Proposed Amendments to ASSA 5000

Tuesday, April 1, 2025

The AUASB has released Exposure Draft ED 01/25 ‘Proposed amendments to ASSA 5000 General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements and ASA 102 Compliance with Ethical Requirements when Performing Audits, Reviews and Other Assurance Engagements.

ED 01/25 responds to matters raised by audit firms on the initial application of ASSA 5000 General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements from 1 January 2025.

ED 01/25 proposes amendments to ASSA 5000 to:

• address possible practical matters arising on the initial application of Part 5 of the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards) (IESBA Code) under ASSA 5000; and
• provide more time for audit firms to update their assurance methodologies for differences between ASSA 5000 and ASAE 3000 Assurance Engagements Other than Audits or Reviews of Historical Financial Information.

Proposals

The AUASB proposes to:

(a)       Provide limited additional transitional relief when applying Part 5 of the IESBA Code:

• Assurers of public interest entity general purpose sustainability reports inadvertently contracting and commencing certain non-assurance services before 1 July 2025, subject to continuing to comply with the pre-existing requirements of APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including Independence Standards); and
• New requirements on the use of external experts for one year.

(b)       Make ASSA 5000 operative as follows:     

• For information in sustainability reports under the Corporations Act 2001 - Periods beginning on or after 1 January 2025;
• For other sustainability assurance engagements - As at a specific date on or after 31 December 2025 and for periods ending on that date, except where the period commenced before 1 January 2025.

Consistent with ISSA 5000 General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements, ASSA 5000 requires practitioners to apply Part 5 of the IESBA Code.

The AUASB invites stakeholders to comment on ED 01/25 by 1 May 2025 via the AUASB website.  Details on possible AUASB outreach activities on ED 01/25 will be available in the near future.

Questions on ED 01/25 should be directed to [email protected].