Guides and Circulars for Auditors

South African Guides may be developed and issued by the IRBA to provide guidance to an auditor in meeting specific legislative requirements imposed by another Regulator. The Guides may be specific to an industry. Below is a list of Guides that are currently effective. For more information on providing assurance to specific industries, go to Industry Specific Guides and Regulatory Reports.

Title Date Issued Effective Date Download Documents
Updated Schedule D auditor report (Updated for narrow-scope amendments made to IAS 1) June 2023 Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods ending on or after 31 December 2023, with early adoption permitted PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Joint Audit Engagements (Revised May 2024) May 2024 For audits of financial statements for periods ending on or after 31 December 2024, with early adoption permitted. PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Joint Audit Engagements May 2022
  • Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2022; and
  • Other assurance and related services engagements beginning on or after 15 December 2022.
 PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Joint Audit Engagements 26 August 2020 Effective for audits of financial statements for periods beginning on or after 31 December 2020 PDF | Word
Revised Guide (2019) for Registered Auditors: Assurance Engagements on Financial Service Providers’ Separate Accounts (Section 19(3)) and Reporting Requirements (Section 19(4)) of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act May 2022
  • Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2022; and
  • Other assurance and related services engagements beginning on or after 15 December 2022.
 PDF | Word
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Assurance Engagements on Financial Service Providers’ Separate Accounts (Section 19(3)) and Reporting Requirements (Section 19(4)) of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, including:
  • Illustrative engagement letter
  • Illustrative representation letter
  • Illustrative auditor's limited assurance report (Section 19(3))
  • Examples of irregularities in terms of Section 19(4) of the Act
  • Illustrative report in terms of Section 19(4) of the Act
 28 June 2019 Effective for engagements commencing on or after
1 July 2019		 PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Assurance Engagements on Fresh Produce Agents’ Trust Accounts (June 2019) May 2022
  • Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2022; and
  • Other assurance and related services engagements beginning on or after 15 December 2022.
 PDF | Word

Guide for Registered Auditors: Assurance Engagements on Fresh Produce Agents’ Trust Accounts, including:

  • Illustrative engagement letter
  • Illustrative representation letter
  • Illustrative annual auditor's report
  • Illustrative interim auditor's report
 11 June 2019 Effective for year-ends ending on or after 31 December 2020 PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Reporting Responsibilities of the Reporting Accountant Relating to Property Entities in terms of the JSE Listings Requirements May 2022
  • Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2022; and
  • Other assurance and related services engagements beginning on or after 15 December 2022.
 PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Reporting Responsibilities of the Reporting Accountant Relating to Property Entities in terms of the JSE Listings Requirements November 2015 Effective for engagements commencing on or after 1 March 2016 PDF | Word 
Guide for Registered Auditors: Guidance on Performing Audits where the AGSA has Opted not to Perform the Audit
See more		 August 2015 Effective for engagements commencing on or after 1 September 2015 PDF
Guide for Registered Auditors: Guidance on performing audits on behalf of the AGSA
See more		 August 2015 Effective for engagements commencing on or after 1 September 2015 PDF
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Assurance Engagements on the Annual Financial Statements and Annual Statutory Returns of a Medical Scheme (Updated for narrow-scope amendments made to IAS 1) June 2023 Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods ending on or after 31 December 2023, with early adoption permitted. PDF | Word
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Assurance Engagements on the Annual Financial Statements and Annual Statutory Returns of a Medical Scheme 06 December 2018 Effective for engagements on accounting periods ending on or after 31 December 2018 PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Assurance Engagements on the Annual Financial Statements and Annual Statutory Returns of a Medical Scheme
See more		 March 2015 This Guide is effective for engagements on accounting periods ending on or after 31 December 2015. Early adoption is encouraged.
The auditor reports included in this Guide are effective for reporting on engagements for periods ending on or after 31 December 2014. The auditor reports have been issued by the Council		 PDF | Word
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Reporting on Financial Information contained in Interim, Preliminary, Provisional and Abridged Reports required by the JSE Listings Requirements

