Breaking Down the New Auditor's Reporting Suite of Standards for ERISA Engagements

Overview

A new Auditor's Reporting Model for ERISA engagements is here.

AU-C section 703, Forming an Opinion and Reporting on Financial Statements of Employee Benefit Plans Subject to ERISA, addresses the auditor's responsibility to form an opinion on the financial statements of EBPs subject to ERISA. It also addresses the form and content of the auditor's report issued as a result of an audit of ERISA plan financial statements. AU-C section 703 applies to audits of single employer, multiple employer, and multiemployer plans subject to ERISA and to an audit of a complete set of general purpose financial statements of ERISA plans and is written in that context.

AU-C section 703 also addresses audits of section 103(a)(3)(C) ERISA audits. This module presents guidance for both, layering on the differences when performing a section 103(a)(3)(C) engagement.

Further, the remainder of the Auditor's Suite of Reporting standards, with the exception of SAS No. 134, Forming an Opinion and Reporting on Financial Statements, also include applicable reporting information for non-ERISA engagements. From the new requirement to report on key audit matters when so engaged to modifications to your auditor report, this course will cover:

• AU-C Section 701, Communicating Key Audit Matters in the Independent Auditor's Report
• AU-C Section 705, Modifications to the Opinion in the Independent Auditor's Report
• AU-C Section 706, Emphasis-of-Matter Paragraphs and Other-Matter Paragraphs in the Independent Auditor's Report
• AU-C Section 720, The Auditor's Responsibilities Relating to Other Information Included in Annual Reports
• AU-C Section 725, Supplementary Information in Relation to the Financial Statements as a Whole; and
• AU-C Section 730, Required Supplementary Information

Highlights

Key Topics

• Reporting on ERISA financial statement engagements.
• Scope, objectives and requirements of AU-C section 703, Forming an Opinion and Reporting on Financial Statements of Employee Benefit Plans Subject to ERISA.
• Other procedures when reporting on a performing a section 103(a)(3)(C) engagement
• Scope and objectives of AU-C section 700, 701, 705, 706, 720, 725, 730

Designed For

Who Will Benefit

Auditors in practice conducting engagements subject to ERISA.

Objectives

Learning Outcomes

• Identify the concepts contained in recently released standards that have changed the auditor's reporting process.
• Recall the scope, objectives and auditor's requirements of AU-C section 703, Forming an Opinion and Reporting on Financial Statements of Employee Benefit Plans Subject to ERISA, with respect to non-section 103(a)(3)(C) plan audits.
• Identify the requirements for forming an opinion on the ERISA plan financial statements and the form and content of the auditors' report.
• Recall the audit considerations relating to the auditor's responsibilities for an entity's Form 5500 filing.
• Identify the special considerations regarding the scope, objectives and auditor's requirements with respect to an ERISA Section 103(a)(3)(C) audit, including forming an opinion and the form and content of the ERISA section 103(a)(3)(C) auditor's report.
• Recall the scope and objective of the related other AU-C sections in the Auditor's Reporting Suite of SASs.