Audit auditing activities audit services. Types of audit, etc. Auditing standards
Audit activity, audit - entrepreneurial activity for independent verification of accounting and financial (accounting) statements of organizations and individual entrepreneurs.
The purpose of the audit is to express an opinion on the reliability of the financial (accounting) statements of the audited entities and the compliance of the accounting procedure with the legislation of the Russian Federation.
Reliability is understood as the degree of accuracy of financial (accounting) reporting data, which allows the user of these reporting, based on its data, to draw correct conclusions about the results of economic activity, the financial and property status of the audited entities and make informed decisions based on these conclusions.
At the same time, the audit does not replace state control over the reliability of financial (accounting) statements, carried out in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation by authorized government bodies.
The main purpose of the audit may be supplemented by other goals stipulated by the audit agreement, for example, improving the financial condition of the audited entity (development of measures), optimizing costs and financial results, and others.
The objectives of the audit are:
1. assessment of the level of organization of accounting and internal control;
2. assessment of the correctness and legality of accounting entries;
3. providing assistance to the governing bodies of the organization by developing recommendations to eliminate shortcomings and violations;
4. orientation of the organization towards future events that may affect business activities (prospective analysis);
5. identifying reserves for growth of the organization’s financial resources;
6. checking compliance with current legislation in the field of taxation;
7. confirmation of reliable reports or determination of their unreliability.
To achieve the primary objective, the auditor must form an opinion on the following issues:
- whether the reporting meets all the requirements for it and does not contain contradictory information;
- whether all assets and liabilities of the economic entity are taken into account;
- are all categories included in the financial statements and are they correctly reflected in the reporting forms;
- are there any grounds for including the amounts indicated in the statements;
- whether all categories are correctly assessed and accurately calculated.
Audit organizations and individual auditors are prohibited from engaging in any other business activity other than conducting an audit, but they can provide audit-related services.
Audit-related services mean:
Establishment, restoration and maintenance of accounting records, preparation of financial (accounting) statements, accounting consulting;
Tax consulting;
Analysis of financial and economic activities of organizations and individual entrepreneurs, economic and financial consulting;
Management consulting, including those related to the restructuring of organizations;
Legal advice, as well as representation in judicial and tax authorities in tax and customs disputes;
Automation of accounting and implementation of information technologies;
Assessment of property value, assessment of enterprises as property complexes, as well as business risks;
Development and analysis of investment projects, drawing up business plans;
Conducting marketing research;
Conducting research and experimental work in the field related to auditing activities and disseminating their results, including on paper and electronic media;
Training in accordance with the procedure established by the legislation of the Russian Federation for specialists in areas related to auditing activities;
Providing other services related to auditing activities.
Source - Abakumova A.V. Basics of auditing. Tutorial. – St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg GUITMO, 2009. – 56 pages.
Fundamentals of auditing: textbook / N. A. Bogdanova, M. A. Ryabova. – Ulyanovsk: Ulyanovsk State Technical University, 2009. – 229 p.
Nesterov A.K. Audit and auditing activities // Encyclopedia of the Nesterovs
The article reveals the essence of auditing and defines the specifics of auditing activities.
The concept and essence of audit
The word audit comes from the Latin audio, which literally means “he hears.” Auditing in the classical sense of the word is independent external financial control carried out by independent certified auditors who do not work for a given enterprise.
At the same time, the audit can be inspired by both internal and external entities in relation to the enterprise, which does not negate the mandatory nature of the independence of the audit.
In the field of auditing, there has been an expansion of the range of services provided by auditors. Along with conducting audits and related services, auditors provide consulting services on issues of organizing accounting, taxation, as well as setting up management accounting, accounting automation, etc.
An audit is a contract-based verification of the state of accounting and internal control, compliance of financial and business operations with legislation, reliability of reporting, as well as consulting, expert and other services provided by auditors to enterprises and organizations.
According to the provisions of the Federal Law of December 30, 2008 N 307-FZ (as amended on July 3, 2016) “On Auditing Activities,” the purpose of the audit is to express an opinion on the reliability of the financial (accounting) statements of the audited entity. During the audit, the compliance of the accounting procedures with the legislation of the Russian Federation is also checked.
The purpose of the audit is to solve a specific problem, which is determined by law, the system of regulatory regulation of auditing activities, and the contractual obligations of the auditor and the client.
The audit is divided into. Internal audit is carried out by a control body within the enterprise itself. An external audit is carried out by an independent auditor who does not have any interests in the audited enterprise. The bulk of audits relate to external audits.
An external audit can be voluntary, which is carried out at the request of the enterprise, and mandatory, carried out in accordance with legislative acts. A mandatory audit can also be organized by decision of a court or investigative authorities.
An external audit involves assessing the reporting system, checking and assessing the organization's assets and liabilities, and testing the existing internal control system. The main task of an external audit is to determine whether the presented reports and balance sheets of the audited organization correspond to reality, to evaluate its financial position and performance results for a certain period.
Internal audit is an activity regulated by the internal documents of an organization to control management levels and various aspects of the functioning of the organization, carried out by representatives of a special control body as part of assistance to the management bodies of the organization (general meeting of participants of a business partnership or company or members of a production cooperative, supervisory board, board of directors, executive organ). The purpose of internal audit is to assist the organization’s management bodies in exercising effective control over various links (elements) of the internal control system.
Internal audit includes two areas:
- assessing the adequacy of control systems - checking accounting controls, eliminating identified deficiencies and developing recommendations to improve management efficiency;
- assessment of the effectiveness of economic activity - analysis of various aspects of the functioning of the enterprise, development of proposals for their improvement.
Specifics of auditing activities and its role
According to the Federal Law of December 30, 2008 N 307-FZ (as amended on July 3, 2016) “On Auditing Activities”:
Auditing activity is the activity of conducting an audit and providing services related to the audit, carried out by audit organizations and individual auditors.
Reliability is understood as the degree of accuracy of financial (accounting) reporting data. Reporting must be reliable so that its users can draw correct conclusions about the results of business activities and make informed decisions.
The following organizational forms are distinguished in the audit activity system:
1. State control - ensures the interests of the state and society, verifies the fulfillment of the obligations of individuals and legal entities to the state, compliance with the rule of law.
2. Special control - assigned to specialized inspections that verify compliance with the procedure for organizing and conducting certain business operations within their competence.
3. Intradepartmental control - carried out in the form of audits by a higher authority on the principle of administrative subordination.
4. Non-departmental control - involves conducting audits regardless of the departmental subordination of the audited business entities.
5. Internal control - audit is carried out within the organization on its own.
6. Independent audit – carried out by independent auditors who have special training and are independent from the organization being audited, both financially and organizationally.
7. Public control - is based on information provided by the bodies of the State Statistics Committee of the Russian Federation and the media. The results of public control are not legally significant, but can serve as the basis for control checks or audits by government authorities.
The need for auditing activities was created by the following conditions:
Discrepancy between the interests of information producers and users;
The danger of making business decisions based on biased information, which will lead to negative economic consequences;
The need for special knowledge to assess the reliability of financial statements, which its users do not possess.
