The history of the development of audit in the Russian Federation. Audit activity

Yakhina Luiza Tagirovna, Candidate of Economic Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Accounting and Finance of the Kazan Cooperative Institute (branch) of the Russian University of Cooperation, Kazan [email protected]

Minnigaleeva Venera Zavidovna, Candidate of Economic Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Accounting and Finance of the Kazan Cooperative Institute (branch) of the Russian University of Cooperation, Kazan [email protected]

History of audit development

Annotation. The article discusses the history of the development of audit in Russia and the stages of its formation. The factors contributing to the emergence of the audit as an independent non-departmental control are considered. Key words: auditor, revision, independent control.

In Russia, the position of an auditor appeared in the army and was introduced by Peter I. In 1716, he introduced the title of auditor, borrowed in Poland, in the military regulations and the table of ranks. At that time in Poland, the persons involved in the hearing of court cases, in particular, the judge and the investigator, acted as auditors. Auditors in the Russian army could perform the functions of investigators in cases related to property disputes, prosecutors, clerks, secretaries (theologian). In 1867, after the military judicial reform, the position of auditor in the army was abolished. In Russia, more than once attempts were made to create an audit institution: in 1831, the Institute of Chartered Accountants was established, in 1889 and 1909, the Institute of Accountants, in 1912 and 1928, the Institute of State Accountants Experts. All these measures did not lead to the development of audit activities in Russia due to the lack of economic and legal prerequisites. Among the main factors contributing to the emergence of audit as an independent non-departmental control of the Russian Federation, one can single out: - the development of entrepreneurship and the capital market, the emergence of enterprises of various organizational and legal forms of ownership; - the interest of the state itself in objective information on the reporting of economic entities, since this control allows more strictly determine the reliability of financial statements and, on this basis, build the correct taxation and make various management decisions. The modern development of audit in Russia began in 1987, when, by a special Decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR “On the establishment of an audit organization”, JSC Inaudit was formed on the basis of the Main Directorate of Foreign Exchange Control of the USSR Ministry of Finance ”, but the audit was legally enshrined in our country 6 years later. Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 2263 of December 22, 1993 approved the Temporary Rules for Auditing, which define audit as “the entrepreneurial activity of auditors (audit firms) to carry out independent non-departmental audits of accounting (financial) statements, payment and settlement documentation, tax returns and other financial obligations and requirements economic entities, as well as the provision of other audit services.” In August 2001, the Federal Law “On Auditing Activities” was adopted, in which audit is defined as “entrepreneurial activity for independent verification of accounting and financial (accounting) statements of organizations and individual entrepreneurs” . M.F. Ovsiychuk believes that the purpose of the audit of financial statements is an objective assessment of the reliability, completeness and accuracy of reporting assets, liabilities, financial results of organizations for a certain period, checking the compliance of the adopted accounting policy with the current legislation and regulations and its compliance.

Yu.A. Danilevsky believes that the purpose of auditing is to establish the reliability of accounting and financial statements, as well as the compliance of their operations with the current regulatory acts of the Russian Federation. that "the purpose of the audit is to express an opinion on the reliability of the financial (accounting) statements of the audited entities and the compliance of the accounting procedure with the legislation of the Russian Federation" .

HELL. Sheremet and V.P. Suits believe that "the main goal of an audit is to establish the reliability of the accounting (financial) statements of economic entities and the compliance of their financial and business transactions with regulatory acts." The federal law determines that the purpose of auditing is to express an opinion on the reliability of the financial (accounting) statements of audited entities and compliance of the accounting procedure with the legislation of the Russian Federation. Summarizing the definitions of foreign and Russian researchers, audit can be defined as an entrepreneurial activity of auditors (audit organizations) for independent verification of the accounting (financial) statements of organizations with different forms of management and ownership, as well as providing them with services for setting up accounting and calculations, organizing effective internal control , consultations and provision of other audit services, the purpose of which is to establish the reliability of the accounting and financial statements of an economic entity and to verify the compliance of the accounting procedure with the legislation of the Russian Federation. Control has always existed, audit is one of the types of control. What used to be called on-farm control is now called internal audit. Auditing activities, in addition to inspections, include the provision of various types of services: keeping and restoring accounting, consulting on accounting issues, tax consulting, management consulting, legal consulting, marketing research, accounting automation, research and experimental work in the field related to auditing. , provision of other services related to audit activities. According to R.N. Written, "audit is a management function." And as a function, it performs two tasks: firstly, the provision of reliable information on the reliability of accounting and financial statements, on the compliance of business transactions with current regulations; secondly, the provision of services for the development and implementation of accounting policies that meet business requirements, the introduction of effective systems of on-farm control, settlements with the state and partners for the obligations of others.

The implementation of the first task contributes to the creation of trusting relationships between economic entities, between the founders and the management system of business structures, as well as the development of an effective strategy and tactics of economic behavior. The implementation of the second task is aimed at ensuring the protection of the legitimate property interests of economic entities and their founders, at generating reliable information activities, to create an effective system of on-farm control. The content of the audit activity is determined by its purpose and objectives outlined above. The implementation of the first task represents the content of the examination of accounting and financial statements, committed business transactions. Expertise can be mandatory (on the basis of state regulations, the charter of an economic entity) or initiative (by decision of the management of an economic entity). The second task in terms of content is various forms of audit services for economic entities, including consulting, development and implementation of various projects for the implementation of the economic policy of the enterprise (setting up accounting, internal control systems, regulation of economic activity, setting up calculations, etc.), as well as direct execution of functions of an economic entity for accounting and settlements, reporting. Since December 1993, auditing activities have been regulated in the Russian Federation by the “Temporary Rules for Auditing Activities in the Russian Federation”, approved by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of December 22, 1993. The Decree defined the types of work that are part of the audit activity, the rights of audit firms, their duties and interaction with customers, the rules for processing the results of an audit. By order of the President of the Russian Federation dated February 4, 1994 No. 54RP, the Audit Commission under the President of the Russian Federation was formed. This Regulation defines the main activities of the Commission and its composition, the procedure for holding meetings and making decisions. In accordance with the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated May 6, 1994 No. Certification and Licensing Audit Commission (CALAC) and the Department for the Organization of Audit Activities. Subsequent guiding documents for the regulation of audit activities are: - Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of October 21, 1994 No. 2004 "On clarifying the timing of measures to regulate audit activities in the Russian Federation"; - Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated December 7, 1994, No. 155 "On the main criteria (in the system of indicators) of the activities of economic entities, in which their accounting (financial) statements are subject to mandatory annual audit"; - Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation of January 5, 1995 No. 15 "On the timing conducted measures to regulate auditing activities in the Russian Federation "; - The procedure for drawing up an audit report on financial statements (Commission for Auditing Activities under the President of the Russian Federation, protocol No. 1 dated February 9, 1996 ); - Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of June 4, 1997, No. 667 "On the audit of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation"; - Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of December 18, 1997, No. 1560 "On audits of the State Employment Fund of the Russian Federation"; January 29, 2000, No. 81 “On audits of federal state unitary enterprises.” Until August 2001, there was no law regulating their activities for domestic audit firms. The main document for auditors was the Provisional Rules for Auditing Activities in the Russian Federation, approved by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation dated December 22, 1993 No. 2263. Paragraph 2 of this Decree established that the Provisional Rules shall enter into force throughout the territory of the Russian Federation from the moment of publication of this Decree and remain in effect until the adoption by the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the law of the Russian Federation regulating auditing activities. All this time, representatives of the audit community have been talking about the need to adopt “their own” law, which is due to the fact that the Interim Rules, having played an important and timely role in the development of audit in the country, no longer fully reflected the prevailing conditions in the audit services market, lagged behind in a number of significant positions from real life. As a result of a long joint work, Federal Law No. 119FZ “On Auditing Activities” was adopted and signed by the President of the Russian Federation on August 7, 2001, which entered into force on September 9, 2001. With the adoption of the Federal Law in the Russian Federation, a new stage in the development of audit began. In this regard, one cannot but agree with the assessment of the role of audit and the need for the emergence of the "Law on Auditing", expressed by V.A. Raevsky: “The formation of the legal framework for auditing is part of a more comprehensive problem - the problem of eliminating the fundamental shortcomings of the legislative and regulatory framework for economic activity, the unresolved nature of which, more than anything, depresses the current economic situation. Non-payments, the decline in investment activity today is not only a consequence of structural adjustment. It was yesterday. Today, the country has capital advanced in development both technological and resource, in relation to other sectors of the economy, the banking sector, the first paths of investment from abroad have been trodden. Now the main thing is the political stability that the presidential elections have given us, the new economic business environment, the creation of which is the main task of the government and parliament. A simple list of standard services of the largest and most reputable audit firms clearly demonstrates the significant contribution of audit as a new type of activity for our economy in the regulation of civilized market relations: taxation, timely determination of overpayments and underpayments, prevention of penalties; planning; - setting up accounting and ensuring the reliability of financial statements as a necessary factor in making timely informed management decisions; - strengthening the potential for this kind of support through subscription services. imposition of sanctions for 50 million rubles.” As Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation A.L. audit, which will give an additional impetus to its development. At the same time, at this stage, it is important to ensure continuity in the system of auditing and preserve all the positive that has been accumulated over more than a seven-year period of its development. Particularly relevant are the development of rules (standards) for auditing and advanced training of auditors, quality control of the work of audit organizations and individual auditors. ”The past period after the adoption of the law was characterized by the dynamic development of the Russian audit system, which was facilitated by the significant work done by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation to implement the main provisions law. In the development of the law, Decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation on auditing activities were adopted, orders and regulations of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation were issued. of the Russian Federation to the authorized federal body regulating audit activity and from the authorized body to self-regulatory organizations of auditors (SROs); the abolition of licensing and mandatory membership of auditors and audit organizations in self-regulatory organizations (SROs), and only in one SRO; external quality control of audit services by SROs according to in relation to their members, and in certain cases by the authorized federal body; the abolition of compulsory insurance of the auditor's liability and ensuring the liability of auditors through the mechanism of compensation funds formed by SROs. First, in contrast to the law of 07.08.2001 No. 119FZ, which established the requirements for the nature of the auditor's education - economic or legal education - the new law allows the applicant to have any higher education received in an educational institution of higher professional education that has state accreditation and somewhat changes the requirements for redistribution between years of the amount of hours of advanced training for an auditor. Secondly, the new law, unlike the previous one, does not provide for the availability of various types of audit certificates. As you know, at present there are four types of auditor qualification certificates in the field of general audit, in the field of audit of exchanges, off-budget funds and investment institutions, in the field of audit of credit institutions, banking groups and bank holdings (bank audit), in the field of audit of insurance organizations and mutual insurance companies (audit of insurers). According to the transitional provisions (Article 23), the certificates issued remain valid, however, as indicated above, since 2011 they do not give the right to audit public companies, credit, insurance organizations, non-state pension funds and consolidated reporting. To audit such reporting, a new certificate issued by a single attestation commission will be required. However, an analysis of the timing of the entry into force of various articles of the law by the IPAR apparatus showed that the law does not provide a reasonable time interval for the auditors of such companies to obtain new certificates. According to clause 4 of article 23 of the law, the provisions on the activities of the unified attestation commission and the new certificate come into force on 01/01/2011. Thus, at the beginning of 2011, until auditors receive a new type of certificate, there will be no auditors in the Russian Federation who have the right to audit public companies, credit, insurance and other organizations listed above. Thirdly, the new law tightens the requirements for the length of service of an applicant for obtaining an auditor – instead of work experience in an economic or legal specialty and additional requirements established by the authorized federal body, it introduces a requirement to work in an audit organization for at least two years out of the last three years of work. Thus, the new law “On Auditing” is designed to significantly increase the quality of audit services in response to the challenge of the time, which requires a significant increase in the reliability of financial information.

