Audit Report Contents

What is an Audit Report?

The following articles provide an outline for Audit Report Contents. The term “audit report” refers to the auditor’s documented opinion regarding the financial statements of the subject company. An audit report’s main objective is to communicate the overall opinion about the completeness and integrity of the subject company’s financial reporting. Given its importance, there is a defined structure and format for the presentation of an audit report, which will be discussed in detail in this article.

Explanation

The audit report is published as a part of the annual report of any company and it is considered very important as it captures the final view of the entire process of the audit. The primary users of the financial statements, such as shareholders, lenders, and other investors, take into account the audit report of any company while taking the final decision to invest in them. As such, an audit report is considered a critical part of the annual report as it influences the perceived value of a financial statement, and so the auditor must be cautious while issuing an audit report as a large number of people rely on it and take their decisions accordingly.

Contents of Audit Report

In general, the contents of an audit report should be as follows:

1. Title of the Report: This is the first and foremost part of the audit report and helps the financial statement user identify the report. This section also covers the name of the client, i.e. the subject company.
2. Name of the Addressee: This section mentions the name of the person who has appointed the auditor.In case the company appoints the auditor for statutory audit, then the name of addressee refers to the shareholders of the company. In the case of a special audit, the central government is the addressee.
3. Introductory paragraph: This section covers the period of the financial reporting along with the exact dates. Additionally, it also specifies that the view on the financial statements is the auditor’s opinion.
4. Scope of Audit: In this section, the audit examination’s entire scope and process are mentioned. The audit process covers the subject company’s book of accounts, income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement. Further, the audit should be conducted in accordance with the law of the land.
5. Auditor’s opinion: It is the most important part of the report as it includes the auditor’s opinion regarding the company’s financial statements. The expectation is that the auditor will examine the book of accounts on the basis of the available information and free of any bias. The auditor’s opinion will be cover the following aspects of the reporting:

• • Correctness and authenticity of the figures recorded in the financial statements.
  • True and fair representation of the operating results in the financial statements in case of an unqualified opinion.
  • The reasons for the mismatch between actual results and financial reporting in case of a qualified opinion.

6. Emphasis of Matter: This section comes after the opinion paragraph, which is the audit report’s end. It indicates the matter that has been disclosed suitably in the financial statements’ notes because the auditor believes it to be an important fact that should be recognized by the end users of the financial statements in their economic decision-making.
7. Signature: In this section of the report, either the manual or the auditor’s digital signature can be seen. Usually, name of the auditors and their signature is captured here. In cases where the auditor is a firm, the signature should have the firm’s name.
8. Place of Signature: This section captures the auditors’ and their firms’ location, which is usually the city followed by the state.
9. Date of the Report: In this section of the report, the date on which the audit work has been completed should be mentioned.

Example of Audit Report Contents

Let us take the example of Apple Inc.’s annual report for the year 2019 that has been audited by Ernst & Young LLP and identify the contents that go intoan the audit report.

Let us look at the tabulated representation of the entire audit report and refer to the below screenshot for further details.

Sr. No.	Particulars	Excerpts from Annual Report
1	Title of the Report	Report of ………………. Accounting Firm
2	Addressee	To the Shareholders ……………. of Apple Inc.
3	Introductory paragraph	We have audited …………. consolidated statements of operations …………. the “financial statements”).
4	Scope of Audit	We conducted …………. the standards of the PCAOB. ………… Our audits also included ………… a reasonable basis for our opinion.
5	Auditor’s opinion	In our opinion……….. generally accepted accounting principles.
6	Emphasis of Matter	The critical audit matter ……….. Auditing management’s evaluation ………. in relation to this matter.
7	Signature	/s/ Ernst & Young LLP
8	Place of Signature	San Jose, California
9	Date of the Report	October 30, 2019

The screenshot of the audit report from Apple Inc.’s annual report for 2019.

Link: https://s2.q4cdn.com/470004039/files/doc_financials/2019/ar/_10-K-2019-(As-Filed).pdf

Conclusion

So, it can be seen that an auditor issues an audit report after conducting a thorough evaluation of the books of accounts and the financial statements of a company. The audit report contains their findings and opinion regarding the correctness and completeness of the financial reporting. Therefore, the content of an audit report provides an independent view of a company’s financial statements.

Recommended Articles

This is a guide to Audit Report Contents. Here we also discuss the introduction and contents of an audit report along with an example. You may also have a look at the following articles to learn more –

1. Accrued Expenses
2. SG & A Expenses
3. List of Operating Expenses
4. Non-Cash Expenses