IIA Proposes Changes in Standards for Internal Auditors

The Institute of Internal Auditors has proposed changes to its International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing to help internal auditors meet the challenges of today’s business environment.

The proposed changes focus on three areas: enhancing existing standards on communications, and quality assurance; creating new standards addressing objectivity in assurance and consulting roles, as well as addressing new roles internal audit functions are taking on; and aligning existing standards to a new set of core principles incorporated into the International Professional Practices Framework last year.

“The demands on internal audit are evolving rapidly, and the IIA is working diligently to make sure the standards and IPPF reflect that evolution,” said IIA president and CEO Richard F. Chambers in a statement. “We indicated last year that the changes to the IPPF would require related updates to the standards. The comment period on these proposed changes is the first step toward completing that update.”

The proposed changes will be open for review and public comment from Feb. 1 through April 30 through an online survey to seek input from internal audit practitioners and stakeholders before the final revisions are approved.

The online survey is available to the IIA’s more than 180,000 members worldwide, along with regulators and other key stakeholders of the internal audit profession. After the exposure period, comments will be reviewed and final changes approved in the third quarter of 2016. The modified standards will be announced on Oct. 1 and become effective Jan. 1, 2017.