Links to sources1. Akhmetzyanova E.I., Galimardanova N.M. Problems of taxation of small businesses / E.I. Akhmetzyanova, N.M. Galimardanova // Directions for improving the formation of accounting and analytical information in the context of solving modern problems of the national economy. Materials of the International Scientific and Practical Conference. Edited by Nasretdinov I.T. –Kazan.2014.P.10112. Galimardanova N.M., Svechnikov K.L., Sokolskaya E.I. Problems and prospects for the development of the taxation system / Galimardanova N.M., Svechnikov K.L., Sokolskaya E.I. // Scientific and methodical electronic journal Concept. 2015. T. 13. P. 18961900.3. Mustashkina D.A. Economic efficiency of management in agriculture // dissertation abstract for the degree of candidate of economic sciences / Mari State Technical University. YoshkarOla, 20064. Nasretdinov, I.T. Competitiveness of enterprises (organizations) in the conditions of transformational economy // Regionology. 2011. No. 1. P. 78.5. Khabrieva M.N., Yakhina L.T., Minnigaleeva V.Z., Galimardanova N.M. Organization of the audit service of agricultural production and consumer cooperatives / M.N. Khabrieva, L.T. Yakhina, V.Z. Minnigaleeva, N.M. Galimardanova // Innovations and modern technologies in the cooperative sector of the economy. Materials of the international scientific-practical conference within the framework of the annual Chayanov readings. Russian University of Cooperation. 2014.S. 405410

Auditing has an ancient history. It is believed that in fact, even in ancient Egypt (about 2600 BC), there were officials who combined the functions of accounting, management and control, i.e. in fact, they performed a number of actions, some of which are now called an audit.

The historical path of audit -- as a science, is complex and tortuous. The audit process relating to social phenomena, phenomena of production and exchange, the socio-economic structure of society, relating to many facts, observations, has led human thought to the fact that production itself, the well-being of people are subject to some powerful, but hidden from their direct gaze, social factors. , deep laws of economic development. In order to reveal these laws, it is not enough to simply observe and describe phenomena. We need a science capable of penetrating the essence of the ongoing processes and identifying their driving forces. Audit should become such a science. The history of the development and formation of the audit goes back to the ancient and Middle Ages. Some scholars reasonably connect the emergence of audit with the formation of accounting, with balance science. In brilliant essays on the history of accounting, Ya. V. Sokolov writes that “an accountant must always remember that descriptions (interpretations) of the facts of economic life can be varied. For this, analysis and synthesis tools are used. Analysis reveals the structure of the theory, represents knowledge, synthesis, shows the functions that the theory performs, allows you to understand it. In relation to the facts of economic life, analysis examines them from within, synthesis - from the outside. And here analysis, as an element of audit, represents a necessity, social utility, an independent verification of the organizational properties and features of such an important science as accounting.

Everyone knows that bookkeeping requires solid professional knowledge. They do not always, or rather not always, objectively, reliably and rationally reflect real economic and financial processes. And this gives rise to the need to create control bodies, original and independent structures that carry out, as it were, “supervision”, subsequent control over the correctness of the accounting itself, the correctness of the balance sheet and the financial results report, and most importantly for a deep analysis of these results (the amount of profit and factors that increase it, and especially losses and factors that generate them). These control functions are performed by a special audit service.

Significant features in the organization of accounting, including audit, take place in China. Modern authors believe that the history of accounting in this country is 3000 years old. By the XII - XIII centuries. AD a highly developed system of accounting for material values ​​has developed here. Accounting employees were concentrated in three departments, where income, expenditure and balance of valuables were recorded. The first and second departments showed the movement of values, and the third carried out inventories and deduced the natural balance, but did not know the accounting balance. In specialized literature, the period of its occurrence is defined in different ways. So, in the journal “Controlling” No. 1, 1991, Ugolnikov K. L. in the article “History of Audit” cites the following information: “According to historical records, China may be the first country in the world to create an audit system. Ancient Chinese records indicate that already in 700 BC. there was a post General Auditor, whose main duty was to guarantee the honesty of government duties that have the right to use public money and property. Subsequently, the duties, rights and forms of government auditing bodies varied from one dynasty to another. The state accounting system of the Zhou Dynasty (1122-256 BC) in China included an elaborate budget and audit of all government departments.

In Athens, the 5th century BC. the People's Assembly controlled the revenues and expenditures of the state, and its financial system included government auditors who checked the documents of all officials upon the expiration of their powers. In the private sector, property owners themselves audited their accounts. The ancient world has preserved for us one more curious detail - the peculiarities of public reporting. In Rome, accounting for state, and in particular army, finances was concentrated in the hands of investors who controlled all operations related to the payment of money. The payment was made only upon presentation of primary documents, which served as the sole basis for making records. A special tax police was created. In the Roman Republic, public finances were under the control of the Senate, and the public budget was audited by a staff of auditors under the supervision of the treasurer. The Romans practiced a separation of duties, distinguishing between the officials who were responsible for taxes and expenditures and those who dealt with receipts and payments, and like the Greeks developed a complex system of checks and checks.

The first methods of business accounting were:

• 1) qualitatively homogeneous accounting populations (groups) - accounting headings, what later became known as accounts;
• 2) inventory - as a mandatory element of the audit;
• 3) current account (an account opened for mutual settlements with some person).

Since each technique arises from the needs of economic practice, apparently, all the techniques named here arose simultaneously, and initially the contract account was associated with trade, inventory (inventory) - with production and consumer economy.

In the Roman Empire (since the 7th century BC), control functions were carried out by special employees (curators, procurators, quaestors). Quaestors (from Latin quaestor - prospector) were initially appointed consuls, and from 447 BC. were elected by the people. From 421 there were four quaestor posts, from 267 - eight, under Sulla - twenty, under Caesar - temporarily - forty. City quaestors were in charge of the treasury, while provincial quaestors were in charge of the provincial financial administration. The quaestors formed the lowest class in the Roman Senate.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, auditing became widespread in Italy. The merchants of Florence and Venice used the work of auditors to check the solvency of the captains of merchant ships that carried huge wealth to their continent. At this time, the audit had a strictly targeted direction - error prevention.

In English-speaking countries, the oldest records and references to audit that have come down to us are the archives of the Treasury of England and Scotland, dating from 1130.

The birthplace of modern auditing is England. Back in the ninth century. an impetus was given to the account and measure in British economic life. When the ancient cults preserved in the country and in Normandy, the accounting methods of the Romans received again an everyday application to the accounting of economic phenomena.

Already in those days, the related concept of an auditor stands out from the general concept of an accountant. For the first in his daily activities, the functions of the person organizing and maintaining the accounts are retained, and the second is assigned independent independent functions of the controller who checks the accounts.

In the XIII century, there are references - written monuments indicating the existence of an auditorium both in England and in Italy, and a French essay on property management, written in the same century, recommended an annual audit of accounts. The City of London was audited at least as early as the 1200s, and the institution of auditors originated in England as early as 1299. And at the beginning of the 14th century, auditors were also among the elected officials. Since then, the archives have abounded with documents showing the widespread recognition of the importance of auditing and the regular auditing of the records of municipalities, private estates and craft guilds. In the Middle Ages, three main areas of accounting are formed - cameral, simple, and double bookkeeping:

• 1) cameral (at the cash desk, receipts and payments of money are registered);
• 2) simple, including all property and personal accounts; they are conducted on a debit-credit basis, but the accounting population does not include own funds accounts - there is no system yet;
• 3) double - it already includes own funds accounts.

In the old days, there were two types of audits in the UK. In cities, the audit was carried out publicly, in the presence of ruling officials and citizens. It consisted of listening to audit reports, which were read aloud by the treasurer. Similarly, guild audit reports were heard by their members.

"Audit" comes from a Latin word that literally means "he hears". Originally, it meant "listening", that is, a person who listens to something. From him came the word auditor, meaning listener in translation. In medieval Europe, where auditing was born, literate and able to write people were extremely rare and therefore an auditor was called an employee who was supposed to listen to the reports of officials. By the middle of the 16th century, city auditors began to include "heard" notes in their reports by the undersigned auditors. All reports given by auditors can be traced back to this original "audit document" form.

The second type of audit was a detailed check of the accounts of payments of the financial managers of large estates for "debit and credit" followed by an "auditor's declaration", that is, an oral report to the owner and the council of managers of this estate. In those distant times, people sincerely believed that the oral form a report is even better than a written one, because any document can be forged, and lying when the stern eyes of the head of the auditor are looking at you is impossible, or at least much more difficult. Usually the auditor was a member of the board and therefore was the forerunner of the modern internal auditor. Both types of audit, practiced in Great Britain until the thirteenth century, were primarily aimed at holding public and private officials accountable for the funds entrusted to them. The purpose of these types of audits was not to check the quality of the accounts, unless inaccuracies could signal the presence of fraud. It cannot be said that the audit was unknown. On the contrary, accounting and economic analysts interested in foreign accounting and analytical practice have been aware of the phenomenon of auditing performed by audit professionals from an early stage of its origin. Audit techniques at that time consisted mainly in a detailed check of each operation. Testing or spot checks, as audit procedures, were unknown.

There are several periods in the history of audit development:

• 1500 _ 1830 (1862);
• 1830 (1862) _ 1905;
• 1905 _ 1933;
• 1933 _ 1940;

from 1940 _ to the present.

The first period ended in 1500. This date is arbitrarily marked, but it most accurately reflects the state of the turning point in the general economic situation. One of the reasons for this was the discovery of America, and as a consequence of the increase in the volume of goods, capital, labor on a global scale. Another reason _ 1494 is rightfully considered the date of foundation of the doctrine of double entry (Luca Paciolli published a treatise “On Accounts and Records” in Venice).

1500 - 1830 (1860)

The objectives and methods of the audit were not changed and consisted in detecting errors and checking the integrity of persons responsible for tax payments. At this time, the importance of the audit increased significantly, because. there was a division between the owners of the enterprise into managers and investors. Shareholders not only needed a guarantee of the safety of capital, but also the receipt of dividends. Only the auditor could give an opinion on the correctness and objectivity of the audited financial statements and on the likelihood of continuing the activities of the enterprise in the near future. The understanding of the need and importance of the existence of an internal control system has come. This period ends in 1862, when the Audit Act was passed in Great Britain (a similar law was passed in France in 1897).

1862 - 1905

The period is characterized by rapid economic growth. Huge transactions led to the creation of corporations. This period is marked by the appearance of a consolidated balance sheet (1904).

All this increased the role and importance of the institution of audit. The need for internal controls was recognized. But he was assigned the role of a body that participated not in checking and detecting errors, but in creating a unified standard accounting system. The main focus was on the cash flow control system. Since both the accounting system and the organizational structure have undergone significant changes in the direction of strengthening, the auditors could already apply sampling techniques. Testing began to be used only in the last decades of the 19th century. In a rapidly growing industry, the auditor could no longer audit every operation of a huge corporation. Until 1905, changes and innovations in the system of accounting and internal control were the limiting factor in the scope of testing. The objectives of the audit at this time are to detect various kinds of errors of an intentional nature. Historically, the UK and the USA have been the main centers of audit development. In the first decade of the twentieth century. American audit began to develop independently, as US entrepreneurs recognized the impossibility of applying the goals and approaches of English audit to the characteristics of their business.

The first works on American audit characterize the change in goals as follows: the detection and prevention of unintentional errors. Later, the objectives of the audit were:

• - establishment of the financial condition and profitability of the enterprise;
• - prevention of intentional and unintentional errors is a secondary goal.

In accordance with the change in goals, there were also significant changes in techniques. There is a final transition from detailed verification to testing. It became clear that in order to obtain the actual amounts verified during the audit, it is not necessary to conduct a detailed check of each entry for the period under study. Recognizes the importance of internal controls. In the Audit Programs published in 1909, it was noted that "the establishment of a system of internal verification should act as the first stage of an audit."

1933 - 1940

The audit is influenced by the New York Stock Exchange and government organizations; there was no consensus on the objectives of the audit.

At the beginning of this period, most authors agreed that the task of an audit is to detect an error. Later, the views were significantly changed, and it was found that the auditor should not focus only on finding an error.

Until 1940, there were no documents defining the responsibility of auditors for detecting errors. It was only noted that this is a fairly important issue, but most authors agreed that it should not be attributed to the main task of the audit.

From 1940 to the present, the objectives of the audit have changed little. The emphasis was on confirming the accuracy of financial statements. Officially, this provision was proclaimed in the documents of the American Chartered Accounting Institute: "The first purpose of an audit of financial statements by an independent auditor is to express an opinion on the financial statements presented."