Literature
1. Federal Law of December 30, 2008 N 307-FZ “On Auditing Activities”
2. Bakhankova E.R. Audit. – M.: Infra-M, 2013.
3. Makarova L.G., Stefan M.A., Kovina A.K. Basics of auditing. – M.: HSE Publishing House, 2013.
4. Parushina N.V., Kyshtymova E.A. Audit. Fundamentals of auditing, technology and methodology for conducting audits. – M.: Infra-M, 2013.
5. Sapolgina L.A. Accounting and analysis. – M.: Knorus, 2015.
And finally, internal audit reporting is carried out to management, and the external auditor may publish the final part of the audit report, but the analytical part is transferred to the client.
The main task of a management or production audit is to check and improve the organization and management of an enterprise, the qualitative aspects of production activities, assess the efficiency of production and financial investments, productivity, rational use of funds, and their savings.
Management audit, performed by independent auditors, is one of the types of consulting services to help the client to improve the efficiency of using its capacities and resources and achieve its goals.
Quite close to a management audit is the audit of economic activities, which consists of a systematic analysis of the economic activities of an organization, carried out for certain purposes. This type of audit is sometimes called an operational or administrative and organizational performance audit. When auditing business activities, the auditor is expected to conduct an objective examination and make a comprehensive analysis of certain types of activities.
An audit of business activities can be carried out either by order of the administration or at the request of a third party, including government agencies.
A compliance audit consists of analyzing certain financial or business activities of an entity to determine their compliance with prescribed conditions, rules or laws. If such conditions (for example, internal control rules) are established by the administration, then this type of audit is carried out by employees of the enterprise who perform the function of internal audit. If conditions are set by creditors (for example, requiring a certain ratio between working capital and current liabilities to be maintained), then since they are often related to the company's financial statements, this type of audit is performed in conjunction with the financial statement audit.
An audit for compliance with the requirements established by state acts is carried out by auditors working in the state body that exercises control over the implementation of these acts, or by third-party auditors who are entrusted with such control. The results of the audit are reported to the relevant government agency.
An audit of financial statements and a special audit consists of checking the reporting of an entity in order to give an opinion on the correctness of the preparation of these statements in accordance with established criteria and generally accepted accounting rules. This type of audit is conducted by third-party auditors hired by the company whose reports are being audited. The results of the audit of financial statements are published and distributed to a wide range of users - shareholders, creditors, and government regulatory authorities 10 .
In accordance with the Federal Law of 07.08.01. No. 119-FZ “On Auditing Activities”, mandatory and proactive audits can be carried out.
Mandatory audits are carried out in cases established directly by law, or on behalf of government bodies. Mandatory audit is regulated by the state. In the Russian Federation, the Government of the Russian Federation has approved the main criteria (system of indicators) for the activities of economic entities, according to which their accounting (financial) , reporting is subject to mandatory annual audit. Appendix B, Table 2 presents the criteria, economic entities, reporting indicators and mandatory audit standards.
An initiative (voluntary) audit is carried out by decision of an economic entity, on the basis of an agreement with an auditor (audit firm). The nature and scope of such verification is determined by the client.
At the same time, the goals of proactive audit can be very different. For example, monitoring and analysis of the state of accounting as a whole or its individual sections; identifying the status of financial statements; organization of office work in accounting; assessment of used accounting automation tools and methods.
Several reasons for conducting a proactive audit can be identified:
Many enterprises, especially those that were once state-owned, previously subject to careful internal departmental control, which in recent years have undergone the procedure of privatization and corporatization and turned into joint-stock companies, have lost control from special bodies;
Turnover of accounting personnel, which in turn is caused by various circumstances - insufficiently high pay, reluctance of the management of new economic structures to treat the chief accountant as one of the main controllers of the legality of business transactions, and so on;
Low qualifications of accounting personnel at some enterprises, especially at enterprises established not so long ago.
An initiative audit differs from a mandatory audit in that it is carried out, regardless of legal requirements, only on the initiative of the management or founders of a legal entity.
Unlike a mandatory audit, an initiative audit is often accompanied by an additional audit assignment. This could be a detailed study of the correctness of budget calculations, or an emphasis on the area of accounting in which a weak specialist works. In some cases, it may be necessary to consider the justification of certain expenses, especially those associated with settlements with third parties to detect fraud. It happens that during the audit the issue of personnel competence is resolved.
2.2 Services related to audit
In accordance with the Law “On Auditing” (Article 1), audit organizations and auditors are entrepreneurs operating without forming a legal entity (hereinafter referred to as individual auditors) can provide the following audit-related services:
establishment, restoration and maintenance of accounting records, preparation of financial (accounting) statements, accounting consulting;
tax consulting;
analysis of financial and economic activities of organizations and individual entrepreneurs, economic and financial consulting;
management consulting, including those related to the restructuring of organizations;
legal advice, as well as representation in judicial and tax authorities in tax and customs disputes;
automation of accounting and implementation of information technologies;
assessment of property value, assessment of enterprises as property complexes, as well as business risks;
development and analysis of investment projects, drawing up business plans;
conducting marketing research;
conducting scientific research and experimental work in the field related to auditing activities, and disseminating their results, including on paper and electronic media;
training in accordance with the procedure established by the legislation of the Russian Federation for specialists in areas related to auditing activities;
provision of other services related to auditing activities.
Currently, audit-related services are beginning to occupy an increasing share in terms of quantity, types and volumes of sales in audit organizations. And this is no coincidence. It is audit firms that employ the most qualified specialists in the field of accounting, law, taxation, and finance. That is why the Russian Standard “Characteristics of audit-related services and requirements for them” 11 was created, which has no analogue in international auditing standards.
Performing audit-related services requires performers to have professional competence in the field of auditing, accounting and economic analysis, taxation, business law, and economics.
Based on their content, audit-related services can be divided into action services, control services and information services.
Action services are services for the creation of documents, the composition of which is established in an agreement with an economic entity, which were not previously created by the economic entity. Control services are services for checking documents for their compliance with the criteria agreed upon by the audit organization with the economic entity; proactive audit; control of accounting and reporting; control over the accrual and payment of taxes and other obligatory payments; testing of accounting personnel of an economic entity and personnel of audit firms. Information services - services for the preparation of oral and written consultations on various issues; conducting training, seminars, round tables; information service; publication of methodological recommendations and so on.
Auditing organizations and individual auditors are prohibited from engaging in any other business activity other than conducting an audit and providing related services 12 .
Conclusion
Audit, in different views, has long played an important role in the economic life of states.
At the current stage of development, audit is not only a form of financial control, but is also a good means of improving the structure of accounting and management of the enterprise itself.
To date, the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation has issued 7,000 licenses for auditing activities, 800 of them to individual auditors, and the rest to companies. Of this number, according to the RF Ministry of Finance itself, slightly more than half of the audit organizations are actually operating. Approximately 38,500 qualification certificates were received.
