Regulations on overview of Vietnam’s Framework for assurance service contract

According to the Circular No. 69/2015/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance of Vietnam, Vietnam’s Framework for assurance service contract contains regulations and instructions on targets and elements of an assurance service, the services that have to comply with Vietnam’s Standards for Audit (VSA), Vietnam’s Standards for Examination (VSRE), and Vietnam’s Standards for Assurance Services (VSAE) (hereinafter referred to as assurance services standards). An overview of the Framework for assurance service contract is as follows:

1. Introduction: This Framework is used for assurance services provided by auditors;

2. Assurance services: This section deals with assurance services, differences between attestation services and direct assurance services, between reasonable assurance services and limited assurance services;

3. Scope of the Framework: This section deals with differences between assurance services and other services such as consulting services;

4. Prerequisite of assurance service contract: This section deals with initial conditions for auditors to agree to execute an assurance service contract;

5. Elements of an assurance service contract: This section determines and presents 5 elements of an assurance service contract, including: (i) Tripartite relationship; (ii) Subject matter; (iii) Criteria; (iv) Evidence; (v) Report on assurance services. This section presents important differences between reasonable assurance services and limited assurance services. This section also deals with other issues such as subject matters, characteristics of a suitable criterion, risks and materiality of assurance services, method of conclusion for reasonable assurance services and limited assurance services;

6. Other issues: This section deals with: (i) Responsibility to exchange other information; (ii) Documents about the contract; (iii) Improper use of auditors' names.

Besides, according to the Circular No. 69/2015/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance of Vietnam, this Framework applies to:

- Auditors: Auditors are persons who execute assurance service contracts, including members of the Board of Directors in charge of overall execution of the contract, practicing auditors, other members that execute the contract, and, in most cases, audit firms;

- Other entities involved in the assurance service contract, including users of the report on assurance services and service buyers;

- Drafting Board of Vietnam’s Audit Standard during the process of formulation and promulgation of Vietnam’s Audit Standard, Vietnam’s Standards for examination contracts, Vietnam Standards for assurance service contracts, and instructional documents.

View more details at the Circular No. 69/2015/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance of Vietnam, effective from January 01, 2016.

Ty Na

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