Part of the newly developed auditing techniques had a strict focus on the detected errors. In 1961, in the Regulation on Auditing Procedures, it was established that the auditor determines the error, and if it is material, may have a negative impact on his opinion about the accuracy of the financial statements presented and the audit in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards, he must evaluate its degree of probability.

Another point of view on the objectives of the audit is that the task of an independent review is to express an opinion on the information included in the financial statements. As for the responsibility of the auditor, it consists only in carrying out tests, in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards, designed in such a way as to detect the very possibility of determining the type of inconsistencies, i.e. The auditor is not responsible for undetected errors, but should not be relieved of responsibility for checking for a bottleneck in the audit process.

Until the end of the 40s, the audit mainly consisted in checking the documentation, confirming the recording of monetary transactions and the correct grouping of these transactions in financial statements. It was a confirmation audit.

After 1949, independent auditors began to pay more attention to internal control issues, believing that with an effective internal control system, the likelihood of errors is negligible, and financial data is sufficiently complete and accurate. Auditing firms began to engage in more consulting activities than direct audits. This is a system-oriented audit.

In the early 70s. development of international auditing standards began. At the moment, there are several generally recognized global audit standards:

Generally Accepted Auditing Standards(Generally Accepted Auditing Standards - GAAS), there are only 10 of them;

Special Auditing Standards(Special Auditing Standards - SAS), their number is constantly increasing, now there are around 70 of them.

Thus, it can be noted that throughout the history of the development of the audit, the main purpose of the audit has always been to establish the reliability of the reporting. In addition, recently there has been an increase in the reliability of internal control and a decrease in the specification of goals.

In old JAPAN in 1520, an order was issued on the procedure for maintaining accounting books. The first monuments that have come down to us date back to 1615 and 1634. Accounting was carried out according to a simple system. At first, only chronological records were used, and then chronological and systematic records were used simultaneously. Although some Japanese were familiar with double-entry bookkeeping, until 1854 this system had no effect on practice. After 1854, "modern accounting," writes K. Nishikawa, "was imported into Japan simultaneously from several countries." These countries were: England, USA, France, Germany and Russia. The influence of the first two countries was the strongest.

For the first time, double accounting was introduced by French specialists in 1865. Only in 1873, the French were replaced in accounting by the Japanese. British or Americans later worked as chief accountants at large enterprises.

The transplantation of the Western model of accounting and auditing, carried out after the Second World War, was not a very successful operation.

The European style of double-entry bookkeeping was completely unknown in Japan until the middle of the 19th century, when this island nation, under pressure from the United States, finally abandoned the policy of self-isolation pursued since the beginning of the 17th century. It is believed that double-entry bookkeeping was first introduced to Japan in 1865 during the Edo period. In practice, it began to be applied after the appearance of the relevant instructions of the National Bank of Japan (1872) and the publication by the Ministry of Finance of a regulatory document called Ginko Boki Seiko (Bank Accounting Method).

The first legislative acts in the field of accounting were written according to English models. However, over time, American influence becomes predominant.

The first book on double-entry bookkeeping, published in Japan in 1873, was translated, and the translation, interpretation and, most importantly, the development of terminology was carried out by Yukichi Fukuzawa - the first Japanese accountant in the European sense of the word - the father of Japanese accounting. By the end of the century, more than 90 account books had been published in Japanese, most of them translated from English. In 1886, the first book on the history of accounting was published.

In 1878, stock exchanges were opened in Tokyo and Osaka, and then, like mushrooms after the rain, various joint-stock companies began to appear. In 1890, the Commercial Code was adopted, according to which joint-stock companies were required to provide the public with information about their assets and balance sheet. It is from this year that tangible progress in the development of accounting begins in Japan.

Tax legislation also played a significant role in the birth of the accounting profession in Japan. The income tax was introduced in 1896, after which, in addition to ordinary accountants, there were tax agents who provided companies with professional advice in the field of tax payment. Thus, at the end of the 19th century in Japan, there were two categories of accountants - some kept records in companies and prepared financial statements, while others specialized in tax accounting and providing advice.

Accounting, in accordance with the provisions of the Commercial Code of 1890, was subject to mandatory audit by staff auditors. The role of the in-house auditor, as T. Cook and M. Kikuya point out, was similar to the role of an internal auditor in Western countries and was not required to have a professional accountant certificate. In fact, these people were nominally called auditors and practically did not perform control functions.

For example, in 1909, facts of fraud were discovered in the Dai Nihon Seito Co. (Later this precedent became known as the “Nitto Inc.” case). Fraud was accompanied by the disguise of illegal accounting transactions and the payment of so-called "dividends", which effectively "turned a blind eye" to members of the supervisory board. As a result, an unexpected drop in the share price led to the bankruptcy of the company. After this incident, Sir Claude Maxwell MacDonald, then the British Ambassador to Japan, strongly pointed out the need for auditors.

Thus, the foundation was laid for the formation of the Japanese audit following the example of Great Britain, the accounting and auditing system in which was considered the most developed and progressive at the beginning of the 20th century.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Trade of Japan, which at that time had the most authority in this matter, immediately conducted a study of accounting systems in the UK, US and Europe. A summary of this study was published in 1909 under the title "Report on a Study of the Systems [Training] of Certified Public Accountants". It should be noted that there was an active movement among Japanese accountants at this time in favor of the adoption of the Registered Accountants Law. The first draft of such a law was prepared in 1914, but was rejected due to unresolved controversial issues. In total, drafts of this law were submitted for discussion eight times, and only 13 years later (in 1927) the Law on Registered Accountants was finally adopted.

The reason why early drafts of this law were rejected is that in Japan in the early twentieth century there was not yet an atmosphere conducive to the acceptance of auditors by society. Many questioned the need for such legislation. Even the Registered Accountants Act passed in 1927 was still very far from perfect and had many differences from the British accounting system, which was defined as a model from the very beginning. It did not include a single provision protecting accountants. Anyone who studied accounting at a university (college) or had at least one year of practical experience could register as a professional accountant.

Starting with difficulty, the Japanese soon achieved tremendous success. Already in 1912, S. V. Mylnikov wrote: “The modern organization of the commercial and industrial institutions of Japan has a little more than 20 years behind it. At present, most of the large enterprises are arranged with the latest accounting technology, and many of them can compete with the best European and American firms in their organization.

The function of accounting according to Yoshiaki Jinnai is control, while control is not legal, associated with the responsibility of persons involved in the economic process, but economic, allowing you to effectively manage stocks and cash flows. Control -- the most important function of accounting, which has two branches, the first is associated with the reflection of the control of the movement of property, the second - resources and economic processes. At the same time, in both cases, the traditional interpretation in the description of control comes from the activities of individuals involved in the economic process.

In the late 20s - in the 30s of the twentieth century, the number of tax agents who wanted to legalize their activities, following the example of accountants, increased. The necessary prerequisites for this were formed during the 2nd World War, when taxes increased significantly. To ensure the successful implementation of the tax reform policy of the national government of Japan, the Tax Agents Law was passed in 1942.

After the defeat of Japan in World War 2, all subsequent reforms were carried out exclusively as part of the occupation policy pursued by the General Headquarters of the Allied Occupation Forces (GHQ). One of the main directions of this policy was the economic reform associated with the dissolution of the zaibatsu - Japanese financial associations. The command of the occupying forces sought to ensure the democratization of the securities market and the necessary conditions (including legal ones) for the involvement of foreign capital in the Japanese economy.

In 1948, the Law on Securities and the Stock Market was passed, which, in order to protect the interests of investors, provided for the mandatory disclosure of the necessary information in the financial statements and its confirmation by independent auditors. This law almost completely copied American legislation, namely the Securities Act of 1933 and the Stock Exchange Act, passed in the United States in 1934.

Problems arose in connection with the creation of an audit system, since there were no professional auditors in Japan, and the command of the occupying forces considered registered accountants unprepared for work under the new legislation. As a result, the Chartered Public Accountants Act (CPA) was passed in 1948.

The new law provided for a special examination for registered accountants who had at least three years of practical experience. The previous accounting system was abolished. If earlier many accountants had never even tried to carry out audit procedures, now, through the efforts of the command of the occupying forces, they had to learn this, as well as master the accounting principles adopted in the West.

Economic reforms carried out under the auspices of the command of the occupying forces also affected the Japanese tax system. In 1949, a group of experts headed by Columbia University professor Carl S. Shoup arrived in Japan to develop recommendations for reforming the tax system. The system of progressive taxation proposed by the Shoup group, focusing on direct taxes, is still in force in Japan today. In addition, Shoup's recommendations pointed to the low qualifications of tax agents, which often caused misunderstandings in the post-war tax administration. As a result of the meeting, the old tax agent system was abolished, and in 1951 the Chartered Public Tax Accountants Act was passed, which is still in effect today.

Thus, having gone through a rather difficult path, two professional categories of Japanese accountants arose. The first of them - certified public accountants - performs the actual accounting and auditing functions, and the second, which unites tax accountants, specializes in tax accounting issues. Both professional groups have established rather complex requirements for the examination of the title of certified public accountant and have created their own organizations.

We mentioned earlier that the systems of public disclosure of financial information and independent audit in the non-state sector of the Japanese economy did not actually exist before the end of the 2nd World War. In fact, the entire economy of Japan was controlled by the zaibatsu, and after its collapse, a vacuum formed that had to be filled somehow. In post-war Japan, companies began to merge on somewhat different lines than they had previously done in the US or Great Britain. After the dissolution of the zaibatsu, indirect bank financing was a more profitable way for most companies to raise the necessary funds, rather than direct financing through the stock market. Accordingly, the consolidated accounting system characteristic of Western companies (corporations) in post-war Japan was not established, and many companies continued to do business with their numerous branches in the old fashioned way. Accounting for such transactions was replete with concealment of income, manipulation of profits and cases of fraud.

At the time, few Japanese chartered accountants had any experience in auditing. The reasons for this were discussed earlier. The implementation of the audit, of course, was limited due to the lack of qualified personnel. Only those corporations that were listed on the stock exchange and therefore subject to the provisions of the Securities and Stock Market Act of 1948 were subject to audit. At the same time, a number of large corporations were not subjected to independent audit, and almost all medium and small companies were covered only by audits of internal auditors working in accordance with the Commercial Code. Many internal auditors have worked for the same company all their lives, had insufficient knowledge of accounting and control methodologies, and lacked the independence to be objective.

Thus, due to the unreformed audit system, corporate control in Japan until the second half of the 1940s was rather weak and ineffective. Against the backdrop of very unreliable accounting, such control called into question the imminent appearance of much-needed foreign investment in Japan. Finally, in the early post-war years, there were no accounting firms in Japan, and rare audits were carried out by individual certified public accountants.

True, there were situations when the audit was carried out in concert by several joint auditors, but many companies entered into cooperation agreements with individual expert accountants who had a CPA certificate. Of course, one auditor could not physically do all the necessary work if it was a large corporation, but he was interested in the very high pay that such a corporation offered and which did not have to be shared with colleagues. Thus, conditions were created for the loss of independence, since lone auditors valued their corporate clients very much and did not want to lose them in any way. In addition, independence was a rather problematic issue for Japanese auditors due to cultural and mental issues, as J.L. Mac Kinnon.

It took quite a long time before a full-scale audit was introduced in Japan. This happened only in 1957, and before that (1951-57), Japanese auditors experimentally stuffed themselves with bumps, trying by trial and error to master the profession properly.

After the implementation of the statutory audit, which passed without much misunderstanding (a six-year pilot period had a positive effect), it seemed that the audit was firmly established on Japanese soil, but in fact, the fraudulent schemes for obtaining hidden dividends that existed for many years were not eradicated. Attention to the numerous facts of hiding real information by companies temporarily weakened, which was facilitated by the rapid economic growth of Japan, which continued until the early 60s of the twentieth century.

In 1963, a crisis began in the Japanese economy, which led to the bankruptcy of many companies, especially in 1964-1965. It was then that cases of illegal actions of company management related to masking real profits and maintaining double accounting were revealed. Independent auditors, many of whom acted individually, did not perform well during the crisis. Therefore, the audit of companies alone was prohibited, and since 1967 the first firms uniting CPAs began to be created.

The JICPA was reorganized, bringing together the vast majority of practicing auditors. In addition, since internal audit also did not perform well, measures were taken to strengthen the internal audit system in Japanese corporations. Unfortunately, despite the measures taken, Japanese auditors faced new problems.

