How is a new internal audit activity defined when considering the requirement of Standard 1312?
The IA activity has five years from the date of adoption of the Standards before an external quality assessment would be required. Adoption of the Standards establishes the intent of the IA activity to comply and should be considered the starting point of the five-year period before an external QA is required. Generally, adoption of the Standards and “intent” coincide with the formation of the internal audit activity. However, in other cases the election to adopt the Standards may not occur when the department is first established. Evidence to examine to support the date of the adoption of the Standards would include Audit Committee minutes, updates to the Audit Charter, evidence of the use of the phrase “conducted in conformance with the Standards” in audit reports, etc.
