SPEEDINESS INTENSIFIES CODE
SPEEDINESS INTENSIFIES PROFESSIONAL

Audit firms will be asked to do things, formally and informally, to support and advise their clients. Client demands will likely increase and fluctuate widely. In the coming months, auditors of financial statements must balance a multitude of unexpected variables. Demands for Greater Support and Efficiency: Auditors of Financial Statements Must Carefully Consider Independence and Familiarity Issues

SPEEDINESS INTENSIFIES PROFESSIONAL

Importantly, while remaining nimble, professional accountants must continue to adhere to the Code, including applying its conceptual framework in these atypical situations.Ģ. In the context of audits of financial statements, pressures from the client and from the rapidly shifting landscape during the recovery might weigh on judgments and decisions regarding the use of non-traditional audit procedures without proper regard for the fundamental principles of objectivity, and professional competence and due care.Īgility will be a critical skillset in navigating the uncertain months and even years ahead. These might arise, for example, from increased estimation uncertainty because previous estimations established during the pandemic will be based on facts or assumptions that might no longer apply. The uneven recovery might breed more of these opportunities. The pandemic created myriad opportunities for unethical behaviour. During this time of profoundly uneven progression, professional accountants will be under huge strain. The truth of the matter is even when an economy fully reopens, there is likely to be at least 12-18 months more of rebuilding and playing catch-up that still has to occur. For professional accountants, that might mean working within employer organizations and serving client entities that are in vastly different stages of recovery. as of early May 2021, other countries do not anticipate vaccine availability increasing until at least the second half of the year. While at least one dose of the vaccine has been administered to approximately 60% of people in Israel, 52% in the U.K., 43% in Chile and the 45% in U.S.

SPEEDINESS INTENSIFIES CODE

Pressures from an Uneven Economic Recovery: Accountants Must Be Agile Yet Resolutely Committed to the Code of EthicsĮvery entity, sector, and jurisdiction will emerge from this global crisis differently. Facing these conditions simultaneously demands renewed focus on the dynamics that exist in the relationship between professional accountants and entities as they face extraordinary circumstances for at least the next few years.ġ. The Working Group’s charge is to develop implementation support to assist professional accountants in effectively applying the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards) (the Code) when facing circumstances created by the COVID-19 pandemic.īelow is an examination of several ethics considerations that will be especially pressure tested during this period of recovery. have been meeting regularly to discuss the key ethics issues exacerbated by COVID-19. Since Q2 of 2020, members of a Working Group formed by the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) and National Standard Setters (NSS) from Australia, Canada, China, South Africa, the U.K., and the U.S.

Professional accountants must anticipate a continued period of heightened uncertainty and prioritize their ethics responsibilities all the more. Just as the economic impacts of this crisis unfolded in an uneven and unpredictable manner around the world, so too will recovery efforts. Others will continue to navigate the intricacies of government support schemes, and, as those taper, some entities will find themselves on the brink of insolvency. However, as jurisdictions around the world progress toward a more hopeful future, the ethics challenges the accountancy profession and stakeholders face are far from over.Īs the pandemic fades, many entities will be eager to demonstrate their potential by posting quick wins and an accelerating recovery.

In response, professional accountants have shown tremendous resilience. For more than a year, the world has been duly tested by the challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speediness intensifies