Listed Entity and Public Interest Entity (Track 2)

What the Project Aims to Achieve

The IAASB is currently working on a narrow scope maintenance of standards project on listed entity and PIE that addresses the IAASB’s actions in respect of recent revisions to the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards) (IESBA Code) as a result of IESBA’s project on the definitions of listed entity and PIE.

The final revisions to the IESBA Code were approved in December 2021, with an effective date of the revisions for audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after December 15, 2024.

The project is undertaken into two separate Tracks. In undertaking the two tracks of the project, the IAASB aims to:

Track 1

Determine whether the auditor's report is an appropriate mechanism to enhance transparency about the relevant ethical requirements for independence applied for certain entities when performing an audit of financial statements.

Track 2

Achieve to the greatest extent possible convergence between the definitions and key concepts underlying the definitions used in the revisions to the IESBA Code and the ISQMs and ISAs to maintain their interoperability.
Establish an objective and guidelines to support the IAASB’s judgments regarding specific matters for which differential requirements for certain entities are appropriate.
Determine whether, and the extent to which, to amend the applicability of the existing differential requirements for listed entities in the ISQMs and ISAs to meet heightened expectations of stakeholders regarding the performance of audit engagements for certain entities, thereby enhancing confidence in audit engagements performed for those entities.

Track 1 of the project was completed in June 2023. This track was progressed on a faster moving timeline to align with the effective date of the revisions to the IESBA Code in relation to listed entity and PIE.

Project Timeline

The following table sets out the project timeline for Track 2. Please note that these are current targeted milestones and may change as the work in this area progresses.