Question

Discuss the audit in Saudi Arabia. (Definition, purpose, responsibilities, professional standards, types.                                                                                                          

Answer 1

Ans- There is no independent audit oversight arrangement in Saudi Arabia. In line with the Certified Public Accountants (CPA) Regulation No. M12 of 1991, auditors are regulated by the Saudi Organization for Certified Public Accountants (SOCPA) under the supervision of the Ministry of Commerce.

Auditing and assurance are processes that go hand in hand, and are usually used when evaluating a company’s financial records. Auditing and assurance are parts of the same process of verifying the information on the company’s accounting records for accuracy and compliance with the accounting standards and principles. According to the companies Act No. M/6 of 1965 (Amended in 2015), the accounting, auditing and financial reporting requirements for corporate entities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia requires all companies to prepare financial statements and to appoint Auditor.
As one of the leading audit firms, we provide audit and assurance services for all kinds of businesses based anywhere in Saudi Arabia and across different sectors (construction, advertising, banks, offshore companies. We have team of experienced Chartered Accountants, some of the best CPAs and Audit experts as part of our team, who are also responsible for VAT accounting, payroll and HR solutions and processes.

Auditing Services

Internal Audit
An internal audit, also known as an operational audit, gives the organization a level of confidence, when it comes to dealing with internal controls, risk management, and governance in line with the company’s objectives. A certified internal auditor is required to carry out the auditing, he then reviews and assesses the process of a business.

External Audit
An external audit analyzes a company’s financial affairs. This is by far the most common type of audit, because it is about investigating the financial statements of an organization using an external auditor in order to establish certainty and impartiality.

Statutory Audit
Statutory audit is an assessment of a company’s financial data, legally required in order to establish its accuracy. Statutory audit is just like any other audit in that it analyses financial information for example financial transactions and records.

Auditing Standards
Just like a lot of  auditors in Saudi Arabia, we follow a set of accounting standards (International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), constructed by a non-profit organization called the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) which is close to becoming a gold standard, and used by companies worldwide.