Audit & Assurance

Assurance is about giving the people who rely on your financial statements — lenders, members, boards, investors, grantors and regulators — confidence that the numbers are dependable. RN Canada delivers assurance engagements for Alberta and British Columbia organizations and, just as importantly, helps you choose the right level of assurance before any work begins, so you are not paying for more than your stakeholders require.

The three levels of assurance

There are three distinct levels, and the difference between them is how much confidence the practitioner expresses:

• Audit — reasonable assurance. This is the highest level. The practitioner performs extensive procedures and expresses a positive opinion on whether the financial statements are presented fairly. Audits are typically expected by external lenders, larger boards, investors and certain regulators.
• Review — limited assurance. A review involves fewer procedures, focused largely on inquiry and analysis, and results in a negative-form conclusion — a statement that nothing came to the practitioner's attention to suggest the statements are not presented fairly. It sits between an audit and a compilation in both cost and confidence.
• Compilation — no assurance. Formerly known as a Notice to Reader, a compilation simply presents financial information supplied by management in financial-statement form. No opinion or conclusion is expressed. It suits internal use and situations where no third party requires assurance.

Picking the right level is a stakeholder question, not just a budget question. The right answer follows from who reads the statements and what your agreements and governing documents require. For a general explanation of the assurance framework, see the standard-setting and professional guidance published by CPA Canada and the Financial Reporting & Assurance Standards Canada.

What's included

• A scoping conversation to confirm which level of assurance your stakeholders actually require.
• Planning and risk assessment tailored to your organization and sector.
• Execution of the engagement — audit, review or compilation — to professional standards.
• A clear, defensible deliverable suitable for the lenders, members, board or regulator who will rely on it.
• Recommendations on controls and reporting that surface during the engagement.

A note for non-profits and societies

Not-for-profit organizations are a common source of confusion about whether an audit is mandatory. An Alberta society must file financial statements with its annual return, but a professional audit is required only if the society's bylaws require it, or if a fee is charged for the audit. Many societies satisfy their obligations with a review or compilation. Source: Legal responsibilities of non-profits — Alberta.ca.

We help boards read their own bylaws and any funder agreements correctly, so they commission the right engagement rather than defaulting to a full audit out of caution.

Who it's for

This service fits companies whose lenders or investors expect audited or reviewed statements, not-for-profits and societies confirming their statutory obligations, organizations preparing for a transaction or financing, and boards that want independent confirmation that their reporting can be relied on. It also fits owners who simply want to understand which level applies to them before they commit.

How RN Canada helps

We start by confirming what your stakeholders genuinely require, then plan and execute the engagement to professional standards and deliver a result the relying parties trust. Our founder, Ozgur Duymaz, holds a Ph.D. in accounting and finance and is a CPA (Canada), ACCA (UK) and CMA (US). To discuss the right level of assurance for your organization, talk to us or see the full services overview.

This page is general information, not personalized advice. Speak to us about your specific situation.