Table Of ContentCodification of
Statements on Standards
for Attestation Engagements
Number 20
As of January 2020
2001-27683
Copyright © 2020 by
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Inc. All rights reserved.
Reprinted from
AICPA Professional Standards
U.S. Attestation Standards—AICPA (Clarified)
(as of January 2020)
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iii
PREFACE
This publication,issued by the Accounting and Review Services Commit-
teeandtheAuditingStandardsBoard(ASB),isacodificationofStatementson
StandardsforAttestationEngagements(SSAEs)andtherelatedattestationin-
terpretationsapplicabletothepreparationandissuanceofattestationreports
forallnonissuers.AnonissuerisanyentitynotsubjecttotheSarbanes-Oxley
Actof2002ortherulesoftheSEC.
Thispublicationcontainsthecodifiedattestationstandardsissuedthrough
SSAENo.20,AmendmentstotheDescriptionoftheConceptofMateriality,and
relatedattestationinterpretations.Supersededportionshavebeendeletedand
allapplicableamendmentshavebeenincluded.
SSAEs are issued by senior committees of the AICPA designated to issue
pronouncements on attestation matters applicable to the preparation and is-
suanceofattestationreportsforentitiesthatarenonissuers.The"Compliance
With Standards Rule" (ET sec.1.310.001) of the AICPA Code of Professional
Conduct requires an AICPA member performing an attestation engagement
foranonissuer(apractitioner)tocomplywithstandardspromulgatedbysuch
seniorcommittees.Apractitionermustcomplywithanunconditionalrequire-
ment in all cases in which such requirement is relevant. A practitioner also
should comply with a presumptively mandatory requirement in all cases in
whichsuchrequirementisrelevant;however,inrarecircumstances,thepracti-
tionermaydepartfromapresumptivelymandatoryrequirementprovidedthat
thepractitionerdocumentsthejustificationforthedepartureandhowtheal-
ternativeproceduresperformedinthecircumstancesweresufficienttoachieve
theintentofthatrequirement.
ExhibitsandinterpretationstoSSAEsareinterpretivepublications,asde-
fined in AT-C section 105,Concepts Common to All Attestation Engagements.
AT-Csection105requiresthepractitionertoconsiderapplicableinterpretive
publicationsinplanningandperforminganattestationengagement.Interpre-
tive publications are not attestation standards.Interpretive publications are
recommendations on the application of the SSAEs in specific circumstances,
including engagements for entities in specialized industries. An interpretive
publicationisissuedundertheauthorityoftherelevantseniortechnicalcom-
mitteeafterallmembersofthecommitteehavebeenprovidedanopportunity
toconsiderandcommentonwhethertheproposedinterpretivepublicationis
consistentwiththeSSAEs.AttestationinterpretationsareincludedintheAT-
C sections of AICPA Professional Standards. AICPA Guides and Attestation
StatementsofPositionarelistedinAT-CappendixA,"AICPAGuidesandState-
mentsofPosition,"ofAICPAProfessionalStandards.
AUDITINGSTANDARDSBOARD
MichaelJ.Santay,Chair
RobertDohrer,ChiefAuditor—AICPA
©2020, AICPA
What’sNewinThisEdition v
WHAT’S NEW IN THIS EDITION
STANDARDSRECENTLYISSUED
Statement Change IssueDate Section
Statementson Agreed-UponProcedures December2019 AT-C215
Standardsfor Engagements
Attestation
Engagements
(SSAE)No.19
SSAENo.20 Amendmentstothe December2019
DescriptionoftheConcept
ofMateriality
ADDITIONS
Section Change
AT-C105A Additionofsectiontoretaincurrentlyeffectiveguidance
untilSSAENo.19,becomeseffective.
AT-C9105A Additionofsectiontoretaincurrentlyeffectiveguidance
untilSSAENo.19,becomeseffective.
AT-C205A Additionofsectiontoretaincurrentlyeffectiveguidance
untilSSAENo.20,becomeseffective.
AT-C9205A Additionofsectiontoretaincurrentlyeffectiveguidance
untilSSAENo.20,becomeseffective.
AT-C210A Additionofsectiontoretaincurrentlyeffectiveguidance
untilSSAENo.20,becomeseffective.
AT-C215A Additionofsectiontoretaincurrentlyeffectiveguidance
untilSSAENo.19,becomeseffective.
CHANGES
Section Change
AT-C105 AmendedbySSAENo.19.
AT-C205.A17 AmendedbySSAENo.20.
AT-C210.A16 AmendedbySSAENo.20.