First, JICPA received the status of a so-called special corporation, which was largely a reaction to high-profile scandals around bankrupt companies (the bankruptcy of Sanyo Special Steel Co., which has firmly gone down in history as one of the most scandalous in the history of Japan, was especially indicative). For auditors who perform their work in bad faith, administrative sanctions were introduced, up to and including cancellation of registration.

The government, however, did not stop at these sanctions. The Treasury Department, which had little faith in JICPA's ability to self-cleanse and renew itself, gained real leverage over the organization. The introduction of the status of a special corporation for JICPA provided for the establishment of strict government control, due to the specifics of this type of organizational structure (in Japan, special corporations are created by the government with a specific strategic goal and are tightly controlled by it).

Secondly, the reform of the accounting system has progressed very slowly. It wasn't until 1974 that auditing by CPAs was mandated by the Commercial Code in response to the growing need for strong internal controls in corporations. The reform of the accounting and auditing system took place behind closed doors and practitioners had much less influence on the process than government officials.

Thirdly, every year more and more cases of fraud in corporate accounting were uncovered, and the accountants and auditors responsible for this got off relatively lightly - as a rule, illegal transactions were simply canceled. Managers, who were supposed to be responsible for the fraudulent schemes displayed in the accounting, were also practically not punished.

Under such conditions, in the early 1990s, the Japanese economy fell into an unprecedented depression. In 1996, many home loan companies collapsed, and in 1997, a similar fate befell a number of construction companies. Further, in 1998, the collapse of the Hanwa Bank and the bankruptcy of the Long-term Bank of Japan followed. Surprisingly, in all these cases, the auditors' conclusions were positive. Of course, as corporation after corporation fell into the abyss of the financial crisis, auditors came under fire from well-deserved criticism. Thus, the recent bankruptcy of Enron, the largest US energy company, was received with deep understanding in Japan, which experienced something similar, only on a large scale, in the second half of the 1990s.

To a large extent, the weakening of independent audit control was due to the policy of the Japanese Ministry of Finance, which almost completely subjugated JICPA. Many members of the latter's management are former senior officials of the Ministry of Finance, who actively influence the activities of formally independent Japanese auditors. As a result, it turned out that positive opinions for companies that went bankrupt were given by auditors under significant pressure from the Ministry of Finance. This explains the fact that the auditors who gave positive opinions to potential bankrupts did not suffer any punishment. It could not be otherwise - the Ministry of Finance of Japan was not ready to publicly flog itself.

The reasons for the economic crisis that broke out in Japan are not limited, of course, to the problems of accounting and auditing, but this factor should still be considered one of the main ones. The inadequacy of the system of independent audit and internal control in Japanese corporations to the level of economic development, as well as to the requirements of the market, significantly aggravated the crisis, which could have been, if not prevented, then at least mitigated.

Although some measures were taken in Japan after 1999 to improve the quality of CPA audits, such as the introduction of mandatory ongoing training for auditors and reviews of audit firms by JICPA, many doubt that the situation will change fundamentally. for the better. Unfortunately, the influence of the Japanese Ministry of Finance on auditing remains too great, which harms the independence of auditors and audit firms. In addition, the specifics of Japanese corporate culture and management make it rather problematic to introduce a full-fledged internal audit, for example, in the form in which it exists in the United States.

It should be recognized that attempts to adopt Western models of accounting and auditing in Japan have not been completely successful. It has not been possible to create independent professional organizations of accountants and auditors (except for JICPA, which is actually controlled by the Ministry of Finance), which could serve as guarantors of progress and improvement in accounting and auditing practices. Internal audit in Japanese corporations has not taken root, which significantly reduces the effectiveness of corporate control. We see that such inconsistencies can be, to put it mildly, quite unpleasant. Japan's experience is illustrative and instructive.

Also, the global economic crisis has accelerated the formation of the institution of auditors in Japan under the auspices of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The current state of accounting and reporting in this country was influenced by the American occupation of the Japanese islands in 1945 and the economic reconstruction measures carried out by the administration of General Douglas MacArthur. During this period, accounting and reporting rules were developed based on the forms and methods established in American practice, which inevitably affected the organization of the audit business. In Japan, in particular, the Accounting Standards Board has developed a number of regulations, including those for auditing enterprises. The auditor training system in Japan is somewhat more complicated. To become an auditor in Japan, you must pass three rounds of exams.

The purpose of the first round of exams is to determine whether the level of general education of candidates meets the requirements of the next round of exams. All persons are allowed to it, regardless of gender, age, education and nationality, and graduates of colleges and universities are exempted from it. In the first round, applicants take exams in mathematics, composition and Japanese.

The second round exams are examinations for the title of junior auditor. Written exams are taken in accounting, balance sheet, production cost accounting, financial audit techniques, business management methods, economics and commercial law. Only persons who have taught these subjects at a university or college for at least three years are exempt from these examinations. This tour usually passes only 7-9% of applicants.

The condition for admission to the third round of examinations for the title of auditor is at least three years of work experience as a junior auditor in the presence of a document confirming the completion of annual courses in this specialty. Training is usually conducted after work three times a week for three hours. During the training, students take exams several times and prepare independent work. Training is paid. For three years they receive the salary of a junior auditor.

In the third round, exams are taken on the practice and procedures for performing audits, financial analysis, taxation, accounting, cost accounting by cost items. Successfully pass exams on average 42.5 applicants. Exams are also paid. The examination committee removes applicants from exams who attempt to use illegal methods of preparing an answer (cheat sheets, tips, etc.) and may deprive them of the right to retake for up to three years.

By the way, in Japan the activities of auditors are strictly controlled by the Ministry of Finance. In particular, the Minister of Finance, under the law on audit activity, is obliged to initiate an investigation into the illegal actions of the auditor upon receipt of relevant information from any person.

During the investigation, the minister is obliged to listen to the opinion of all interested parties or collect written testimony from them and, if necessary, conduct an examination, request all supporting documentation and make an unexpected revision of the documents of the firms with which the auditor worked. The expenses of all witnesses and experts are paid by the Ministry of Finance. Based on the results of the investigation, a protocol is filled out with the rationale for the decision. Any interested person may request it for review for an appropriate fee. The results of the investigation are reported in the professional press.

As a punishment, the Ministry of Finance may prohibit the auditor from performing his duties for up to one year by canceling his registration certificate for the right to hold an audit position. In this case, after the expiration of the ban period, the auditor will have to go through the time-consuming and lengthy registration process again.

control audit accounting

History of accounting and auditing in Japan

Scope of statutory audit in Japan

The relevance of the topic under consideration is obvious, because. audit checks are simply indispensable in a market economy and at a transitional stage of Russia's development. The auditor not only reveals errors in accounting and taxation, not only reveals shortcomings in the management system and organizational structure of the enterprise, but is able to give the most qualified advice on these issues. owners, but also stands guard over the interests of the state, compliance with laws and regulations. Hence, the identification and solution of problems that can hinder the full development and establishment of audit in our country should be given great attention. The audit includes examination independent of the influence of individuals and legal entities, as well as an analysis of all financial statements of this business entity by special qualified authorized persons, hereinafter referred to as auditors, including firms that have the goal of determining the accuracy of the information provided, as well as its completeness and compliance with the current this state to the legislation and norms that apply to the state of all audited financial statements and compiled accounting records.

The object of the study is an audit of historical development as an independent examination of the state of accounting, financial statements and balance sheets.

The purpose of the work is to characterize the main stages in the development of audit in the world and in Russia.

Research objectives:

- to characterize the reason and conditions for the occurrence of the audit;

– consider the history of the development of audit in foreign countries and in Russia;

- give a brief description of modern audit theories;

– analyze the main content of the audit depending on national approaches.

Research methods are: analytical, dialectical, structural-logical, retrospective.

The theoretical basis of the study is the work of such authors as Albarov R.A., Andreev V.D., Arens A., Bogomolov A.M., Bychkova S.M., Voronina L.I., Kamyshanov P.I., Pacioli L. ., Myatenko S.V., Robertson J., Romanov A.N., Sokolov Ya.V., Suits V.P., Shchadilova S.N., Sheremet A.D. and etc.

1 History of audit development in foreign countries

1.1 Control and audit in antiquity and the Middle Ages

The profession of an auditor has been known since ancient times. As early as about 200 BC, the quaestors (officials in charge of financial and judicial affairs) of the Roman Empire exercised control over state accountants in the field. The reports of the quaestors were sent to Rome and heard by the examiners. This practice gave rise to the term "auditor" from the Latin "listen". In addition, according to the Roman Empire, a special tax police was created, whose employees resorted to the torture of women and children in order to obtain information about income and property hidden from taxation.

In the ancient world, public-legal reporting took place. So, according to Herodotus, on the pyramid of Cheops it is carved how much garlic, radishes, onions and other products were given to people involved in the construction of the pyramid, the total cost of which was 1500 talents. A report has come down to us, carved on the wall of the Parthenon, according to which the cost of construction was 469 talents.

In one of the world's most popular auditing books, The Montgomery Audit, the authors expressed the opinion that "A number of forms of internal control ... are described in the Bible, the content of which, by all accounts, covers the period between 1800 BC and 95 AD, and the rationale behind the institution of control, that if employees have an opportunity to steal, they can take advantage, reflects the same professional skepticism that is expected of auditors today. Specifically, the Bible deals with issues of double protection of property, the need to hire competent and honest workers, restriction of access and separation of duties. In addition, based on publications in the field of accounting history, the authors of the Montgomery Audit point to the presence in Athens in the 5th century BC. control of revenues and expenditures by the People's Assembly, and that the financial system "included government auditors who checked the documents of all officials upon the expiration of their powers" .

One of the famous Russian auditors A.A. Terekhov writes that “many fundamental economic processes and mechanisms with an unconditional recognition of the importance of accounting and control were considered by scientists of the Ancient World: Plato, Aristotle and others. Aristotle in his “Politics” clearly distinguishes between accounting and control functions, with a direct indication that checks (audit, revision) is part of the control”. At the same time, A. Terekhov concludes that "... even from the ancient philosophers comes the understanding that the inspector should be equal to the chief accountant (not lower in status), and besides that he has no right to become dependent on the verifiable" .

In English-speaking countries, the oldest reference to an audit dates back to 1130 (document from the archives of the Treasury of England and Scotland). According to , the City of London was audited at least as early as the 1200s, and at the beginning of the 14th century, auditors were among the elected officials, and since then there are many documents in the archives, indicating a wide recognition of the importance of audit and the regular implementation of the audit. reports of municipalities, private estates and craft guilds. According to March 24, 1324, King Edward II signed a decree appointing three state auditors who are to ask, check and "take all the accounts that have been introduced and will be introduced in the provinces: Oxford, Birkenhand, Southampton, Wales, Somersetshire and Dorset, do and signify everything that auditors should do with accounts.

The audit itself in the UK of that period was divided into two types:

"Public Audit", i.e. literally hearing audit reports in the presence of officials and citizens. The audit reports were read aloud by the treasurer. This practice was carried out taking into account the fact that not many people were literate. By the middle of the 16th century, auditors' reports indicated "heard by the undersigned auditors."


Detailed check of the accounts of payments of the financial managers of large estates - an oral report of the auditor to the owner and the council of administrators of the estate. At the same time, the auditor was usually a member of the board, and according to the conclusions of the authors of the Montgomery Audit, this type of audit is the forerunner of modern internal audit.


At the same time, both types of audit considered were aimed at ensuring the accountability of public and private officials in relation to the funds entrusted to them.


In the Middle Ages, thanks to the introduction of accounting principles based on double entry, which the Franciscan friar Luca Pacioli was able to methodically expound in his fundamental work, published in 1494, "The sum of arithmetic, geometry, the doctrine of proportions and relations." Part one of department 9 is Treatise XI "On Accounts and Records". Clarity, logic of presentation, as well as the need for systematization, which has matured in accounting practice, have contributed to the fact that accounting methods by using double entry (many sources say "double bookkeeping", but in our conditions this phrase has a slightly different meaning, so we will use term "double entry") have spread to many countries. This spread was caused by the development of trade and industry, the widespread development of debt capital markets, the complexity of conducting settlements with customs and excise officials, the increase in the volume of accounting work, as well as the need to control the accounting process and its correctness and reliability. In chapter 17, “On how and why accounts are kept by public institutions, as well as by a loan chamber, which is governed in accordance with the laws of Venice,” Pacioli writes: “The High Senate severely punishes faulty brokers and registrars, and I myself recall many from whom in Formerly, omissions were severely punished. A good deed was done when a person was appointed to supervise them, who was instructed to investigate whether books are well or badly kept in these institutions. Thus, Pacioli gives us evidence that the functions of control have taken place before and emphasizes their usefulness.


