?
Comparing budgets to actual performance (making sure it was done correctly)
What is information processing?
Checking that transactions have been processed accurately, completely and have been authorised.
What are physical controls?
Controls over the physical security of assets
Examples of control activities?
Authorisation of documents Controls over computerised applications Controls over arithmetrical accuracy Maintaining control accounts and trial balances Reconciliations Comparing assets to records Restricting access (physical control)
What is a control objective?
What the system is trying to do
What is a risk?
What a system is trying to avoid
What is a control procedure?
HOW a system achieves objectives and manages risks
What are the major accounting systems?
Purchase Revenue Payroll Inventory Non current assets Cash and bank
What are the 4 procedures for understanding systems?
Ascertaining the accounting system
Documenting the accounting system
Confirming the accounting system
Evaluating the accounting system
What are the 3 potential methods for documenting the processes of accounting systems?
Narrative notes
Internal control checklists (ICCs) or internal control questionnaire (ICQs)
Flowcharts
What are narrative notes best suited to?
Simple tasks
When should flow charts be used?
For more complex systems.
When should ICCs or ICQs be used?
To check off items that may be important and identifying deficiencies.
Rules of flowcharts?
Conformity of symbols ( each symbol represents one thing)
Key of symbols used.
Chart should flow top to bottom and left to right.
Lines should only connect where necessary.
Advantages and disadvantages of narrative notes?
Adv
Quick to prepare
Disadvantage
Confusing for complex systems
Advantage / disadvantages of flowcharts
Adv - easier for larger systems
Disadvantages - need experience to prepare
Advantages/ Disadvantages of questionnaires
Adv - Easy to delegate to junior staff
Disadvantages- client may overstate controls
How to confirm the system?
Walkthoughs
How to evaluate controls?
Presence / absence of internal controls and their impacts.
Test the system
If auditor believes controls are effective - what approach for rest of the audit?
Test using tests of control and take combined approach to audit, testing both controls and balances
If auditor believes controls are ineffective? What approach?
No test of controls - just substantive testing ONLY test substantively NO Controls
What are the verification techniques?
Analytical procedures Enquiry and external confirmation Inspection Observation Recalculation or reperformance
What’s the mnemonic for verification techniques?
AEEIOUR
What are examples of analytical procedures?
Comparisons of actual with budget
Calculation of ratios
Credibility checks (proof)
Why are analytical procedures completed as part of the risk assessment?
To identify risk areas
Determine nature, timing and extent of procedures.
What should the auditor consider when deciding whether to use analytical procedures as substantive procedures?
Are the procedures suitable to obtain evidence about the relevant assertions?
Is the data the auditor is using reliable, available and relevant?
What are tests of control used for?
To obtain evidence about the effective operation of the accounting and internal controls systems.
Which verification techniques can be used to test controls?
Enquiry Inspection Observation Recalculation Reperformance
What is substantive testing?
Audit procedures designed to detect material misstatement and included test of details and analytical procedures.
If we think the controls are effective - do we do more or less substantive testing?
Less
If we place little or no assurance on controls - do we increase or decrease the level of substantive testing?
Increase
Mnemonic for for substantive testing methods?
AEIOU
Summary of IAS 520?
The objectives of the auditor are to obtain relevant and reliable audit evidence when using substantive analytical procedures
What is sufficiency of evidence?
Enough of it
What is appropriateness of evidence?
The right kind of evidence
Some generalisations about reliability of audit evidence?
More reliable when from independent sources
If internally generated - more reliable if strong controls.
More reliable when in documentary form.
More reliable when documents are originals.
What are the assertions about classes of transactions and events and related disclosures?
Occurrence Completeness Accuracy Cut-Off Classification
What are the assertions about account balances and related disclosures at period end?
Existence Rights and Obligations Completeness Accuracy, valuation and allocation Classification Presentation
How to test for understatement in financial statements??
LIABILITIES like trade payables
Start the test from the source document and agree the source document to the financial records.
How to test for overstatement in financial statements?
Non-Current Assets or Sales Revenue
Start with financial records and trace back to source documents - checking existence!
What is CAATs?
Computer assisted audit techniques carried out by the auditor using a computer.
Could be Simple procedures like spreadsheets or more complex like embedded audit facilities.
Benefits of CAATs
Large volumes of data can be analysed at great speed = more efficient audit.
Drawbacks of using CAATs?
Required high quality data
Needs client permission
Skills and experience are required to both administer and interpret the findings.
What tests may audit software complete?
Reperformance of calculations
Extraction of samples
Analytical review
What is test data?
Submission of dummy data into the clients system to ensure it’s processed correctly, or not processed if deliberately false.