For an auditor, the main thing is the name and its reputation, and they are earned over the years, so the main market players, the top hundred of the market, have not undergone significant changes over the years.
The qualifications of auditors increase with the acquisition of experience and stricter requirements for obtaining licenses. Associations of auditors are being created. Special standards are being developed.
At the same time, the market as a whole faces a number of problems that hinder its development and reduce its efficiency.
Strong competition between market participants leads to the fact that some of them begin to sharply reduce prices for their services. Thus, they often follow the lead of clients who want to obtain auditor signatures for less money. Unjustified reduction in the cost of services leads to a decline in their quality. Instead of a detailed and thorough analysis of all financial (accounting) statements, an unscrupulous auditor may, without delving into the details, give a positive conclusion based on a superficial assessment or not conduct audits at all. This is a “black” audit in its purest form, which causes enormous harm to the market and its participants, and reduces the reputation of the auditing institution as such.
An audit is necessary for both the state and economic entities, therefore it is important and necessary for the state to develop a policy on this issue, as well as to adopt the necessary legislative acts in order to better control and help economic entities to develop and benefit the country.
For this period of time, the regulatory framework has not been properly formed, but with the advent of such regulatory documents as the “Temporary Rules for Auditing in the Russian Federation”, the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation “On the approval of regulatory documents for regulating auditing activities”, rules (standards) for auditing activities in RF, audit in the RF has entered a qualitatively new stage of development. Currently, we can say that a market for audit services has formed in Russia. We can say that over the past 10 years, the audit services market has developed into a fairly stable and in-demand sector of the economy. Every year, the volume of audit services provided in the Russian Federation increases by 30-40%. Audit can also be characterized as a fairly conservative sector of the market.
Summing up the results of the work done, we can analyze that significant changes will occur in the audit market in Russia in the next 2-3 years. The main trends are the consolidation of audit firms through mergers and acquisitions; growth in the quality of audit services and, accordingly, the cost of these services, active development and market dominance of national audit networks operating under international brands
As for the main goal of this course work, it was accomplished, that is, the concept of audit was revealed, its goals and objectives were determined, and types of audit were considered. As a result, we can say that a modern enterprise simply needs to conduct audits of its financial statements, even if this is not provided for by law, that is, conduct a proactive audit.
It is necessary to add about the importance of internal audit, that is, internal audit not only provides information about the activities of the organization itself, but also confirms the correctness and reliability of managers' reports.
Using internal audit information, enterprise management can quickly and timely implement the necessary changes within the enterprise.
In conclusion, I would like to emphasize that audit is becoming increasingly important for solving pressing problems of the organization, strengthening the financial position and its further development.
Glossary
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Audit |
entrepreneurial activity of auditors to carry out independent audits of accounting statements, payment and settlement documentation, tax returns and other financial obligations and requirements of economic entities in order to establish the reliability of their accounting statements and the compliance of their financial and business transactions with regulations. |
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Auditing |
an event consisting of the collection, assessment and analysis of audit evidence relating to the financial position of an economic entity subject to audit, and resulting in the expression of the auditor’s opinion on the correctness of accounting and the reliability of the financial statements of this economic entity. |
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"Inaudit" |
a joint-stock company whose task is to advise partners, exercise control over accounting and financial reporting of joint ventures with the participation of domestic enterprises and organizations. It is the first auditing firm in Russia. |
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Internal audit |
a system of control over compliance with the established accounting procedures and the reliability of the functioning of the internal control system organized at an economic entity in the interests of its owners and regulated by its internal documents. |
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Audit quality control |
methods and procedures adopted by the audit organization to ensure that its management has reasonable confidence that during all audits conducted by this organization, the requirements of the auditing rules and other regulatory documents governing auditing activities in the Russian Federation are met. |
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Auditor's opinion |
expressed in the prescribed form: the auditor’s conclusion about the reliability of the financial statements of the economic entity being audited, which the auditor is obliged to provide in his conclusion; and the auditor's conclusion on the sufficiency of the audit evidence collected to support the auditor's report. |
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Auditor's Responsibility |
sanctions related to non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment by the auditor of its obligations under an audit agreement concluded with an economic entity. The forms and types of liability are determined by current legislation and agreement of the parties. |
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Audit program |
a set of audit methods and techniques, documented in the prescribed form. The audit program includes a list of audit procedures used in a specific audit, as well as their nature, timing, scope and specific performers. |
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Working documentation of the audit |
a set of tangible media of information, which is compiled by the auditor himself, employees of the audited economic entity and third parties at the request of the auditor before, during and at the end of the audit. |
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Purpose of the audit |
establishing the reliability of the financial statements of economic entities and the compliance of their financial and business transactions with the regulations in force in the Russian Federation. |
List of sources used
Andreev V.D., Tomskikh S.A., Cheremshanov S.V. Auditing workshop: a textbook for universities. – M.: Finance and Statistics, 2006.
Baryshnikov N.P. Organization and methodology of conducting a general audit. - M.: Information Publishing House "FILIN", 2004.
Bogataya I.N., Khakhonova N.N. Audit workshop. - Rostov-on-Don: Phoenix, 2007.
Bulgakov L.I. Audit in Russia: mechanism of legal regulation. – Wolters Kluwer, 2005.
Gavrilova S.S. Audit. – M.: Vector, 2005.
Lyubushin N.P. Comprehensive economic analysis of economic activity. – M.: Unity-Dana, 2005.
Melnik M.V., Panteleev A.S., Zvezdin A.L. Audit and control. – M.: FBK-PRESS, 2005.
Fundamentals of auditing, edited by Kasyanov A.V. - Gross Media, 2006.
Pankov D. A Accounting abroad. – M.: New knowledge, 2005.
Podolsky V.I. Article-by-article commentary, Federal Law “On Auditing Activities”. - M.: Unity-Dana, 2004.
Prosvetov G.I. Analysis of the economic activity of an enterprise: Problems and solutions. – M.: RDL, 2005.
Stukov S.A. Golyshev V.D. Introduction to auditing. History of auditing. Tasks of the audit service. - M: Finance and Statistics, 2004
Suglobov A.E., Zharylgasova B.T. Accounting and auditing. – KnoRus, 2007.
Kharchenko O.N. Audit: Workshop. Tutorial. – KnoRus, 2005.
