Author Description

In October 2014, the AICPA’s Accounting and Review Services Committee (ARSC) issued SSARS No. 21, the clarification and revision of the standards for compilation, review, and financial statement preparation. SSARS No. 21 makes substantial changes to compilation engagements, and introduces the new preparation standard. This is the most significant change in this area of practice in over 30 years, and will greatly impact accountants in public practice who prepare financial statements. This authoritative guide will assist CPAs with interpreting and applying SSARS No. 21, as well as providing interpretive guidance and implementation strategies for all preparation, compilation and review engagements. It helps practitioners establish best-practices, includes practical tools and resources to assist with compliance, and exposes potential pitfalls associated with independence and ethics requirements. Key benefits include: fully updated interpretive guidance for review and compilation engagements, and new interpretive guidance for engagements to prepare financial statements, as introduced in SSARS No. 21 section 70, Preparation of Financial Statements; updated illustrative engagement and representation letters and accountants’ reports; detailed illustrative client inquiries and illustrative analytics for reviews; Q&As on compilation reporting requirements when independence is impaired; discusses the implications of the “Nonattest Services” subtopic (AICPA, Professional Standards, ET section 1.295) of the “Independence Rule” (AICPA, Professional Standards, ET sec. 1.200.001) when performing a review, compilation, or engagement to prepare financial statements. Update includes: SSARS No. 21, Statement on Standards for Accounting and Review Services: Clarification and Recodification