The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA), an independent standard-setting body of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), issued an ED that contains substantive revisions to the independence standards of the IFAC Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants.
The changes:
Expand the applicability of partner rotation requirements with respect to listed entities and remove the provision that allows flexibility for small firms to apply alternative safeguards.
Strengthen requirements related to provision of non-assurance services, including setting out additional guidance on the provision of tax services to audit clients.
Extend the more restrictive listed entity independence requirements to the audits of a wider range of entities of significant public interest.
The AICPA Professional Ethics Executive Committee will be evaluating the proposal and providing comment. Comments are due by April 30. The ED is available at www.ifac.org/EDs .