Appendix A
Audit as an element of market infrastructure
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Auditing services |
Other types of checks |
Related works |
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Purpose of service provision |
Expressing an opinion on the reliability of reporting |
Review of violations committed by the enterprise |
Depending on the type of related services |
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Sampling rate |
Up to 100% taking into account the magnitude (level) of materiality |
Depending on the type of inspection in agreement with the customer |
Not installed |
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Evidence of typical violations |
Audit evidence for all violations |
Audit evidence for part of typical violations, for the rest - audit information |
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Evidence of individual violations |
Audit evidence |
Audit evidence confirms the detection of individual violations |
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Level of assurance of reporting reliability |
Higher level of guarantee |
Lower level of guarantee |
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Report forms |
Audit report |
Audit firm (auditor) report |
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Types of audit activities |
Auditing |
Spot check of individual aspects of activity, thematic check, comprehensive check |
Other services permitted by applicable law |
Table 1
Appendix B
Criteria, subjects and indicators of mandatory audit
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Criteria |
Economic entities, reporting indicators |
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1. Organizational and legal form of an economic entity |
Open joint stock company, regardless of the number of shareholders and the size of the authorized capital |
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2. Type of activity of the economic entity |
1 . Banks and other credit institutions 2. Insurance organizations and mutual insurance companies 3. Commodity and stock exchanges 4 Investment institutions (investment and check investment funds, holding companies) 5. Extra-budgetary funds (if the sources of their formation are mandatory contributions provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation on the part of legal entities and individuals) 6. Charitable and other (non-investment) funds (sources of education - voluntary donations from legal entities and individuals) 7. Other economic entities where mandatory auditing is provided for by federal laws, Decrees of the President of the Russian Federation and decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation |
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3. Sources of formation of authorized capital |
If there is a share of foreign investors in the authorized capital |
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4. Financial indicators of an economic entity |
(Except for enterprises that are entirely state or municipal property)
1. The volume of revenue from the sale of products (works, services) for the year, if more than 500,000 times exceeds the minimum wage (minimum wage) 2. The amount of assets on the balance sheet at the end of the year, if more than 200,000 times the minimum wage 9Stukov S.A. Golyshev V.D. Introduction to auditing. History of auditing. Tasks of the audit service. - M: Finance and Statistics, 2004 Essence audit And audit activities (4)Abstract >> Accounting and Auditing SUBJECT: ESSENCE AUDIT AND AUDIT ACTIVITIES Contents Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………3 Basic concepts of development audit in Russia………..….…..6 Essence and goals audit……………………………………………………………….…….6 Legal regulation audit activities ... |
Auditing has a fairly long history. The first independent auditors appeared in the 19th century. in European joint stock companies.
Audit- this is a type of activity consisting in the collection and assessment of facts relating to the functioning and position of an economic entity (independent economic unit) or relating to information about such position and functioning, and carried out by a competent independent person who, based on established criteria, makes a conclusion about the qualitative side this functioning. Therefore, an audit refers to an independent examination and expression of an opinion on the financial statements of an enterprise. The main purpose of the audit is to determine the reliability and veracity of the financial statements of the subject of the audit, as well as to monitor the client’s compliance with laws and regulations of business law and tax legislation.
The need for auditor services arose in connection with the isolation of the interests of those who are directly involved in managing the enterprise (administration, managers), who invest in its activities (owners, shareholders, investors), as well as the state as a consumer of information about the results of enterprise activities.
The presence of reliable information makes it possible to increase the efficiency of the capital market and makes it possible to assess and predict the consequences of economic decisions.
Conducting an audit, even in cases where it is not mandatory, is undoubtedly important.
In market conditions, enterprises, credit institutions, and other business entities enter into contractual relations for the use of property, funds, commercial transactions and investments. The trust of these relationships must be supported by the ability to receive and use financial information by all parties to the transactions. The reliability of the information is confirmed by an independent auditor.
Owners and, above all, collective owners - shareholders, shareholders, as well as creditors are not able to independently verify that all operations of the enterprise, numerous and often very complex, are legal and correctly reflected in the statements, since they usually do not have access to the accounts and relevant experience, and therefore require the services of auditors.
Independent confirmation of information about the performance of enterprises and their compliance with the law is necessary for the state to make decisions in the field of economics and taxation.
Audits are also necessary for government agencies, judges, prosecutors and investigators to confirm the reliability of the financial statements of interest to them.
In Russia, in recent years, some work has been done to establish an auditing institution. Presidential Decree on auditing activities in the Russian Federation No. 2263 dated December 22, 1993 was adopted. This Decree approved the Temporary Rules for Auditing in the Russian Federation, and established the Commission on Auditing under the President of the Russian Federation. During the period after the adoption of this Decree, the Government of the Russian Federation approved a number of regulatory documents on the regulation of auditing activities in the Russian Federation, determined the procedure for certification for the right to carry out auditing activities and the procedure for issuing licenses to carry out auditing activities, identified entities that must be subject to mandatory audit,
The Commission on Auditing under the President of the Russian Federation has granted the right to conduct qualifying exams (certification) in general auditing to more than thirty universities and other organizations that have created special centers for conducting qualifying exams for the right to engage in auditing activities. Over the past period, more than 26,000 auditors in these centers have successfully passed exams and received certificates in the field of general audit, and 1,600 people in the field of investment institutions. Similar work in the field of banking audit is carried out by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, in the field of insurance audit - by the Ministry of Finance (formerly Rosstrakhnadzor).
The essence of audit and auditing activities
In the Russian Federation, financial control is carried out in the form of state financial control and auditing activities, which are in the stage of formation and gradual improvement in accordance with the needs of the rule of law. State financial control is carried out both on the scale of the Russian Federation and in the constituent entities of Russia. In addition, municipal financial control is exercised at the local government level.
State financial control in Russia is carried out by: the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation, the Control and Audit Apparatus of the Ministry of Finance of Russia, consisting of the Department of State Financial Control and Audit of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation and the control and audit departments of the Ministry of Finance of Russia in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Taxes and Duties of the Russian Federation, the Federal Service Russia on currency and export control, Federal Treasury. State Customs Committee, control bodies of Legislative (executive) bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation (accounts chambers or similar bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation).
The main functions include: checking the correctness of the formation of public funds, their safety and intended use; monitoring the correctness and efficiency of use of credit resources; ensuring the validity and legality of the actions of credit institutions regarding the use of funds of organizations and individuals; control of state internal and external debt.
If violations for which criminal liability is provided are detected, state financial control bodies must transfer the audit or inspection materials to law enforcement agencies.
The right to order inspections by the relevant bodies is exercised by the President of the Russian Federation, the State Duma and the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, the Main Control Directorate of the President of the Russian Federation, federal executive authorities, authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, law enforcement agencies - courts, prosecutors, police, federal security services and tax police - within their competence, heads of state financial control bodies.
Federal government bodies, government bodies of constituent entities of the Russian Federation, state and unitary organizations must exercise departmental control over the legality of spending public funds at their disposal, the completeness and timeliness of fulfillment of obligations to the budget, budgets of constituent entities, extra-budgetary funds, including taxes and other mandatory payments, proper accounting, etc.
Audit- this is a licensed entrepreneurial activity of certified independent legal entities and individuals (audit companies and individual auditors) - legal participants in economic activity, aimed at confirming the reliability of financial, accounting and tax reporting, to reduce, to an acceptable level of information risk for interested users of the accounting reports presented enterprise (organization) owners, as well as other legal entities and individuals.
This definition of audit reflects:
1. the single purpose of the audit is to confirm the reliability of reporting and reduce the risk of using it in economic activity;
2. uniform audit requirements - availability of certificates and licenses;
3. uniform and mandatory conditions - the audit is carried out by independent entities.