The further formation of the audit is associated with the development of large-scale production, transport, the emergence of capitalist relations, the separation of interests of those who are directly involved in the management of the enterprise (administration, managers) and those who invest in its activities (owners, investors, shareholders). The latter could not and did not want to rely only on the financial information provided by the company's managers and subordinate accountants. The shareholders wanted to be sure that they were not being deceived, that the statements submitted by the administration fully reflected the actual financial position of the enterprise.


Consider the development of audit in individual countries.


1.2. Audit Development in Western Europe and the USA


According to one version, set out in, the famous politician and economist of the 18th century, George Watson, once recommended that Scottish merchants check their financial statements. The results were so significant that "calle, stingy and pedantic" (as other Britons called them) the Scots recognized the benefits of such checks and began to practice them.


In 1805, a directory was published in Edinburgh, where the names of 17 auditors were given, who soon created their own professional organization. (As you know, many professions already had professional organizations at that time, the beginning was laid in the Middle Ages with the formation of guilds). In 1854, the "Society of Accountants" was formed in Edinburgh, which brought together accountants-auditors.


After the passage of the British Companies Act of 1862, according to which companies at least once a year were required to submit accounts and reports for verification by specialists in accounting and financial control, the ranks of auditors increased significantly. The authors of the book, referring to the British author Richard Brown, indicate the number of auditors worldwide in 1905 - 11 thousand, of which half were in the UK.


In 1880 the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales was founded. One hundred years later (January 1, 1983) it had 76,000 members, almost half of them under 35 years of age, two-thirds under 45 years of age. In total, there are six main accounting and audit organizations in the UK, including:


Association of Chartered Accountants;


Institute of Accountants-Calculators and Accountants-Managers;


Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland;


Sworn Institute of Public Finance and Accounting;


Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.


However, only members of the institutions of chartered accountants in England and Wales, Scotland, Ireland and the Association of Chartered Accountants have the right to engage in auditing.


The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland received a royal charter in 1951 and incorporated the previously separate institutions of Chartered Accountants of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.


At first, the auditor's responsibilities were not clearly defined: all investors - both shareholders and creditors - saw him as a protector of their interests. The modern view of the auditor as a person responsible only to shareholders began to take shape after the passage of the Companies Act in 1929, according to which all companies are required to include a profit and loss account in their financial statements.


English specialists from the middle to the end of the last century made a significant contribution to the development of auditing and auditing techniques. According to, the balance equations were created in the first half of the last century by V.F. Foster and in the second half by Lawrence Dixie:


A - P \u003d K and A \u003d P + K.


There were heated discussions among English specialists regarding the estimates of balance sheet items, while the controversy between the largest experts led to the fact that, at first glance, dry scholastic balance equations, interpreted from the point of view of the psychological climate and interests of persons related to the company, made it possible to classify various violations, to which people are so inclined. Since this propensity was observed quite often, according to experts, it was necessary to systematically conduct comprehensive and targeted audits that would guarantee the interests of counterparties. Lawrence Dixie - the largest authority of that time saw the goals of revisions in identifying:


1) forgeries;


2) random errors;


3) lack of organization of accounting.


1) no valuables, especially monetary ones, are accounted for;


2) documents are issued on the wrong day;


3) balances on cash (cash) and material accounts are artificially inflated;


4) the totals of payrolls are inflated;


5) the salary of the "friends" of the accountant is overstated;


6) money is issued for nominees (“dead souls”);


7) inflated prices in collusion with suppliers;


8) fictitious crediting of a cash account or reflection of fictitious accounts payable;


9) payment of inflated commissions and sharing them with recipients;


10) forgery of documents, usually checks;


11) payment several times for the same document (or its various copies).


It can be noted that a lot of things noticed in the last century by English scientists are still relevant today.


English scientists have made a great contribution to the development of the theory and methods of audit. They also owe modern audit the appearance of questionnaires that can significantly reduce the complexity of inspections. I would like to finish a brief history of the formation of audit in the UK with the definition of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS): “Audit is a set of methods aimed at establishing the effectiveness and integrity of management systems, the accuracy of financial reports” .


In 1905, and then in 1909, R. Montgomery published with editorial corrections in the United States the book by Lawrence Dixie "Audit: a practical guide for auditors." Developing the ideas of Lawrence Dixie, he wrote that the purpose of an audit is to uncover voluntary and involuntary errors that may occur in financial statements. Based on this, a hierarchy of audit tasks was built, associated with the detection of three types of errors:


1) free (abuse);


2) involuntary (misprints, arithmetic errors);


3) fundamental (choosing the wrong methodological techniques).


However, the pace of business development in the United States differed sharply from the British, for America, English methods became unacceptable due to the fact that the British style of verification requires too much time and money. American audit, due to the specifics of the ultra-fast growth of American business at the end of the 19th century - the beginning of the 20th century, needed a fast pace of inspections, and, consequently, advanced audit technologies. American auditors began to practice the use of "test audit", collecting evidence about the activities of the company from business partners in order to verify operations. They began to take into account the interests of investors, to pay more and more attention to the valuation of assets and liabilities, and moved away from the rather prevalent in the English school detailed check, which Montgomery described as "checking clerical accuracy." Demand from lenders, mainly banks, has led to an expansion of audit tasks and the development of new audit methods and standardization approaches.


R. Montgomery in 1912 wrote the book "Audit: theory and practice", which in subsequent editions and reprints (up to the present day) was called "Montgomery's Audit". In the first edition of this book, he referred to early-stage American auditing as an "accounting audit," emphasizing that three-quarters of an auditor's time was devoted to calculating and compiling ledgers. Robert Montgomery himself (1872 - 1953) was not only a theorist, but also an audit practitioner. Back in 1898, together with colleagues, he founded a firm that later became one of the leading audit firms in the world, Coopers and Lybrand, contributed to the creation of the American Institute of Chartered Accountants and became its president, taught at Columbia, New York and Pennsylvania Universities.


According to the US, an audit is required for companies registered by the Securities and Exchange Commission, created in 1934 after the Wall Street crash of 1929. The Securities Act of 1933 and the Exchange Act 1934 required registered companies to file appropriate financial statements.


In the US, there are two types of professional and non-governmental audit organizations. One of them is represented at the national, federal level and is called the American Institute of Chartered Public Accountants (AICPA). This institute arose in 1887 and since then has played a leading role in the formation of audit personnel. It certifies the qualifications of the applicant, who passes the relevant examinations and receives a diploma as an accountant-auditor. The Institute directs scientific and methodological work in the USA, publishes monographs and publishes a number of journals on audit, among which the Journal of Accountancy is the most popular.


In addition to the nationwide Institute, there are professional auditing organizations at the state level, which are called societies of certified public accountants. Members of these societies have the right to conduct audits and provide advice in their states. Accountants-auditors can carry out their activities in private practice or be employees of audit firms. The most qualified auditors are teaching at universities and colleges.


The active process of audit standardization in the United States began in 1939, when the AICPA established the Audit Procedures Committee and it issued the first Audit Procedure Regulations. From 1939, the AICPA began publishing research bulletins and reports on audit procedures, the institute's first original papers on audit standardization. The first Audit Procedures Report outlined seven key messages that underpin the formation of the audit profession. The report recognizes the study of inventories and confirmation of receivables as mandatory audit procedures, recommends that independent auditors be elected by the Board of Directors (shareholders of the company), and companies create independent audit committees to oversee internal audits and accounting procedures, formulates sample auditor reports on the financial information provided.


The 1970s and 1980s in the United States were marked by increased public interest in the terms of reference and work of auditors. The consequence of a series of unsuccessful audits, which led to litigation, were hearings in Congress, the creation of special commissions to determine the role and responsibility of the auditor. The result was a conclusion about the discrepancy between what, according to the society (and therefore clients) should be an audit, and the possibilities of the actual audit process, which are limited by certain limits (primarily, time limits for audits) and the need to strengthen the activity of the Council auditing standards in order to reduce and further close this gap.


Definitions of audit by different organizations in the US vary. Thus, for example, the American Institute of Chartered Accountants defines an audit as “the process by which a competent independent person collects and evaluates evidence about quantifiable information related to a specific business system in order to determine and express in its opinion the degree to which this information meets established criteria” , and the American Association of Accountants Committee on Fundamental Accounting Concepts defined auditing as follows: “An audit is a systematic process of obtaining and evaluating objective data on economic activities, establishing the level of their compliance with certain criteria and presenting the results to interested users” .


There are currently over 45,000 accounting firms in the US. The number of employees varies from 1 to several thousand people.


In the USA, auditors are certified in three specializations: 1) Chartered Accountant; 2) sworn internal auditor; 3) sworn auditor of information systems.


Germany at the end of the 19th century was a country in which capitalism was rapidly developing, and the beginning of this rapid growth was laid by the unification of the German states into a single country thanks to the efforts of the “Iron Chancellor” Otto von Bismarck.


According to Germany, the first steps towards the introduction of auditing were made in 1870, when an addition to the law on joint-stock companies obliged the supervisory boards of these companies to check the balance sheet, the profit distribution report and report the results of the check to the general meetings of shareholders. However, the law did not indicate what kind of verification it should be - its own (internal) auditors or invited from the outside. Due to the fact that the Gründer fever after 1870 led to the creation and rapid collapse of many joint-stock companies, German law provided for an external audit.


On August 14, 1884, following the example of English auditors, the institute of accountants-auditors arises in Germany (however, in his book Essays on the History of Accounting, Yaroslav Vyacheslavovich Sokolov notes that “... the nationalist tendency attributed the emergence of the profession to the 18th century and even to the times Hanse". Similar institutions, not without the influence of the German tradition, were organized in Christiania (Oslo), Vienna, Budapest, Zurich, Riga, Helsingfors. The accountant-auditor was called trigender. German researchers evaluated the activities of trigenders differently. For example, according to Gerstner wrote that “Treygender is not only a representative in the legal sense, but also a confidant, friend, adviser, assistant, in short, a right hand, a faithful hand that works for us where we ourselves instruct or where the conditions of the place, time, personal, economic, material we are prevented from doing everything ourselves and where we need a third person, namely a trigender.”


R. Stern and R. Beigel, among other scientists, were German scientists who made a significant contribution to the development of business analysis and balance sheet analysis. In the German school, three areas of study of balance were distinguished:


1) economic analysis;


2) legal analysis, which led to the creation of an accounting audit;


3) popularization of knowledge about the balance sheet among shareholders.


It was in Germany in the late XIX - early XX centuries that an original scientific direction arose - balance science. According to Y. Sokolov, the emergence of balance science was due to three factors:


1) the activities of major lawyers who created a special branch of law - balance law;


2) promotion of balance as the fundamental initial concept of accounting;


3) the need to familiarize the masses of shareholders with the mechanism of the main reporting form - the balance sheet, while studying the structure of the latter.


At the same time, the merit of German lawyers was the formulation of the main requirements for balance:


1) accuracy;


2) completeness;


3) clarity;


4) truthfulness;


5) succession;


6) unity of balance.


Since 1908, at the Leipzig Higher Commercial School, a special training of accountants-auditors began (the training period is 1 year). Only persons with a higher economic education and accounting experience were admitted to the department.


Since 1931, joint-stock companies have been required to carry out audits (the obligation to undergo an external audit was formulated in the ordinance regarding joint-stock companies). This was due to the fact that the supervisory boards of joint-stock companies did not cope with their obligation to conduct audits, especially since the objects of audits were not only annual reports, but the entire organization of accounting.


In 1932, the Institute of Auditors was established in Germany as a result of the transfer of the functions of the previously existing Institute of Audit and Guardianship, which existed until 1945. After the end of the Second World War, the Institute of Auditors was formed in Düsseldorf, which in November 1954 was renamed the Institute of Auditors in Germany. During this time, the Düsseldorf Institute, carrying out professional activities throughout Germany, gained high prestige, which allowed it to become an all-German organization.


