What must be done before the report can be dated
The steps that must be complete before an auditor's report can be dated, which of them Achekam enforces, and which remain the partner's own check.
By Achekam · · 4 min read · For Accountants & audit firms in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya
The date on an auditor's report is not an administrative detail. It tells readers how far forward the auditor looked: the evidence behind the opinion covers events up to that date and no further. Date a report too early, before the work that supports it is finished, and the opinion claims more than the file can show.
Under deadline pressure, the date is also the thing most tempting to fix first, with the remaining work "tidied up" afterwards. This article sets out what must be complete before the report can be dated, which of those steps Achekam enforces, which it does not, and a checklist for the engagement partner.
Sufficient appropriate evidence, including dated written representations
The report cannot be dated until the auditor has sufficient appropriate evidence for the opinion. Written representations are part of that evidence. ACCA explains that, because written representations are necessary audit evidence, the opinion cannot be expressed and the report cannot be dated before the date of the representations. ACCA also explains that ISA 580 requires the representations to be dated as near as possible to, but not after, the date of the auditor's report.
That gives a fixed order: the representation letter is signed, then the report is dated on the same day or shortly after. A letter signed a month before the report leaves a gap the representations do not cover. Our article on written representations covers the letter itself.
A completed engagement quality review
For engagements that need one, the engagement quality review must be finished before the date. ACCA explains that ISQM 2 includes a "stand back" requirement for the reviewer to determine whether the review is complete, and that an audit report cannot be dated before the reviewer makes that determination.
ACCA also explains that under ISA 220 (Revised) the engagement partner is expected to review documentation on significant matters and judgements, contentious issues and conclusions at appropriate stages, must be satisfied that sufficient appropriate evidence supports the opinion before the report is issued, and should not date the report until the engagement quality review is complete. See the engagement quality reviewer for how that role works.
Subsequent events work up to the report date
ACCA explains that ISA 560 requires the auditor to obtain sufficient appropriate evidence that all events between the date of the financial statements and the auditor's report that require adjustment or disclosure have been identified, and stresses that subsequent events procedures run up to the date of the report.
So the subsequent events review is one of the last things done, not something completed during fieldwork and left. If the report date slips, the review has to be brought forward to the new date.
What Achekam blocks
Achekam's audit report module lets the engagement team draft the report on standard ISA 700, 705, 706 and 701 wording, for unmodified, qualified, adverse and disclaimer opinions. Default wording is South African; Nigerian and Kenyan packs supply their own. Two things stop approval:
- Placeholders. Approval is refused while any [bracketed] placeholder remains in the report.
- An uncleared quality reviewer. Where a quality reviewer is named, their clearance cannot be bypassed.
Only the engagement partner approves the report. After it is issued, the partner assembles and locks the audit file; later changes go in only as addenda, and unlocking needs a second partner or the quality reviewer. An unissued report, an uncleared quality review or a missing retention rule cannot be overridden at that stage.
What Achekam does not block
Be clear about the limits, because they are where the partner's own discipline has to take over.
- Open working papers, approved with a reason. The partner may approve the report with papers still open by recording a reason. The reason is on record, but the papers are still open.
- Open consultations and differences of opinion. An open technical consultation or an unresolved difference of opinion does not stop the report from being approved or signed. A consultation sign-off check exists on Achekam's server, but report approval does not use it.
- The date itself. Lining the report date up with the dates of the representations, the quality review and the subsequent events work is the partner's judgement; the two checks above are about placeholders and the reviewer's clearance, not about dates.
Our article on drafting and approving the audit report covers the approval flow in more detail.
A dating checklist for the engagement partner
Before dating the report, confirm:
- All significant working papers are reviewed and any open ones have a recorded reason that you would be comfortable defending.
- Every technical consultation is concluded and every difference of opinion resolved, with the outcome on file. Check this yourself; the system will not.
- The engagement quality reviewer, where there is one, has completed the review and made the stand-back determination.
- Subsequent events procedures are complete up to the intended report date.
- The written representation letter is signed and dated as near as possible to, but not after, the report date.
- The financial statements have been approved by those with authority to approve them.
- Uncorrected misstatements are evaluated and the summary attached to the representations.
- The report wording is final, with no placeholders, and the type of opinion matches the conclusions on file.
Only then date and sign. If any item is not done, the date waits.
ACCA's article on ISQM 2 and engagement quality reviews explains the stand-back requirement and the link between the quality review and the report date, and is useful reading for partners and reviewers alike.
Add the checklist to your completion section and have the partner initial it with the date they intend to use. A date that every item supports is one the firm can defend.
General guidance only, not advice on your own circumstances. Tax and payroll rules change: check the current position with the authority or your adviser.