Audit activity (audit) in Russia is the entrepreneurial activity of auditors (audit firms) to carry out non-departmental audits of accounting (financial) statements, accounting documents, tax returns and other financial obligations and requirements of economic entities, as well as the provision of other audit services.
An auditor (from Latin auditor - listener, student, follower) is a person who checks the state of the financial and economic activities of an enterprise for a certain period. An auditor differs from an auditor in its essence, in its approach to checking documentation, in its relationship with the client, in the conclusions drawn from the results of the audit, etc.
Auditing activities include, in addition to inspections, the provision of various types of services: accounting and restoration, consultations on accounting, taxation, training, etc.
A well-known American specialist in the field of theory and practice of auditing, prof. J. Robertson emphasizes that auditing is an activity aimed at reducing business risk. And further concludes that the audit helps reduce information risk for users of financial statements to an acceptable level. You can roughly calculate (predict) this risk and determine the probability of favorable events. At the same time, the business risk of a company (firm, organization) does not have a direct impact on auditors.
An audit also differs from forensic accounting. The difference is that an audit is an independent verification, while a forensic accounting examination is carried out by decision of the judicial authorities. The specificity of forensic accounting is manifested in its procedural and legal form, which ensures obtaining a source of evidence in the application of expert knowledge in the field of accounting in the course of studying completed business transactions.
An audit exists regardless of the presence or absence of a criminal or civil case, while a forensic accounting examination cannot exist outside of a criminal or arbitration case, since it represents a procedural and legal form (the legal side of this type of examination).
The auditor may be involved as an expert accountant when conducting a forensic accounting examination. The expert, as an independent procedural figure, as a qualified specialist in the field of accounting and control, independently determines research methods, since he is responsible for the validity of his conclusions. The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not provide any restrictions for specialist auditors in performing the functions of an expert accountant.
In Russia, auditing activities and the auditor profession in their modern form appeared relatively recently in connection with the economic transformations in the country at the present time. Meanwhile, as noted by a well-known specialist in the field of audit, control and revision, Prof. Yu. A. Danilevsky, attempts to create an audit institute in Russia were made in 1889, 1912 and 1928, but they all ended in failure.
The fourth attempt, made in the late 80s, turned out to be, in our opinion, the most successful. The first impetus for the emergence of audit firms came from the formation of joint ventures (JVs) in the USSR. For these enterprises, auditing has become mandatory to confirm annual reports. In 1987 On the basis of a resolution of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the first self-supporting company “Joint Stock Company “Inaudit” was created in our country. This company was engaged in audits, advising joint ventures on taxation, various legal issues, etc.
Currently, more than three thousand audit firms have been created and are successfully operating in Russia. These include such as FBK, Rosexpertiza, Rufaudit, Audit Chamber ASVP (Moscow), Aktionaudit (Ekaterinburg), etc.
The largest intercontinental auditing firms - Arthur Andersen, Ernst & Young, KPMG, etc. - opened their branches in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other cities of Russia.
In addition to audit firms, auditing in Russia is also carried out by privately practicing auditors (entrepreneur auditors), of whom there are more than 2,000 people.
An auditor is a representative of a free profession, such as, for example, privately practicing lawyers, doctors, and musicians. However, auditors working alone are becoming increasingly rare in developed market economies.
Goals and objectives of auditing activities
The goals and objectives of auditing activities are very multifaceted. The general classification of auditing activities is presented in Figure 1.
Based on the above classification, it is advisable to consider the goals and objectives of auditing activities. Primacy in this regard belongs specifically to external audit, the purpose and main objectives of which are given in the Temporary Rules for Auditing in the Russian Federation and Russian rules (standards) for auditing.
The main goal of an external audit is to provide objective, real and accurate information about the audited object.
The achievement of the main goal is facilitated by the features (requirements) of conducting audit activities: independence and objectivity when conducting audits; confidentiality, professionalism, competence and integrity of the auditor; use of statistical methods and economic analysis; application of new information technologies; ability to make rational decisions based on audit data; goodwill and loyalty towards clients; the auditor's responsibility for the consequences of his recommendations and conclusions based on the results of audits; promoting the growth of the authority of the auditing profession.
The features listed above determine the auditor’s standards of conduct.
The independence of the auditor is determined by the fact that he is not an employee of a government agency, is not subordinate to control and audit bodies and does not work under their control, complies with the standards of a professional audit association (association), and does not have any property or personal interests in the audited enterprises. Objectivity is ensured by the auditor’s high professional training, extensive practical experience, and knowledge of the latest methodological literature.
Confidentiality is the most important requirement when carrying out audit activities. The auditor should not provide any body with any information about the economic activities of the object he is auditing. For the disclosure of the secrets of his clients, he must bear responsibility under the law, as well as moral, and if provided for by the contract, then also financial responsibility.
The auditor must have the necessary professional qualifications, take care to maintain them at the proper level, and comply with the requirements of regulatory documents. The auditor should not provide services to the client in those areas of the economy in which he does not have sufficient professional knowledge.
The use of statistical and economic analysis methods allows us to organize the analysis of the audits carried out at a high scientific level and obtain more objective and reliable data for decision-making.
The use of new information technologies consists mainly in the use of computer technology to organize audit activities. This applies to conducting audits, analyzing reports, maintaining and restoring records.
Based on the results of the audit, the auditor can draw the necessary rational conclusions that will help the client in organizing work and maintaining accounting records.
The responsibility of the auditor is manifested in the fact that he is responsible for his opinion on the financial statements of the audited enterprise. The management of the audited enterprise is responsible for the content of the reports.
External audit is carried out on a contractual basis by audit firms or individual auditors for the purpose of objectively assessing the reliability of the accounting and financial statements of an economic entity.
External audit in the Russian Federation, from the point of view of areas of audit activity and industry characteristics, is divided into general audit, insurance audit, audit of banks, audit of exchanges, extra-budgetary funds and investment institutions.
Internal audit is an independent activity within an organization to review and evaluate its performance for the benefit of management. The purpose of internal audit is to help the organization's employees perform their functions effectively. Internal audits are carried out by auditors working directly for the company. Small organizations may not have full-time auditors. In this case, the internal audit can be entrusted to an audit commission or an audit firm on a contractual basis.
An audit can be proactive (voluntary), when it is carried out by decision of the management of the enterprise or its founders, or mandatory, if its conduct is stipulated by a direct instruction in a federal law or a decree of the Government of the Russian Federation.
The main goal of a proactive audit is to identify shortcomings in accounting, reporting, and taxation, to analyze the financial condition of a business entity and to help it organize accounting and reporting.
An initiative audit is usually carried out by decision of the management of an economic entity. The goals of a proactive audit can be very different: monitoring and analysis of the state of accounting as a whole or its individual sections; identifying the status of financial statements; organization of office work in accounting; assessment of used accounting automation tools and methods; assessment of the status of tax calculations, etc.
