A set of guidelines issued by the Auditing Standards Board (ASB) of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). These standards provide a framework for conducting attestation engagements, which are professional services that involve issuing a report on subject matter or an assertion about subject matter that is the responsibility of another party. Key points about SSAE:
- Objective: The primary objective of SSAE is to guide practitioners performing attestation engagements, ensuring consistency, quality, and reliability in these services.
- Types of engagements: SSAE covers various attestation engagements, including examinations, reviews, and agreed-upon procedures engagements.
- Subject matter: Attestation engagements can cover a wide range of subject matters, such as an entity’s financial performance, compliance with laws and regulations, the effectiveness of internal controls, and the reliability of information systems.
- Independence and ethics: Practitioners performing attestation engagements must adhere to the AICPA’s Code of Professional Conduct and maintain independence, integrity, and objectivity throughout the engagement.
- Reporting: SSAE provides guidance on the form and content of the practitioner’s report, which includes an opinion or conclusion on the subject matter or assertion based on the work performed.
SSAE Notable Standards
- SSAE No. 16 (replaced by SSAE No. 18): Reporting on Controls at a Service Organization
- SSAE No. 18: Attestation Standards: Clarification and Recodification
- SSAE No. 19: Agreed-Upon Procedures Engagements
- SSAE No. 21: Direct Examination Engagements
SSAE works in conjunction with other auditing and attestation standards, such as Statements on Auditing Standards (SAS) and Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS), to provide a comprehensive framework for professional services in the accounting and auditing profession.