AU Section 313
Substantive Tests Prior to the Balance Sheet Date
(Supersedes Statement on Auditing Standards No. 1, AICPA,
Professional Standards, vol. 1, AU sec. 310.05-.09.) fn *
Source: SAS No. 45.
Effective for periods ended after September 30, 1983, unless otherwise indicated.
This section provides guidance for audits of financial statements concerning—
- Factors to be considered before applying principal substantive tests to the details of particular asset or liability accounts as of a date (interim date) that is prior to the balance-sheet date.
- Auditing procedures to provide a reasonable basis for extending from an interim date to the balance-sheet date (remaining period) the audit conclusions from such principal substantive tests.
- Coordinating the timing of auditing procedures.
Guidance concerning the timing of tests of controls is provided in section 319.99. [Revised, May 2001, to reflect conforming changes necessary due to the issuance of Statement on Auditing Standards No. 94.]
[The following note is effective for audits of fiscal years ending on or after November 15, 2007. See PCAOB Release 2007-005A
. For audits of fiscal years ending before November 15, 2007, click here
Note: When performing an integrated audit of financial statements and internal control over financial reporting, refer to paragraphs 52-53 of PCAOB Auditing Standard No. 5, An Audit of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting That Is Integrated with An Audit of Financial Statements, regarding timing of tests of controls.
Audit testing at interim dates may permit early consideration of significant matters affecting the year-end financial statements (for example, related party transactions, changed conditions, recent accounting pronouncements, and financial statement items likely to require adjustment). In addition, much of the audit planning, including obtaining an understanding of internal control, assessing control risk and the application of substantive tests to transactions can be conducted prior to the balance-sheet date. fn 1
Applying principal substantive tests to the details of an asset or liability account as of an interim date rather than as of the balance-sheet date potentially increases the risk that misstatements that may exist at the balance-sheet date will not be detected by the auditor. The potential for such increased audit risk tends to become greater as the remaining period is lengthened. This potential incremental audit risk can be controlled, however, if the substantive tests to cover the remaining period can be designed in a way that will provide a reasonable basis for extending to the balance-sheet date the audit conclusions from the tests of details at the interim date.
Factors to Be Considered Before Applying Principal Substantive Tests to the Details of Balance-Sheet Accounts at Interim Dates
Before applying principal substantive tests to the details of asset or liability accounts at an interim date, the auditor should assess the difficulty in controlling the incremental audit risk. Paragraphs .05 through .07 discuss considerations that affect that assessment. In addition, the auditor should consider the cost of the substantive tests that are necessary to cover the remaining period in a way that will provide the appropriate audit assurance at the balance-sheet date. Applying principal substantive tests to the details of asset and liability accounts at an interim date may not be cost-effective if substantive tests to cover the remaining period cannot be restricted due to the assessed level of control risk.
Assessing control risk at below the maximum is not required in order to have a reasonable basis for extending audit conclusions from an interim date to the balance-sheet date; however, if the auditor assesses control risk at the maximum during the remaining period, he should consider whether the effectiveness of certain of the substantive tests to cover that period will be impaired. For example, effective controls may be lacking over the internal documents that provide indications of transactions that have been executed. Substantive tests that are based on such documents and relate to the completeness assertion for the remaining period may be ineffective because the documents may be incomplete. Likewise, substantive tests covering the remaining period that relate to the existence assertion at the balance-sheet date may be ineffective if effective controls over the custody and physical movement of assets are not present. In both of the above examples, if the auditor concludes that the effectiveness of such substantive tests would be impaired, additional assurance should be sought or the accounts should be examined as of the balance-sheet date.
The auditor should consider whether there are rapidly changing business conditions or circumstances that might predispose management to misstate financial statements in the remaining period. fn 2 If such conditions or circumstances are present, the auditor might conclude that the substantive tests to cover the remaining period would not be effective in controlling the incremental audit risk associated with them. In those situations, the asset and liability accounts affected should ordinarily be examined as of the balance-sheet date.
The auditor should consider whether the year-end balances of the particular asset or liability accounts that might be selected for interim examination are reasonably predictable with respect to amount, relative significance, and composition. He should also consider whether the entity's proposed procedures for analyzing and adjusting such accounts at interim dates and for establishing proper accounting cutoffs are appropriate. In addition, the auditor should consider whether the accounting system will provide information concerning the balances at the balance-sheet date and the transactions in the remaining period that is sufficient to permit investigation of (a) significant unusual transactions or entries (including those at or near year-end); (b) other causes of significant fluctuations, or expected fluctuations that did not occur; and (c) changes in the composition of the account balances. If the auditor concludes that evidential matter related to the above would not be sufficient for purposes of controlling audit risk, the account should be examined as of the balance-sheet date.
Extending Audit Conclusions to the Balance-Sheet Date
Substantive tests should be designed to cover the remaining period in such a way that the assurance from those tests and the substantive tests applied to the details of the balance as of an interim date, and any audit assurance provided from the assessed level of control risk, achieve the audit objectives at the balance-sheet date. Such tests ordinarily should include (a) comparison of information concerning the balance at the balance-sheet date with the comparable information at the interim date to identify amounts that appear unusual and investigation of any such amounts and (b) other analytical procedures or substantive tests of details, or a combination of both, to provide a reasonable basis for extending to the balance-sheet date the audit conclusions relative to the assertions tested directly or indirectly at the interim date. fn 3
If misstatements are detected in account balances at interim dates, the auditor may be required to modify the planned nature, timing, or extent of the substantive tests covering the remaining period that relate to such accounts or to reperform certain auditing procedures at the balance-sheet date. The assessment of possible misstatement as of the balance-sheet date should be based on the auditor's judgment of the state of the particular account(s) as of that date, after considering (a) the possible implications of the nature and cause of the misstatements detected at the interim date, (b) the possible relationship to other phases of the audit, (c) the corrections subsequently recorded by the entity, and (d) the results of auditing procedures covering the remaining period (including those that are responsive to the particular possibilities for misstatement). For example, the auditor might conclude that the estimate of unrecorded credit memos at an interim date is representative of such misstatements at the balance-sheet date, based on substantive tests covering the remaining period. On the other hand, the assessment of the possible effects at the balance-sheet date of other types of cutoff misstatements at an interim date might be based on the results of reperforming substantive tests of the cutoff.
Coordinating the Timing of Auditing Procedures
The timing of auditing procedures also involves consideration of whether related auditing procedures are properly coordinated. This includes, for example—
- Coordinating the auditing procedures applied to related party transactions and balances. fn 4
- Coordinating the testing of interrelated accounts and accounting cutoffs.
- Maintaining temporary audit control over assets that are readily negotiable and simultaneously testing such assets and cash on hand and in banks, bank loans, and other related items.
Decisions about coordinating related auditing procedures should be made in the light of the assessed level of control risk and of the particular auditing procedures that could be applied, either for the remaining period or at year-end, or both.