There are several reasons for conducting a proactive audit. Firstly, many enterprises, especially ex-state ones, which were previously subject to careful internal departmental control, which in recent years have undergone the procedure of privatization and corporatization and turned into joint-stock companies, have lost control from special bodies. Secondly, the turnover of accounting personnel, which in turn is caused by various circumstances - insufficiently high pay, the reluctance of the management of new economic structures to treat the chief accountant as one of the main controllers of the legality of business transactions, etc. Thirdly, the low qualifications of accounting personnel at some enterprises, especially newly formed ones.
Managers of enterprises and organizations facing such problems themselves turn to audit firms with requests for help.
An initiative audit can be either comprehensive or thematic, i.e. in this case, only individual sections and areas of accounting are subject to control and analysis. The depth of the check may also be different: a complete and complete check of accounting data starting from primary documents, an inventory of assets and liabilities, a selective check of primary accounting data or only the data contained in accounting registers and reporting.
If the proactive audit is comprehensive, it covers all of the above goals. The methodology for conducting an initiative audit does not differ from conducting a mandatory audit.
Mandatory audit in our country is carried out in accordance with the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated December 7, 1994.
An audit on special audit assignments is carried out to verify individual items of financial statements, the quality of property, legal and economic expertise agreements (contracts) regulating civil law relations, efficiency of capital use and other issues directly related to the financial and economic activities of an economic entity.
In the sequential development of an audit, three stages can be distinguished: confirmatory, system-oriented and the risk-based audit stage.
At the confirmatory stage of the audit, during the audit, the auditor-accountant checked and confirmed almost every business transaction, and in parallel with the accountant created his own accounting registers. Nowadays such a service would be called restoration or record keeping.
Since auditing is a business activity aimed at making a profit, auditors must use such verification methods that would minimize the time required to conduct an audit without compromising quality.
System-oriented audit involves monitoring systems that control operations. The development of auditing at this stage has led to the fact that auditors began to conduct examinations based on internal control. If the internal control system works well, external audits are facilitated.
Risk-based audit, - this type of audit when the audit can be carried out selectively based on the operating conditions of the enterprise, mainly bottlenecks (critical points) in its work. By focusing audit work in higher risk areas, the time spent auditing low risk areas can be reduced. Those who rely on auditors' judgment believe that this can provide a more cost-effective audit.
According to the object of study, it is customary to distinguish three types of audit: financial, compliance and operational.
Financial audit(financial statement audit) involves assessing the reliability of financial information. The evaluation criteria are usually generally accepted accounting principles. Financial audits are carried out primarily by independent auditors, whose work results in an opinion on the financial statements. In form and content, a financial audit is closest to the audit carried out in Russia.
Compliance audit is intended to identify an enterprise's compliance with specific rules, regulations, laws, regulations, contractual obligations that affect the results of operations or reports. In the process of checking for compliance, it is determined whether the activities of the enterprise comply with its charter, whether funds for wages are accrued correctly, whether taxes are calculated and paid reasonably, etc. Compliance checks require the establishment of appropriate criteria for assessing financial statements.
Operational audit used to test the procedures and methods of operation of the enterprise, to evaluate productivity and efficiency. It can be effectively used to check the implementation of business plans, estimates, various target programs, personnel work, etc. Sometimes such an audit is called an audit of the efficiency of an enterprise or the activities of the administration.
Depending on the intended goals, the operational audit is carried out: at the intersectoral, sectoral, intra-company level; external or internal auditors; for the benefit of external or internal users.
Internal and external audit
The main types of audit are internal and external audit.
Internal audit. Its main task is to solve individual functional management problems, develop and test enterprise information systems. Internal audit is an integral part of the management control of an enterprise. It can also be independent, i.e. directly report not to the executive body of the enterprise, but to external founders.
The rule (standard) of auditing in the Russian Federation defines internal audit as a system of control organized by an economic entity, acting in the interests of its management and (or) owners, regulated by internal documents over compliance with the established accounting procedure and the reliability of the functioning of the internal control system.
The organization, role and functions of internal audit are determined by the economic entity itself, namely its management and (or) owners, depending on:
2. volumes of indicators of financial and economic activity of an economic entity;
3. the existing management system of the economic entity;
4. state of internal control.
Internal audit functions can be performed by special services or individual auditors on the staff of an economic entity, audit commissions (auditors), third-party organizations engaged for internal audit purposes and (or) external auditors.
Internal audit institutions include auditors, audit commissions, internal auditors or groups of internal auditors appointed by the owners and (or) management of an economic entity.
The work of internal audit has informational and consulting significance for the management and (or) owners of an economic entity; it is designed to help optimize the activities of an economic entity and fulfill the responsibilities of its management.
The objects of internal audit may be different depending on the characteristics of the economic entity and the requirements of its management and (or) owners. Typically, internal audit functions include:
1. inspection of accounting and internal control systems, their monitoring and development of recommendations for improving these systems;
2. verification of accounting and operational information, including examination of the means and methods used to identify, evaluate, classify such information and compile reports based on it, as well as a special study of individual reporting items, including detailed checks of transactions and account balances;
3. checking compliance with laws and other regulations, as well as the requirements of accounting policies, instructions, decisions and instructions of management and (or) owners;
4. checking the activities of various management levels;
5. assessment of the effectiveness of the internal control mechanism, study and evaluation of control checks in branches, structural divisions of an economic entity;
6. checking the availability, condition and ensuring the safety of the property of an economic entity;
7. work on special projects and control over individual elements of the internal control structure;
8. assessment of the software used by the economic entity;
9. special investigations into individual cases, such as suspected abuses;
10. development and presentation of proposals to eliminate identified deficiencies and recommendations to improve management efficiency.
The objectivity of internal audit is ensured by the degree of its independence in the management structure of an economic entity. This requirement for internal audit, as a rule, is ensured by the fact that it reports and is obliged to submit reports only to the management and (or) owners who appointed it and is independent from the heads of the audited branches of the economic entity, structural divisions, internal control bodies, etc.
The Institute of Internal Auditors has developed the following definition:
Internal audit is an independent activity in an organization (enterprise) to verify and evaluate its work in its interests. The purpose of internal audit is to help members of an organization perform their functions effectively. Internal auditors provide their organization (enterprise) with analysis and assessment data, recommendations and other necessary information resulting from audits.
Internal auditors are employees who are on the staff of the enterprise and subordinate to its management. The tasks of internal audit are determined by management, based on the needs of management, both divisions of the enterprise and the enterprise as a whole.
The activity of the internal auditor consists of performing a wide range of different functions included in his responsibilities.
These features include:
1. review of control systems aimed at developing company policy within the framework of the law;
2. assessing the economy and efficiency of the company’s operations;
3. checking the level of achievement of program goals;
4. confirmation of the reliability of information used by management when making decisions.
Internal audit not only provides information about the activities of the organization itself, but also confirms the correctness and reliability of managers' reports. Using internal audit information, enterprise management can quickly and timely implement the necessary changes within the enterprise.