The tasks of the Institute of Auditors are to promote the development of the audit profession and provide the country with audit personnel, to develop uniform professional principles and standards, and to observe these standards by all members of the audit profession.


Currently, the Institute of Auditors voluntarily includes about 5600 auditors and 600 audit organizations, i.e. approximately 80% of all representatives of this profession. The main condition for membership is voluntary but strict adherence to professional rules, including ethical standards.

Currently, the term “wirtschaftspruefer” is used to designate the profession of an auditor in Germany, which literally means “controller of the economy”. This term is protected by law, and all others that were used earlier in the course of the historical development of Germany (auditor, financial inspector, etc.) are not found in professional use: “according to the German Civil Code, the origins of which date back to 1896 and which, in a modified version, in accordance with the requirements of the modern era, the form also operates in Germany, the auditor is a representative of a free profession, his task is "to carry out production and economic control, in particular the annual financial reports of enterprises, and to provide information on the results of such control" .


State influence on the audit activity in Germany is supplemented by the fact that all auditors and audit firms must be mandatory members of the Audit Chamber. The duty of the Audit Chamber is to protect the professional interests of auditors and promote the growth of the authority of the audit profession, provide advice and legal assistance to members of the Chamber, improve the qualifications of auditors, control audit activities and assist in the training of new audit personnel.


Since January 1, 1986, professional auditing standards have been brought into line with Directives 4, 7 and 8 of the Council of the European Communities, as well as accounting and reporting standards. The right to conduct audits is reserved only for officially authorized auditors - "controllers of the economy", "sworn controllers of accounting books", as well as officially authorized audit firms.


The auditor training system is very complex, and the requirements for applicants are also high: in order to be admitted to the exam, a candidate must have a higher education in one of several specialties and six years of practical experience in the economic field (at the same time, take part in the execution of technical or other control functions).

audit control of the enterprise at the end of the financial year (verification of the correctness of accounting books, verification of annual accounts);


audit control of documents of a legal entity during its foundation for compliance with the legislation of the country;


audit control on behalf of the general meeting of shareholders (as a rule, certain areas of the joint-stock company, and not all);


audit control of certain segments of business and financial activities (in particular, deposited securities in credit institutions);


audit checks for the detection of violations, including control checks of a current nature, preventive checks in order to prevent possible violations;


control check of the entire enterprise or part of it (for example, in the case of a sale).


In France, there are two main organizations that manage the auditing activities in the country - the Chamber of Expert Accountants and Certified Accountants and the Society of Accounts Commissioners. The main differences between expert accountants and commissioners for accounts are that expert accountants are invited to conduct audits of accounting and reporting, and commissioners for accounts are appointed on a mandatory basis in joint-stock companies in accordance with the legislation on joint-stock companies. Each joint-stock company must have an appointed commissioner for accounts, and if this company is required to publish consolidated financial statements, then there must be at least two commissioners.


Accounts commissioners carry out checks of the financial statements of joint-stock companies and put certificates on the reports, confirming their reliability and validity with entries in the accounts. Therefore, the activities of commissioners for accounts are rather strictly regulated by the ordinance of September 19, 1945. The activities of an expert accountant are not so strictly regulated by the state. Basically, they are engaged in current consultations on accounting, management and legal issues, in addition, they are engaged in setting up accounting, establishing an internal control system. The functions of commissioners for accounts can be performed by expert accountants only in a company other than the one to which consulting services were provided or accounting was established or improved.


As in other countries with a market economy, the development of audit led to the allocation of specializations - from among auditors, traditionally called expert accountants, specialists in tax, legal consulting, and management emerged.


The Chamber of Expert Accountants and Certified Accountants brings together audit institutions and individual auditors at the national and regional levels. It officially represents all audit organizations operating in France in relations with international organizations. Scientific, methodological and organizational work in the field of audit is carried out by the French Institute of Expert Accountants with residence in Paris, which publishes a journal covering the problems of accounting and auditing. The National Council of Accounts, which is an advisory body to the Minister of Economy and Finance, has a decisive influence on the establishment of accounting in France. It has 80 members, most of whom are accounting experts, account commissioners, and chief accountants of enterprises.


In France, state regulation of audit is quite strong (this can be noted by the example of the appointment of commissioners for accounts in joint-stock companies), the state exercises direct control over the formation of audit personnel, their professional training and current activities.


According to Italy, it is one of the countries where state regulation of audit is highly developed. At the end of January 1992, a government decree was adopted in Italy, according to which only those persons who are included in the nominal register, which is under the control of the Ministry of Justice, can carry out legal auditing activities. Applicants for the title of auditor must have diplomas of higher economic, legal, commercial education or secondary accounting education with at least three years of practical experience. Applicants must pass exams in accounting, law, computer science, and computer science to qualify to practice auditing. Exams are also controlled by the Ministry of Justice.

In Italy, as in France, auditors are divided into two categories: the audit and confirmation of financial statements is carried out by the so-called "dottori commercialists", and the setting up of accounting and ongoing advice on accounting matters is carried out by "ragionieri" (see commissioners for accounts and accountants in France)

In conclusion, it should be noted that currently in the EU countries there is a process of unification of accounting and auditing, associated with the intensification of the process of European integration, the introduction of a single European currency - the euro. The 8th Directive of the Council of the European Communities dated April 10, 1984 is devoted to the problem of harmonization of auditing activities in the United Europe. into the European Community. However, this process is complicated by the fact that the rating of the audit profession, although quite high in all EU member states, but the payment for audit services varies greatly depending on the country.


1.3 Characteristics of modern audit theories


After a brief review of the history of the formation of audit as an activity, let us dwell on some theoretical aspects of modern audit. As in any science, there are various scientific areas in audit, different rates of economic development, features of the national system of accounts and financial legislation have a significant impact on the development of scientific areas in the development of the theory and methods of audit. However, the problems of accounting unification, the increasing interpenetration of the economies and finances of more developed countries into less developed ones, the development of transnational corporations, the widespread use of computer technology in business and finance, the creation of a United Europe leads to the need for unification and standardization of financial reporting and, accordingly, allocate as especially important problems unification of standards of audit, theoretical aspects and methods of preparation of auditors.


Consider modern theories of audit. In the audit, three areas of theory can be distinguished:


– comparison with accounting registers;


– comparison with primary documents;


- checking the logical linking of reporting data (collation);


- direct comparison of credentials with the actual property state of the enterprise (inventory).


Within the framework of this theory, there were two alternative approaches to direct sequential audit:


– from documents to reporting;


- from reporting to documents.


Continuing and developing the approach of Lawrence Dixie, the representatives of this theory saw their task in uncovering voluntary and involuntary errors that penetrated into the audited report.


The totality of the stated views received the metaphorical names of the police theory or the “watchdog” theory, according to which the auditor is a “watchdog” protecting the good of the owners, i.e. the audit is carried out in the interests of the owners, while the role of the audit is to verify the actual existence of events that took place in the past and establish their accuracy. The auditor answers the question of what is actually there, but, unfortunately, the disadvantage of this theory is that at the time of getting acquainted with the opinion of the auditor of a potential investor, this opinion is already outdated.


In the first quarter of the 20th century, the theory of controlling arose, according to which the purpose of the audit is shifted from “dead documents” to a “living organization” of internal control in the audited company. Here we see the reorientation of the “watchdog” to the role of a “sniffer dog”, which should show the owner how efficiently the hired administration worked. An example is given to illustrate the differences between the two theories presented.


Consider the following situation: the company received X rubles of profit for the reporting year and analyze this fact according to these theories.

After a detailed audit of the enterprise, the "watchdogs" claim that the actual profit is equal to the accounting one (or differs very slightly, without significant tax consequences). The audit is considered completed.


The task of the "snoops" is to examine the activities of the administration, management decisions, to show the owners that the administration, in the case of more efficient work, could get not X, but (X + D), but if it worked worse or more honestly (available in mind is more honest with respect to taxation), then the profit could be less, i.e. X - D. In this case, audit procedures are reduced to indirect methods that reveal weaknesses in management and the auditor's attention is focused on the fact that these weaknesses should be checked. In this case, we are not talking about the elimination of all deviations, including violations of accounting rules, but about their significance. Material (or significant, significant) are those deviations that may have an impact on management decisions, so the auditor must identify them. Within the framework of this theory, the mechanism of enterprise management is revealed, it allows you to open unused reserves, but it also has its drawbacks, in particular, that the degree of objectivity of reporting data is reduced.


The development of this theory was the behavioral approach, according to which the auditor's behavior is predetermined by stimuli and for each stimulus he must have an appropriate reaction. As the main features, we can single out the fact that the most important procedures are:
tests, and testing subjective behavior is even more important than testing documents; risk, because the calculation of uncertainty, under which certain decisions are made, is the basis of the auditor's work.


The guide dog theory is based on subjective assessments and allows you to find out what lies behind the documents outside the registered facts of economic life, while it is directed not to the past, but to the future. It is within the framework of this theory that stochastic methods are widely used, it is focused entirely on mathematical disciplines - probability theory, information theory, linear programming, game theory, as well as some methods of the "direct costing" system in accounting.


In the monograph "Evidence in the audit" S.M. Bychkova identifies a slightly different (more detailed) classification of audit theories, in which six theories are distinguished:


2. Main stages and development of audit in Russia


2.1 The history of the formation of audit in Russia


In pre-Petrine Russia, at the state level, there were naturally functions of control over the completeness of tax payment, since the state's income was formed largely due to a fairly developed system of taxes. The control was mainly due to the fact that the taxation of the population was quite burdensome, so naturally there were aspirations to evade taxation. In this regard, the tax system is gradually being improved, which makes it possible to more accurately take into account the planned state revenues and control their receipt. Under Alexei Mikhailovich and at the beginning of the reign of Fyodor Alekseevich, household lists were compiled throughout the state, called “census books”, according to which newly introduced taxes were collected, the so-called “household taxation”, which replaced the previously existing “sosh letter”, i.e. payment of taxes by the agricultural population according to this ancient land registry.


At the same time, the receipt of taxes is concentrated in orders - the Streltsy, Yamsky and Big Orders, and in each of them control functions took place in relation to ensuring the collection of taxes. Under Peter I, the system of taxation changes, after the census of the population, a system of taxation based on the poll tax is introduced, and public administration is reformed. The Senate was placed at the head of financial management by Peter I, a chamber board was established to manage state revenues, a staff office board (or tats office) to manage expenses, and an audit office to check accounts and reports. Nevertheless, the specialization of tax collection has been preserved with the purpose of each of them for a specific branch of government. Peter I paid great attention to the improvement of public administration, as well as control over state revenues and expenditures. One of the decrees of 1722 prescribes that auditors be sent annually to the provinces to conduct an audit.


According to some reports, the title of auditor in Russia was introduced precisely by Peter I. The position of auditor combined the separate duties of a prosecutor, clerk and secretary. As V.D. Andreev, "the institute of auditors was introduced in the army, where they dealt with cases related to the investigation of property disputes."


As you know, Peter I contributed to the development of many branches of knowledge. He also contributed to the development of accounting and auditing. P.I. Kamyshanov cites information that the evidentiary value of the document was recognized long ago. A curious characterization of the role of the document, formulated by Peter I in a letter to A.D. Menshikov. “Before an important matter, ask the gentlemen of the generals for an opinion in writing. So that when they lose the battle, they would not say that they advised otherwise.


The era of Peter I was also characterized by a deficit-free state budget. The introduction of a poll tax, control over the collection and spending of tax funds, the role of the personality of Peter himself led to the fact that state revenues were constantly growing and, despite huge costs, the Russian state managed with its own revenues and, as historian S.M. Solovyov, "didn't do a penny of debt." According to , "Peter subordinated the administrative mechanism to double crown control: secret over finances - to fiscals and overt courts - to the prosecutor's office, the top leadership of both was concentrated in the hands of the prosecutor general", and "the first revision was made in 1719"

The successors of Peter I did not make a significant contribution to the cause of control and revision, due to the constant conduct of wars, and also for a number of other reasons, the state budget was in deficit.