Revised March 2017

 Effective for reports issued on or after 31 March 2017 PDF | Word

Warning to Readers

On 19 June 2023, the JSE published amendments to the JSE Listings Requirements, which amongst other amendments, included amendments to financial reporting disclosures. The JSE also announced that the Financial Sector Conduct Authority published the approval of the amendments to the JSE Listings Requirements in the Government Gazette through Board Notice 450 of 2023 No. 48790, with the effective date as 17 July 2023.

The JSE communicated transitional arrangements, which required the financial reporting disclosures as per amendments schedule to be applied to results ((both interim and year-end) for periods ending on or after 30 June 2023).

Registered auditors are alerted to the fact that the amendments to the JSE Listings requirements have removed the need for abridged reports and deleted the requirements and definitions of preliminary and provisional reports. If this guide is used, it should be considered with the amendments to the JSE Listings Requirements. 

Additionally, this guide has not been updated for the IFRS Foundation® Trade Mark Guidelines.

However, any reference in it to the IFRS Foundation, the IASB, the ISSB and the work of these bodies is intended to be aligned to the IFRS Foundation Trade Mark Guidelines.

Furthermore, registered auditors are encouraged to adhere to the guidance issued by the IAASB when referencing IFRS Accounting Standards in their reports.
 
Communique: 6 March 2017 - Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Reporting on Financial Information Contained in Interim, Preliminary, Provisional and Abridged Reports Required by the JSE Listings Requirements
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Reporting on Financial information contained in Interim, Preliminary, Provisional and Abridged Reports required by the JSE Listings Requirements
See more		 Revised September 2014 Effective for an auditor’s report on an issuer’s interim, preliminary, provisional or abridged report issued on or after 30 September 2014 PDF | Word

Warning to Readers

Registered auditors are alerted to the fact that this Guide has not been updated for:

  • International Standard on Auditing (ISA) 810 (Revised), Engagements to Report on Summary Financial Statements, which is effective for audits of financial statements for financial periods ending on or after 15 December 2016.
  • Amendments to the JSE Listings Requirements – pursuant to Board Notice 159 of 2016 as published in Government Gazette No. 40293, which has an effective date of 24 October 2016.

Registered auditors should ensure that any report issued is in full compliance with the International Standards and the requirements of the JSE Listings Requirements.
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Engagements on Attorneys' Trust Accounts
See more		 March 2017 Effective for financial periods commencing on or after 1 March 2016 PDF | Word
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Access to Working Papers (June 2018) May 2022
  • Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2022; and
  • Other assurance and related services engagements beginning on or after 15 December 2022.
 PDF | Word
Revised Guide for Registered Auditors: Access to Working Papers June 2018 Issued on 5 June 2018 PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors (Revised August 2019): Auditing in the Public Sector May 2022
  • Audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2022; and
  • Other assurance and related services engagements beginning on or after 15 December 2022.
 PDF | Word
Guide for Registered Auditors: Auditing in the Public Sector (Revised August 2019) August 2019 Effective from 2 September 2019 PDF
Guidance for Auditing in the Public Sector – Auditing in the Public Sector and Audit of Predetermined Objectives
See more		 June 2012 Effective for engagements commencing on or after 1 September 2015 PDF

The IRBA has previously issued Circulars, addressing specific topics. Current effective Circulars related to the Auditing Standards are:

Title Date Issued Effective Date Download Documents
Omsendbrief 01/2009 – Vertaling van IAASB Glossary of Terms (December 2006) July 2009 Currently effective PDF | Word

Waarskuwing aan die lesers

Geregistreerde ouditeure word gemaan oor die feit dat die woordelys nie bygewerk is in terme van die IAASB Woordelys , soos uitgereik in September 2014 nie.

 

 

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