To a certain extent, the functions of internal auditors are performed by audit groups in the accounting departments of large enterprises, subordinate to the chief accountant or financial director, but the functions of internal auditors are broader.
Internal audit solves the following tasks:
1. Monitoring the condition of assets and preventing losses.
2. Confirmation of the implementation of internal control procedures.
3. Analysis of the effectiveness of the internal control and information processing system.
4. Assessing the quality of information produced by the management information system.
Internal and external audit complement each other and at the same time differ significantly.
Table 1 lists the main features and differences between internal and external audit.
Table 1. Characteristics of the features of internal and external audit
Elements
Internal audit
External audit
Setting goals
Determined by management based on management needs: both internal divisions of the enterprise and the enterprise as a whole
Determined by an agreement between independent parties: the enterprise and the audit firm (auditor)
Solving individual functional management problems, developing and testing enterprise information systems
Mainly enterprise accounting and reporting system
Determined by the management of the enterprise
Determined by audit legislation: assessing the reliability of financial statements and confirming compliance with current legislation
Facilities
Self-selected (or determined by internal audit standards)
Determined by generally accepted auditing standards
Type of activity Organization of work
Performing activities Carrying out specific management tasks
Entrepreneurial activity Determined by the auditor independently, based on generally accepted norms and rules of auditing
Relationships
Subordination to the management of the enterprise, dependence on it
Equal partnership, independence
Subjects
Employees subordinate to the management of the enterprise and on staff of the enterprise
Independent experts who have the appropriate certificate and license to engage in this type of business
Qualification
Determined at the discretion of the enterprise management
Regulated by the state
Payroll calculation according to staff schedule
Payment for services provided under the contract
Responsibility
To management for fulfilling duties
To the client and to third parties, established by legislative and regulatory acts
The methods may be the same when solving the same problems (for example, assessing the reliability of information). There are differences in the degree of accuracy and detail
Reporting
Before management
The final part of the audit report can be published, the analytical part is transferred to the client
Audit of a crisis enterprise
The need for an audit of a crisis enterprise:
1. To analyze the financial and economic condition and evaluate the performance of management, reliable information is necessary;
2. Without an audit, it is quite difficult for a crisis management specialist to objectively assess the situation at the enterprise and develop a program for reforming and restructuring the enterprise.
The importance of auditing a crisis enterprise:
1. Allows you to assess the quality and reliability of financial statements;
2. Allows you to identify the most vulnerable areas in the management of financial, economic and legal activities;
3. Allows, based on the analysis of the reflection of all operations performed by the enterprise, to prepare a recovery plan (restructuring, changes in economic, accounting, financial, tax policies, etc.)
List of used literature
1. Temporary rules for auditing activities in the Russian Federation, Decree of the President of the Russian Federation dated December 22, 1993 No. 2263
2. Civil Code of the Russian Federation M. - 1994.
3. Danilevsky Yu.A. “Audit in Russia” M. – 1994
4. Suits V.P. and others. “Audit: general, banking, insurance” M. - 2000.
5. “Audit in Russia” M. “Invest Fund” 1994
6. Komyshchanov P.I. “Practical guide to auditing” M. – 1994.
7. Podolsky V.I. “Audit” Textbook M. – 2000
8. Perekrestenko P.V. and others. “Accounting and Audit” M. - 1997.
Purpose, objectives and types of audit
The purpose of the audit in accordance with Federal Rule (Standard) of Auditing No. 1 “The purpose and basic principles of the audit of financial (accounting) statements” is to express an opinion on the reliability of the financial (accounting) statements of the audited entities and the compliance of the accounting procedure with the legislation of the Russian Federation.
Although the auditor's opinion may enhance confidence in the financial statements, the user should not accept the opinion either as an expression of confidence in the entity's going concern in the future, or as evidence of the effective conduct of the entity's management.
Thus, the main audit purpose - provide objective, real and accurate information about the audited object.
To do this, it is necessary to provide for the following tasks :
Drawing up a plan and program for conducting an audit;
Determining the types, sources and methods of obtaining audit evidence;
Conducting an audit of an economic entity;
Expressing an opinion based on the results of the audit on the reliability of financial (accounting) statements.
Helps achieve the main goal auditor standards of conduct or (requirements) for conducting audit activities:
Independence and objectivity when conducting inspections. The independence of the auditor is due to the fact that he is not an employee of a government agency, is not subordinate to control and audit bodies and does not work under their control, complies with the standards of a professional audit association (association), and does not have any property or personal interests in the audited enterprises. Objectivity is ensured by the auditor’s high professional training, extensive practical experience, and knowledge of the latest methodological literature.;
Confidentiality, professionalism, competence and integrity of the auditor. Confidentiality is the most important requirement when carrying out audit activities. The auditor should not provide any body with any information about the economic activities of the object he is auditing. For the disclosure of the secrets of his clients, he must bear responsibility under the law, as well as moral, and if provided for by the contract, then financial responsibility. The auditor must also have the necessary professional qualifications, take care to maintain them at the proper level, and comply with the requirements of regulatory documents. The auditor should not provide services to the client in those areas of the economy in which he does not have sufficient professional knowledge;
Application of new information technologies; ability to make rational decisions based on audit data;
Friendliness and loyalty towards clients;
The auditor's responsibility for the consequences of his recommendations and conclusions based on the results of audits;
Auditing activities are quite diverse. Auditing has undergone changes both in the process of its historical development and by expanding the scope of its application.
Historically, the following stages of audit development have been distinguished (which can also be considered as types of audit):
Confirmatory audit. It consists of checking and confirming the accuracy of accounting documents;
System-oriented audit. The audit is focused on analyzing the enterprise’s internal control system. If the internal control system operates effectively, the scope of the audit can be significantly reduced;
Risk-based audit. Audit expertise is concentrated in those areas where audit risk is higher, while the time required to review areas with low risks is reduced. Determining the level of materiality in the audit and calculating the audit sample is of great importance.
External audit carried out on a contractual basis by audit firms or individual auditors for the purpose of objectively assessing the reliability of accounting and financial statements of an economic entity.
External audit in the Russian Federation, from the point of view of areas of audit activity and industry characteristics, is divided into general audit, insurance audit, audit of banks, audit of exchanges, extra-budgetary funds and investment institutions.
Internal audit represents an independent activity organized by the economic entity itself to verify and evaluate its work in the interests of managers and (or) owners. The purpose of internal audit is to help the organization's employees perform their functions effectively. Internal audits are carried out by auditors working directly for the company. Small organizations may not have full-time auditors. In this case, the internal audit can be entrusted to an audit commission or an audit firm on a contractual basis.