In the reign of Alexander I, the Ministry of Finance, the State Treasury (the position of the State Treasurer was approved under Paul I), state control, the commission for repayment of debts, etc., were established.


During the period of nationwide reforms associated with the beginning of the reign of Alexander II, the financial situation of the state was rather deplorable, the budget, starting from 1845, was in deficit, and disorder reigned in financial management. This caused the need for reform and in 1859 two commissions were established: one under state control - to draw up rules on the order of accounting, reporting and auditing, the other - under the Ministry of Finance - to review taxes and fees. As a result, on May 22, 1862, the rules on the preparation and approval of the state list and financial estimates of ministries and main departments were approved; in 1863, the so-called “cash rules” were issued, i.e. rules on the procedure for receipt of state revenues, as well as accounting rules introduced everywhere since 1866. At the same time, a new reporting and auditing procedure was established on the basis of documents justifying each item of expenditure, in 1864 new local control institutions were opened - control chambers. Estimated cash rules created the unity of the budget, the direction of loans for their intended purpose, and unspent balances - to general state funds, the restriction of over-limit loans and the system of unity of the cash desk, according to which the cash departments of the Ministry of Finance became the general income-expenditors of all state departments. These principles were supplemented by the principle of public reporting of state reporting (since 1862) and, from 1866, the reporting of state control (until 1862, the amount of state revenues and expenditures was the strictest secret).


Auditors in Russia were called sworn accountants. However, the concepts of “auditor”, “controller” were mainly used in Russia. In addition, the term “revision” was traditionally used in Russia in the sense of “population census”, the results of the census were revision tales” - nominal lists of the population for accounting and tax purposes. The "revision tales" compiled by settlements included all residents with an indication of age and marital status and soul for tax purposes, the poll tax was considered "live" even in case of death until the next revision. This is where the idea of ​​"dead souls" came from.


On October 18, 1889, the founding meeting of the Society for the dissemination of commercial knowledge was held in St. Petersburg; from January 1896, the magazine "Accounting" became the Society's printed organ. One of the remarkable initiatives of the Society was an attempt to create the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Russia. It was assumed that it would include persons who received certificates of successfully passed exams from specially created district commissions. The Charter of the Institute was prepared. However, the Society existed until 1917, but the institute was never created.


On October 2, 1892, the Society of Accountants was established in Moscow, which was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which held three accounting congresses - in 1891-92 in Moscow, in 1897 in Kiev, in 1989 in Moscow. In 1916, after the death of its founder F.V. The Jezero Society ceased to exist. The end of the 19th century - the beginning of the 20th century was marked by the emergence of public organizations of accountants in many large and medium-sized cities, contributing to the dissemination of knowledge and employment of accountants, however, the issue of the emergence of audit as a profession was not raised.


Three attempts were made to organize a professional association - an institute in 1889 - 1899, 1907 - 1912 and 1928 - 30, but for various reasons these attempts were not successful.


After the revolution, during the period of state regulation of the economy in the USSR, there was no audit. The Decree of the Council of People's Commissars of April 15, 1936 "On intradepartmental financial control and documentary audit of institutions, enterprises, economic organizations and construction" defined the functions of state control and intradepartmental control bodies.


Under the Ministry of Finance, there was a Control and Auditing Department (KRU), ministries and departments had the same departments. In Soviet times, ministries and departments, on the basis of standard instructions, developed and coordinated with the Ministry of Finance industry instructions on the procedure for conducting comprehensive audits (the standard instruction was last sent by the USSR Ministry of Finance on September 14, 1978 (letter No. 85). This document prescribed annual audits of enterprises , consisting on economic calculation.


2.2 Milestones in the development of audit in Russia


The beginning of the modern stage of the development of audit in Russia was directly related to the transition to market methods of managing the economy. On May 26, 1988, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted the Law "On Cooperation in the USSR", Article 10 of which determined the principles of the activities of cooperatives, Article 32 - the organization of accounting, reporting and control, internal audits, as well as control by financial authorities. According to this Law, economic entities immediately began to appear, however, a problem arose due to the fact that there were no tax control bodies as such, and the economic entities being created were not state property. In addition, market reforms led to the intensification of foreign economic activity of new economic entities, the emergence of joint ventures and the need arose for appropriate structures that would provide consulting services, as well as auditing activities. Since the audit services were present in each ministry and department (KRU), they tried to create control and audit groups operating on the principle of self-support from the employees of these services, in addition, cooperatives appeared that specialize in providing consulting services, mainly also consisting of former employees of the audit bodies . However, the activity of these organizations was insignificant, which is largely due to the lack of a regulatory and legal framework.


An important step in the formation of the audit can be called the creation of the joint-stock company "Inaudit". The need for its creation was caused by the rapid growth of foreign economic activity, as well as the creation of joint ventures. On January 13, 1987, in order to further develop trade and economic cooperation with capitalist and developing countries, the Council of Ministers of the USSR adopted a resolution “On the procedure for establishing in the territory of the USSR and operating joint ventures with the participation of Soviet organizations and firms of capitalist and developing countries” (No. 49).


To carry out such inspections, qualified specialists were needed who spoke foreign languages, knowledge of Western accounting and taxation standards. On September 8, 1987, a special resolution of the Council of Ministers of the USSR “On the establishment of a Soviet audit organization” was adopted, which established JSC “Inaudit” on the basis of the Main Directorate of Foreign Exchange Control of the USSR Ministry of Finance. The composition of the shareholders was as follows:


- Ministry of Finance of the USSR - 55%;


- Ministry of Foreign Trade - 10%;


- State Bank of the USSR - 5%;


- for 5% of the largest foreign trade All-Union associations, such as Autoexport, Stankoimport, Sovfrakht, Sovrybflot, etc.


JSC "Inaudit" had 10 departments in its structure, which provided services to joint ventures operating in the USSR and abroad. It should be noted that in 1991, Inaudit, as well as many enterprises, was privatized, individuals became co-owners, many specialists left Inaudit and created their own firms that exist now.


Despite the fact that formally "Inaudit" was a joint-stock company, in essence it remained a state structure, the largest shareholders were the state represented by its ministers. However, foreign investors (as they usually do) demanded the opinion of audit firms regarding the activities of joint ventures. Since the market niche of audit services was practically free, Western audit firms focused their efforts on this market. The first was one of the largest (that is, from the "big six") - Ernst & Young, which created the Ernst & Young Vneshaudit JV in January 1990. In the future, all the largest audit firms penetrated the audit services market and firmly occupy their positions, despite the processes that take place in their central offices (these are mergers, reorganizations).


Already at the very early stage of the development of audit in Russia, attempts were made to develop methodological support (in 1989, the USSR Ministry of Finance, the USSR Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the UN Center for Transnational Corporations held a seminar in Moscow on the problems of accounting, auditing and financial management at joint ventures ). Since 1989, the training of auditors began on the basis of several universities.


Gradually, the process of formation of the market audit services. At the same time, public organizations appear that unite accountants-auditors, in particular, the Association of Accountants and Auditors of the USSR, which was later transformed into the Association of Accountants and Auditors.


In his book "Audit" A. Terekhov writes: "In 1991, together with the Congress of Business Circles, the All-Russian Congress of Audits was held, which was attended by 180 representatives of Russian audit firms."


The first contribution to the regulation of audit was made by the Central Bank - on February 6, 1991, the "Regulations on Auditing Activities in Banks" were approved. The section “Auditing firms (organizations) and auditors” regulates in sufficient detail: who can engage in audit activities in banks; rights of audit firms; responsibilities of audit firms; the procedure for drawing up conclusions; responsibility of audit firms.


The third section of the document regulates the activities of banking audit councils and their functions.


Thus, we see that the Central Bank, before the Ministry of Finance, began to deal with the methodology and organization of the audit. Until now (in all likelihood, due to just such a beginning), the Central Bank is in charge of regulating audit activities in the field of banking audit and has even begun work on standardizing banking audit. On September 8, the Banking Audit Expert Committee of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Minutes No. 4) approved Rule (Standard) No. 1 of audit activity in the field of banking audit “The procedure for drawing up an audit opinion on the reliability of financial statements of a credit institution prepared based on the results of activities for the year”.


The State Committee of the Russian Federation for State Property Management also made its contribution to the development of audit. Decree No. 2078-r dated November 30, 1993 "On the organization of training and certification of auditors for voucher investment funds" determined the organizations that receive the right to conduct training, examinations and issue certificates for auditors of voucher investment funds, the form of the certificate. At the same time, among the organizations admitted to conduct training was the Moscow Regional Union of Consultants and Auditors.


Finally, the moment has come for the beginning of state participation in the regulation of audit in Russia. On December 22, 1993, Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 2263 “On Auditing Activities in the Russian Federation” was signed, from which the formation of the regulatory framework for auditing begins. This decree approved the "Temporary Rules for Auditing in the Russian Federation", introduced the certification of auditors and licensing. In addition, paragraph 4 of the Decree concerns the formation of the Audit Commission under the President of the Russian Federation.


However, audit activity does not cancel the financial control carried out by the KRU of the Ministry of Finance, the State Tax Service and other control bodies.


On May 6, 1994, in pursuance of Decree No. 2263, Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 482 “On Approval of Normative Documents for the Regulation of Auditing Activities in the Russian Federation” was adopted, specifying guarantees for the independence of auditors, regulating the procedure for attestation of auditors, the procedure for issuing licenses (changed, see above) . At the same time, in order to organize licensing work, it is envisaged that the Audit Commission under the President of the Russian Federation issues general licenses: to the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation - for licensing the audit of stock exchanges, extra-budgetary funds, investment institutions and general audit; the Federal Service of Russia for the Supervision of Insurance Activities - for licensing the audit of insurance companies and mutual insurance companies; The Central Bank of the Russian Federation - for licensing banking audit.


The fourth stage of audit development began with the adoption on August 7, 2001 of the Federal Law No. 119-FZ “On Auditing”. The adoption of the Federal Law confirmed the final formation of audit in Russia, made it possible to adopt a number of legal acts to regulate audit activities in Russia, to take a step towards integrating Russian audit into the international audit system.


In the field of standardization of audit activities during 2002-2006. The Government of the Russian Federation adopted 31 federal standards. In 2007, it is planned to complete the formation of a priority package of 39 standards determined for development, corresponding to the International Standards on Auditing (ISA). In accordance with the Work Plan of the Audit Council in 2006-2008. the preparation of methodologies 2 for conducting audits in accordance with this plan is also ongoing. Currently, the Board has approved six such methodological recommendations: on the collection of audit evidence in a particular case (inventory); to collect audit evidence when checking the correctness of the formation of insurance reserves; on verification of income tax and obligations to the budget during the audit and provision of related services; to collect audit evidence of the reliability of indicators of inventories in financial statements; on collecting audit evidence when checking calculations for value added tax; on the organization of intra-company quality control of audit services.


The development of methodological recommendations for the audit of credit institutions and banking (consolidated) groups continues, taking into account the Board's approval of the progress in preparing a draft methodological recommendation for the audit of the bank's loan portfolio. During the preparation of the project, the relevant commission is taking steps aimed at strengthening coordination of work with the Bank of Russia.


The adoption of the new Federal Law "On Auditing" is due to the transition from licensing this activity to self-regulation in this area. Licensing of audit activity will be canceled from January 1, 2010. At the same time, mandatory membership of individual auditors and audit organizations in self-regulatory audit associations will be introduced. These associations will be entrusted with the functions of maintaining a register of auditors and audit organizations, improving the qualifications of auditors and monitoring the quality of work of individual auditors and audit organizations. Thus, the state regulation of audit activity will mainly be reduced to the development of state policy and legal regulation in this area, maintaining the state register of self-regulatory organizations of auditors, and analyzing the state of the audit services market in the Russian Federation. Additional requirements are established for auditors and audit organizations (in particular, to the length of service in an audit organization, the presence of an impeccable business reputation, the authorized capital of audit organizations), designed to improve the quality of audit services and ensure the independence of auditors and audit organizations. In order to support small businesses, the requirements for the number of auditors in an audit organization have been reduced, and individual auditors have been allowed to conduct mandatory audits. A unified auditor qualification certificate is being introduced, which will give auditors the right to conduct audits in any sector of the economy. The procedure for the activities of self-regulatory organizations of auditors is regulated in detail. The federal law entered into force on January 1, 2009, with the exception of certain provisions for which a later date of entry into force is provided.


