独立审计实务公告第3号——小规模企业审计的特殊考虑
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会协字[1996]457号 Chapter 1 General provisions Article 1 This pronouncement is prepared in accordance with the General Independent Auditing Standard to establish standards for Certified Public Accountants （“CPAs”） to perform audits on the financial statements of small businesses in compliance with the requirements of the Independent Auditing Standards， to improve audit efficiency and to ensure a high standard of professional work. Article 2 The term “small business” in this pronouncement refers to a business that has a low level of turnover or of total assets， few employees and limited segregation of duties. Article 3 Unless otherwise specified， CPAs should refer to this pronouncement in performing audit work other than the audit of financial statements for a small business. Chapter 2 General principles Article 4 The CPA should apply professional judgement to determine whether the entity is a small business and， according to its characteristics， perform effective audit procedures. The result of the CPA's judgement on this will not alter the audit objectives or the audit responsibility that should be borne by the CPA. Article 5 The CPA should pay adequate attention to the following major characteristics that a small business may have， and consider their impact on the financial statements： （1） concentration of ownership amongst a few individuals； （2） few management staff and a simple organisational structure； （3） a lack of formal internal control systems； （4） extremely limited segregation of duties； （5） a high possibility of management overriding the internal controls； （6） domination of all basic operating activities by the senior management staff or owners； and （7） small size and simple economic activities. Article 6 The CPA should obtain an understanding of the basic conditions of the small business sufficient to enable him to make a preliminary assessment of the audit risk to determine whether to accept the engagement. Article 7 If the CPA is unlikely to be able to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence because of incomplete accounting records， non-existence of internal controls or misconduct of the management staff in the small business， he may consider refusing to accept the engagement or withdrawing from the engagement. Article 8 When performing an audit of a small business， the CPA should apply professional judgement to determine audit materiality and the level of audit risk. In addition， the CPA may simplify the audit plan according to actual circumstances. Article 9 An accounting firm may simultaneously enter into audit， accounting advisory and accounting service engagements with a small business provided that the following requirements are fulfilled： （1） The CPA， who performs the audit engagement should not accept those accounting advisory or accounting service engagements which would affect him in expressing an independent， objective and fair audit opinion. （2） When the CPA makes recommendations to the business， he should not make a decision on behalf of the business. The recommendations should not be regarded as a consent to the dealings of the business. Chapter 3 Special considerations with respect to internal controls Article 10 When performing an audit of the financial statements of a small business， the CPA should obtain an adequate understanding of the internal controls to determine whether they are reliable. If necessary， the CPA may require the small business to explain its relevant internal controls in writing. Article 11 The internal controls in a small business are usually weaker and the control risk is higher. The CPA may consider not performing compliance tests. Article 12 When the CPA does not perform compliance tests on specific internal controls and the client requests the CPA to perform an audit specifically of specific internal controls， the CPA may consider contracting the terms under a separate engagement letter with the client. Chapter 4 Special considerations with respect to substantive tests Article 13 When performing substantive tests， the CPA should perform the necessary audit procedures in accordance with the requirements of Independent Auditing Standards， but may simplify them according to specific circumstances. Article 14 The inherent risk and control risk in a small business is usually higher. Generally， the CPA should rely heavily or entirely on substantive procedures to obtain audit evidence to reduce the detection risk to an acceptable level. Article 15 When performing substantive tests， the CPA should consider the principles of cost and benefit and should adopt the following methods to obtain audit evidence efficiently： （1） perform analytical procedures of the items in the financial statements， especially the items in the profit and loss account； （2） perform tests of closing balances， especially those of the material accounts； and （3） perform tests of material transactions or events. Article 16 When performing substantive tests， the CPA should pay particular attention to the following matters which may result in material misstatements or omissions in the financial statements of a small business： （1） the understatement of income or overstatement of expenses for particular purposes， such as reducing tax liability etc.； （2） the inclusion of personal expenditure as expenses of the business； （3） inappropriate benefit being obtained from the business by the owners or management staff， for the purpose of solving personal financial problems； （4） financial position and operating results being subject to window-dressing because of various needs， such as raising capital externally； （5） an inconsistent relationship between the economic benefit obtained from the business by the management staff and： - the responsibility borne by the management staff； together with - the size of the business. （6） the economic benefit obtained by management staff being dependent on the operating results of the business. Chapter 5 Supplementary provisions Article 17 The Chinese Institute of Certified Public accountants is responsible for the interpretation of this pronouncement. Article 18 This pronouncement takes effect from 1January 1997. |