Typically, the functions of internal audit include checking accounting and internal control systems, developing recommendations for improving these systems, checking accounting and operational information, compliance with laws and other regulations, checking the activities of various management levels, assessing the effectiveness of the internal control mechanism, checking the availability, condition and safety of the enterprise's property, special investigations of individual cases, for example, suspicions of abuse, development of proposals to eliminate identified deficiencies and recommendations to improve management efficiency. In table 3 presents the main differences between internal and external audit.
| Factors | Internal audit | External audit |
| An object | Internal information systems of the enterprise | Enterprise accounting and financial reporting system |
| Target | Determined by management | Determined by law |
| Tasks | Determined by management | Determined in the agreement between the auditor and the client |
| Facilities | Self-selected | Defined by generally accepted standards |
| Kind of activity | Performing activities | Entrepreneurial activity |
| Nature of the relationship | Subordination to management (vertical communications) | Equal partnership (horizontal ties) |
| Subjects | Mainly company employees | Independent specialists with a certificate and license |
| Qualification of subjects | Determined by management decision | Regulated by the state |
| Payment for audit services | Set by management decision | Determined in the agreement between the auditor and the client |
| Responsibility of subjects | To management for performance of official duties | To the client and third parties in the amount established by law |
| Methods | With greater precision and detail | Diverse - with lesser and greater degrees of accuracy and detail |
| Reporting | The entire report is presented to management | The final part of the conclusion is published, the analytical part (report) is presented to management |
| Periodicity | The process is carried out continuously | Typically once a year |
There are also initial audits and agreed (ongoing) audits. Initial audit is carried out by the auditor for the first time for a given entity being audited, which significantly increases the risk and complexity of the audit, since auditors do not have information about the specifics of the client’s activities, the level of internal control, etc.
Consistent audit carried out repeatedly. At the same time, planning and conducting an audit is based on knowledge of the specifics of the client’s activities and the organization of accounting at the enterprise. Often, an audit firm also provides consulting services to the audited company, which also helps reduce the risk of the audit and increase its reliability without increasing the size of the audit sample.
From point of view inspected economic entities audit can be divided into the following types:
General audit (audit of enterprises and organizations, regardless of organizational and legal forms and types of ownership, institutions);
Banking audit (audit of banks and other credit institutions);
Audit of insurance organizations;
Exchange audit;
Audit of extra-budgetary funds;
Audit of investment funds.
Recently, such types of audits as tax audit, environmental audit, construction audit, etc. have appeared.
Audit happens proactive (voluntary ), when it is carried out by decision of the management of the enterprise or its founders, or compulsory , if its implementation is stipulated by a direct indication in a federal law or decree of the Government of the Russian Federation.
primary goal INITIATIVE AUDIT - identify shortcomings in accounting, reporting, taxation, analyze the financial condition of a business entity and help it in organizing accounting and reporting.
An initiative audit is usually carried out by decision of the management of an economic entity. The goals of a proactive audit can be very different: monitoring and analysis of the state of accounting as a whole or its individual sections; identifying the status of financial statements; organization of office work in accounting; assessment of used accounting automation tools and methods; assessment of the status of tax calculations, etc.
Conducting a proactive audit may be due to several reasons. Firstly, many enterprises, especially ex-state ones, lost control of special bodies during the privatization and corporatization procedure. Secondly, there is a turnover of accounting personnel, which, in turn, is caused by various circumstances - insufficiently high pay, the reluctance of the management of new economic structures to treat the chief accountant as one of the main controllers of the legality of business transactions, etc. Thirdly, The reason for conducting a proactive audit may be the low qualifications of accounting personnel at some enterprises, especially newly formed ones.
An initiative audit can be either comprehensive or thematic. At thematic During the audit, only individual sections and areas of accounting are subject to control and analysis. The depth of the check may also be different: a complete and complete check of accounting data, starting with primary documents, an inventory of assets and liabilities, a selective check of primary accounting data or only the data contained in accounting registers and reporting.
If the proactive audit is complex character, then covers all the above goals. The methodology for conducting an initiative audit does not differ from conducting a mandatory audit.
MANDATORY AUDIT carried out in the following cases (Article 5 of the Federal Law “On Auditing Activities”):
1) if the organization has the organizational and legal form of an open joint stock company;
2) if the organization’s securities are admitted to trading at stock exchanges and (or) other organizers of trading on the securities market;
3) if the organization is a credit organization, a credit history bureau, an organization that is a professional participant in the securities market, an insurance organization, a clearing organization, a mutual insurance company, a commodity, currency or stock exchange, a non-state pension or other fund, a joint-stock investment fund, a management company joint-stock investment fund, mutual investment fund or non-state pension fund (except for state extra-budgetary funds);
4) if revenue volume from the sale of products (sale of goods, performance of work, provision of services) of an organization (except for state authorities, local governments, state and municipal institutions, state and municipal unitary enterprises, agricultural cooperatives, unions of these cooperatives) for the previous reporting year exceeds 400 million rubles or the amount of assets balance sheet as of at the end of the previous reporting year exceeds 60 million rubles;
5) if an organization (except for a government body, local government body, state extra-budgetary fund, as well as state and municipal institutions) submits and (or) publishes consolidated accounting (financial) statements;
6) in other cases established by federal laws.
Mandatory audit is carried out annually.
Audit of organizations whose securities are admitted to trading at stock exchanges and (or) other organizers of trading on the securities market, other credit and insurance organizations, non-state pension funds, organizations in whose authorized (share) capitals the share of state ownership is at least 25 percent, state corporations, state-owned companies, as well as consolidated reporting is carried out only by audit organizations.
Agreement to conduct a mandatory audit of the accounting (financial) statements of an organization in the authorized (share) capital of which is a share state ownership is at least 25 percent, state corporation, state company, state unitary enterprise or municipal unitary enterprise is concluded only based on the results of participation in an open competition in the manner prescribed by Federal Law No. 94-FZ of July 21, 2005 “On placing orders for the supply of goods, performance of work, provision of services for state and municipal needs.”
According to Part 2 of Art. 5 of Law No. 307-FZ, mandatory audits are carried out annually. The period within which the audit must be carried out has not been approved
.
At the same time, paragraph 2 of Art. 15 of the Federal Law of November 21, 1996 N 129-FZ “On Accounting” (hereinafter referred to as Law N 129-FZ) established that organizations, with the exception of budgetary and public organizations (associations) and their structural divisions, do not carry out entrepreneurial activities and do not having, in addition to disposed property, turnover in the sale of goods (works, services), are required to present:
Quarterly financial statements - within 30 days after the end of the quarter;
Annual financial statements - within 90 days after the end of the year, unless otherwise provided by the legislation of the Russian Federation.
In accordance with paragraphs. "g" clause 2 art. 13 of Law N 129-FZ, the auditor’s report is included in the financial statements and confirms their reliability if, in accordance with federal laws, a mandatory audit must be carried out in the organization.
Thus, an audit of an organization, if it is subject to a mandatory audit in accordance with federal laws, must be scheduled and carried out within a time frame that allows the audit report to be submitted to the tax authority at the place of registration within 90 days after the end of the year (resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Central District dated July 25 .2007 N A64-5050/06-15).
In the situation under consideration, the financial statements for 2012 must be submitted no later than 03/31/2013, therefore, an audit of the organization must be scheduled and carried out before the specified date, within the time frame allowing for the submission of the audit report to the tax authority at the place of registration * (1).