What Does an Audit Engagement Letter Typically Include? Introduction and Purpose. Scope of the Audit. Auditor's Responsibilities. Client's Responsibilities. Audit Limitations. Applicable Standards. Fees and Payment Terms. Confidentiality and Data Security.
An engagement letter is a written agreement that describes the business relationship to be entered into by a client and a company. The letter details the scope of the agreement, its terms, and costs. The purpose of an engagement letter is to set expectations on both sides of the agreement.
It is in the interests of both the entity and the auditor that the auditor sends an audit engagement letter before the commencement of the audit to help avoid misunderstandings with respect to the audit.
This engagement letter summarizes the terms of the audit agreement between the auditing firm and the Managing Trustee of Trust Name. The auditing firm will conduct an audit of the Trust's financial statements for the year ending March 31, 20XX in ance with auditing standards.
The content of an engagement letter often includes important details such as the scope of services to be provided, fees or billing arrangements, confidentiality clauses, dispute resolution mechanisms, and any other relevant terms agreed upon by both parties.
Your designated audit firm will prepare the specific terms of engagement using the appropriate AICPA-issued engagement letter template. It should be noted that there are many terms for audit engagements that are deemed required by the AICPA and therefore unable to be negotiated.
The engagement letter is a legally binding document and the purpose of the engagement letter is to: Specify the parties of the audit engagement. Define the scope of the audit, including the in-scope services and systems. Specify the timeline of the audit and related deliverables.