©2020, AICPA
TableofContents vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section Page
… How This Publication Is Organized.......................... 1
U.S. Attestation Standards—AICPA (Clarified) [AT-C]
… AT-C Cross-References to SSAEs............................. 3
… AT-C Introduction........................................... 9
Foreword
PrefacetotheAttestationStandards
GlossaryofTerms
AT-C100 Common Concepts......................................... 31
105—ConceptsCommontoAllAttestationEngagements
9105—ConceptsCommontoAllAttestationEngagements:
AttestationInterpretationsofSection105
105A—ConceptsCommontoAllAttestationEngagements
9105A—ConceptsCommontoAllAttestationEngagements:
AttestationInterpretationsofSection105
AT-C200 Level of Service............................................. 117
205—ExaminationEngagements
9205—ExaminationEngagements:AttestationInterpretationsof
Section205
205A—ExaminationEngagements
9205A—ExaminationEngagements:AttestationInterpretationsof
Section205A
210—ReviewEngagements
210A—ReviewEngagements
215—Agreed-UponProceduresEngagements
215A—Agreed-UponProceduresEngagements
9215A—Agreed-UponProceduresEngagements:Attestation
InterpretationsofSection215
AT-C300 Subject Matter.............................................. 361
305—ProspectiveFinancialInformation
310—ReportingonProFormaFinancialInformation
315—ComplianceAttestation
320—ReportingonanExaminationofControlsata
ServiceOrganizationRelevanttoUserEntities’
InternalControlOverFinancialReporting
395—[DesignatedforATSection701,Management’s
DiscussionandAnalysis]
©2020, AICPA Contents
viii TableofContents
AT-C… Exhibits..................................................... 533
AT-C… Appendixes................................................ 539
AT-C… Topical Index............................................... 547
Contents ©2020, AICPA
HowThisPublicationIsOrganized 1
HOW THIS PUBLICATION IS ORGANIZED
U.S. Attestation Standards—AICPA (Clarified) [AT-C]
TheAT-Csectionsincludeclarifiedaccountingandreviewservicesstandards
issuedbyStatementsonStandardsforAttestationEngagements(SSAE)Nos.
18–20.Thesesectionsarearrangedasfollows:
AT-CCross-ReferencestoSSAEs
AT-CIntroduction
CommonConcepts
LevelofService
SubjectMatter
Exhibits
Appendixes
AT-CTopicalIndex
TheAT-CCross-ReferencestoSSAEslistsallSSAEsissuedsinceSSAENo.
18,AttestationStandards:ClarificationandRecodification,andthesourcesof
sectionsinthecurrenttext.
The AT-C Introduction describes the Auditing Standards Board project to
reviseandclarifyallexistingattestationstandardsintheCodificationofState-
mentsonStandardsforAttestationEngagements.
Thestandardsaredividedintosections,eachwithitsownsectionnumber.
Eachparagraphwithinasectionisdecimallynumbered.
Attestation interpretations are numbered in the 9000 series with the last
threedigitsindicatingthesectiontowhichtheinterpretationrelates.Interpre-
tationsimmediatelyfollowtheircorrespondingsection.Forexample,interpre-
tationsrelatedtosection105arenumbered9105,whichdirectlyfollowssection
105.
Thereisoneexhibitrelatingtoattestationstandardsasfollows:
The exhibit provides a list of AT-C sections designated by SSAE
No.18crossreferencedtoalistofATsections.
Therearetwoappendixesrelatingtoattestationstandardsasfollows:
Appendix A provides a list of AICPA attestation guides and State-
mentsofPosition.
AppendixBidentifiesotherattestationpublicationspublishedbythe
AICPAthathavebeenreviewedbytheAICPAAuditandAttestStan-
dardsstaff.
TheAT-Ctopicalindexusesthekeywordmethodtofacilitatereferenceto
thepronouncements.Theindexisarrangedalphabeticallybytopicandrefers
tomajordivisions,sections,andparagraphnumbers.
©2020, AICPA
TableofContents 3
AT-C Cross-References to SSAEs
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
AT-CCross-ReferencestoSSAEs................................................. 5
PartI—StatementsonStandardsforAttestationEngagementsandSources
ofSectionsinCurrentText ..................................... 5
PartII—ListofStatementonStandardsforAttestationEngagements
Nos.1–17 .................................................... 7
©2020, AICPA Contents
AT-CCross-ReferencestoSASs 5
AT-C Cross-References to SSAEs
Part I—Statements on Standards for Attestation
Engagements and Sources of Sections in Current Text
Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements*
AT-C
No. DateIssued Title Section
18 April2016 AttestationStandards: Clarificationand
Recodification1
19 December2019 Agreed-UponProceduresEngagements2 215
20 December2019 AmendmentstotheDescriptionofthe
ConceptofMateriality3
Sources of Sections in Current Text
AT-CSection Contents Source
100 CommonConcepts
105 ConceptsCommontoAllAttestation SSAENo.19
Engagements
200 LevelofService
205 ExaminationEngagements SSAENo.18,
SSAENo.20
205A ExaminationEngagements SSAENo.18
210 ReviewEngagements SSAENo.18,
SSAENo.20
210A ReviewEngagements SSAENo.18
215 Agreed-UponProceduresEngagements SSAENo.19
300 SubjectMatter
305 ProspectiveFinancialInformation SSAENo.18
310 ReportingonProFormaFinancial SSAENo.18
Information
(continued)
* ThistablelistsStatementsonStandardsforAttestationEngagements(SSAEs)issuedsubse-
quenttoSSAENo.18,AttestationStandards:ClarificationandRecodification,whichwasissuedin
April2016.RefertopartII,"ListofStatementonStandardsforAttestationEngagementsNos.1–17,"
ofthissectionforSSAEsissuedpriortoSSAENo.18.
1 SSAENo.18createdvarioussectionsthroughoutU.S.AttestationStandards—AICPA(Clari-
fied).Seethefollowingsection,"SourcesofSectionsinCurrentText,"forafulllist.
2 SSAENo.19hasbeenintegratedwithinparagraphs105.02–.03,.09–.10,.25,.A2–.A3,.A28,
.A35,.A37,.A39,.A41,and.A56.
SSAENo.19iseffectiveforagreed-uponproceduresreportsdatedonorafterJuly15,2021.
3 SSAENo.20hasbeenintegratedwithinsections205.A17and210.A16.
SSAENo.20iseffectiveforpractitioners'examinationreportsandreviewreportsdatedonor
afterDecember15,2020.
©2020, AICPA