Conclusion


Having briefly analyzed the formation of audit in developed countries, having considered the theory of audit, we can agree with the conclusions of many authors, in particular L.I. Voronina that “until the end of the 40s, the audit mainly consisted in checking the documentation confirming the recorded monetary transactions, and the correct grouping of these transactions in the financial statements, and received the name confirmatory audit, and the period of its formation - the first stage in the development of the audit. Describing this stage, we can say that the audit in the classical sense of the word was an external, independent, non-departmental financial control of the activities of economic entities (companies) ...


In the second stage of audit development, after 1949, independent auditors (external) began to pay more attention to internal control issues in companies, believing that with an effective internal control system, the probability of errors is negligible and, therefore, financial data and reports are quite complete and accurate. Auditing firms began to engage in more consulting activities than direct auditing. This audit is called system-oriented, as it made it possible to observe the systems that control the operations of the ICS.


Currently, the third stage of audit development is observed - risk-based audit. When conducting audits or consulting, audit firms first of all calculate the possible risk. As a rule, at present, the audit is carried out selectively - mainly where the risk of error (or fraud) is maximum.


Like all scientific theories, audit theories have their pros and cons. Consequently, the tasks of audit as a scientific direction in Russia clearly follow - on the basis of the richest world experience, taking into account the national characteristics of the economy, to develop theoretical approaches, as well as on the basis of studying the world experience in regulating auditing activities by introducing standards, to develop a system of standards that allows you to regulate audit and use in practice all the latest scientific achievements.


However, before considering audit in Russia, it is necessary to trace its historical roots.


List of used literature


1. Federal Law "On Auditing Activities" dated December 8, 2008 No. 307-FZ // SZ RF. 2001. Art. 5.
   

   Federal Law No. 119-FZ dated August 7, 2001 (as amended by Federal Law No. 164-FZ dated December 14, 2001, No. 196-FZ dated December 30, 2001, No. 219-FZ dated December 30, 2004, dated 02.02. .2006 No. 19-FZ, dated 03.11.2006 No. 183-FZ, dated 30.12.2008 No. 307-FZ) // SZ RF, 13.08.2001, No. 33 (part I), art. 3422.
   

   Alborov R.A. Audit in organizations of industry, trade and agro-industrial complex. - M .: Publishing house "Business and Service", 2008. - 464 p.
   

   Andreev V.D. Practical Audit: Reference Manual - M.: Economics, 2007. - 336 p.
   

   Arens A., Lobbek J. Audit. / Per. from English; Ch. ed. a series of prof. I'M IN. Sokolov. — M.: Finance and statistics, 2005. — 560 p.
   

   Audit Montgomery /F.L. Deflies, G.R. Jenick, V.M.O, Reilly, M.B. Hirsch. / Per. from English. ed. I'M IN. Sokolov. — M.: Audit, UNITI, 2007. — 542 p.
   

   Audit: Textbook for universities / V.I. Podolsky, G.B. Polyak, A.A. Savin, L.V. Sotnikov / Ed. prof. V.I. Podolsky. — M.: Audit, UNITI, 2007. — 432 p.
   

   Bogomolov A.M., Goloshchapov N.A. Internal audit. Organization and methodology. - M .: Exam, 2009. - 192 p.
   

2. Accounting and audit portfolio (Book of an entrepreneur. Book of an accountant. Book of an auditor) / Responsible. ed. Yu.B. Rubin, V.I. Soldatkin. — M.: SOMINTEK, 2008. — 752 p.
   Dyakonova A. Audit practice abroad. On the professional status of the auditor in Germany / Auditor statements, 8. - No. 4. AUDIT LETTER Conduct a comparative analysis of ISA 610 “Review of the work of internal audit and the Rule (standard) of audit activity “Study and use of the work of internal audit”. Approved by the Audit Committee under the President of the Russian Federation on April 27, 1999 Minutes No. 3 REASONS FOR ORGANIZATIONS TO USE PERSONNEL AUDIT. ROLE AND OBJECTIVES OF HR AUDIT IN THE MARKET OF AUDIT AND CONSULTING SERVICES Goals and objectives of audit planning

   2014-11-02

The origin and development of audit

Definition 1

The term "audit" is of Latin origin - "audio" means "he hears", "listener". Initially, this was the name of a student of a theological educational institution with excellent academic performance, who tested other students and determined the degree of assimilation of the material covered and the quality of assignments.

Audit in a more modern understanding existed in ancient Egypt in the third millennium BC. At that time, the functions of accounting, management and control were performed by officials along with their main activities. In the Roman Empire in the 1st century A.D. e. these functions were assigned to special employees (curators, procurators, quaestors). After the fall of the Roman Empire, auditing services became widespread in Italy in the field of trade - auditors checked the solvency of the captains of merchant ships in order to prevent errors.

However, England is considered the birthplace of modern auditing, where in the 9th century the related concept of “auditor” emerged from the general concept of “accountant”, who controlled the state of accounts, checking each operation in detail. However, at that time, audit procedures such as testing or spot checks were not yet known.

Formation of internal audit

In the 19th-20th centuries, a number of European countries and the United States adopted laws on the mandatory audit of joint-stock companies - an annual audit of accounts and annual reports. The Great Depression of 1929-1933 increased the need for audit services, which manifested itself in the tightening of requirements for the mandatory and quality of audits.

After the end of the global economic crisis, audit as a mandatory procedure appeared in almost all countries - the introduction of mandatory requirements for the content of annual reports and the obligation to publish them, including the auditors' conclusions, began. Thus, the audit began to be used as a powerful weapon against fraud.

In addition, independent auditors began to focus more on internal control issues in companies, as they believed that an effective internal control system practically eliminates the possibility of errors. Therefore, in the functionality of audit firms, such a direction as consulting activity appeared, which began to prevail before conducting direct audits.

Remark 1

For the first time, internal auditors appeared in Germany on the railways in the second half of the 19th century (the so-called traveling auditors), whose task was to check the completeness of the posting of money received by cashiers for tickets. However, internal audit in its modern form, which consists in a non-financial assessment of the operations of companies and a systematic search for ways to improve management efficiency, appeared only in the 20th century.

Development of audit in Russia

In Russia, auditors appeared for the first time in the army during the reign of Peter I. The presence of such a position was officially recorded in the military regulations of 1716 and in the table of ranks. The duties of army auditors included hearing property disputes. In some cases, the auditor acted as a prosecutor, clerk and secretary. The Military Judicial Reform of 1867 abolished the state post of army auditor.

In the XIX-XX centuries, attempts were repeatedly made in Russia to create an audit institution (the Institute of Chartered Accountants in 1831, the Institute of Accountants in 1909, the Institute of State Accountants-Experts in 1928, etc.), but all attempts were unsuccessful due to the lack economic prerequisites for auditing, a well-functioning mechanism of action and any legal guarantees.

The word "audit" comes from the Latin "audio", which means "to hear". In this initial understanding, the audit acts as a medical procedure for listening to a patient to establish a diagnosis. In relation to the sphere of economics, audit as a term began to mean checking the economic condition of an enterprise.

The audit history began in XIV c., when the ledgers began to appear as material evidence in court. WITH XVI v. many countries introduced legal control of ledgers and began to use the term "auditor" to refer to people who are engaged in checking accounts.

Great Britain is considered to be the birthplace of audit. The first mention of it as a type of professional activity refers to the end XIII - early XIV centuries But the greatest development of the audit received in XVII - XIX centuries The main reason for this was that with the development of a market economy, a separation of interests between those who were directly involved in the management of the enterprise (administrators, managers) and those who invested money in it (shareholders, investors, investors) emerged. Thus, the audit became a companion of a professional manager, and the auditor became an independent expert who assesses the reliability of the reports that managers presented to the founders of commercial organizations.

The formation of the audit institute was spurred on by the fact that the emerging financial crises were accompanied by a wave of bankruptcies. To protect the interests of creditors, it was necessary to establish control over the accounting and reporting of enterprises for the timely detection of their possible bankruptcy.

At the end of XIX century, audit activity was legally regulated in the UK and in individual states of the USA, where the audit system was founded by specialists educated and trained in the UK.

In Germany, the beginning of the audit was laid in 1870 by the adoption of an amendment to the Law on joint-stock companies, which obliged the supervisory boards of joint-stock companies to check balance sheets and reports on the distribution of profits and report the results of the audits to shareholders' meetings. But the addendum did not specify who should check: their accountants or external auditors. The subsequent bankruptcy of many joint-stock companies led to the need to provide for external audit, those. audit, which is carried out by third-party independent organizations. In 1931, audit became mandatory for all large German companies.

In France, the Audit Law was passed in 1867. In this country, independent financial control is carried out by two organizations: the association of expert accountants, which created the Chamber of expert accountants, and the association of audited accountants and commissioners (authorized) for accounts, which organized the Society of Account Commissioners . The main difference between them is that the former are invited to audit, while the latter are appointed. The activities of account commissioners are strictly regulated by government bodies. According to the current legislation on joint-stock companies, at least one commissioner must be appointed to verify and evaluate the reliability of the accounts of these companies. If the joint-stock company is obliged to publish its accounts, then at least two commissioners are appointed for verification.

Expert accountants are invited to develop a working chart of accounts, assist in accounting, check the status of the internal control system, and provide consulting services. They can act as commissioners for accounts, provided that they did not provide consulting services, as well as services for setting up and maintaining records in this company.

A particularly strong impetus to the development of audit was given by the global economic crisis of 1929–1933, when the massive bankruptcy of enterprises required a tightening of the verification and approval by independent auditors of their reports and balance sheets. In the mid 30s. 20th century Almost all developed countries are beginning to introduce mandatory requirements for the amount of information contained in annual reports, the requirement for the publication of these reports and confirmation of their reliability by auditors.

The development of audit in Russia can be divided into several stages.

At the end of XIX - beginning of XX centuries The emergence of audit as a professional activity was due to the creation of joint-stock companies and the implementation of banking reforms aimed at revitalizing credit capital and activating the stock market. Considering that most of the joint-stock companies in Russia were created with the involvement of German and French capital, the influence of these countries on the organization of the audit clearly affected, in particular, auditors from foreign audit organizations were often involved in audits. Despite the fact that auditing in Russia has not been widely developed, many of the provisions adopted in Germany and France were actively used in Russia, moreover, many Russian accountants actively contributed to the development of audit methodology and techniques.

After the revolution of 1917, during the period of the devastation of the national economy and war communism, the complete nationalization of enterprises, the need for audit services disappeared. However, during the period of the New Economic Policy (NEP), when private enterprises began to revive and business associations reappeared, there was a need for audits, which led to a certain intensification of audit services, which began to be provided by the most qualified accountants invited by the owners. But during this period, the full recovery of audit organizations did not happen, since the new principles of the economy were brought to naught within two to three years.

In a planned, centrally controlled economy, there was no need for independent financial control. It was replaced by a system of departmental and non-departmental control. With the development of market relations in Russia, there was a need to confirm information about the results of the activities of organizations and their compliance with the law by independent experts with the necessary training, qualifications and experience, or auditors.

The first consumers of audit services were joint ventures, which were actively created in Russia (then the USSR) after the adoption of laws on the liberalization of foreign economic activity. Having obtained the right to enter the world market, Russian enterprises established contacts with foreign partners, began to actively import goods, which, given the shortage of the Russian market, were quickly sold and brought huge profits, imported equipment, on the basis of which small enterprises were formed, and entered into contracts for the export of raw materials. resources, in some cases taking over their primary processing, for which joint ventures were created. The influx of foreign capital into Russia immediately required control over the use of attracted funds, which, given the tradition of a market economy, led to an increase in demand for audit services.

In the late 80s - early 90s. XX v. the process of privatization and disaggregation of enterprises intensified, then with the adoption of the Program privatization, corporatization of large enterprises was carried out in almost all sectors of the national economy, production cooperatives and small enterprises were actively formed. Since 1994, a mandatory audit procedure has been introduced for joint-stock companies, into which large enterprises have been transformed. The emergence of commercial organizations has increased the demand for audit services. Moreover, with a limited need for audits, related audit services were actively required - accounting and reporting for small enterprises and cooperatives, tax, legal, management consulting, etc. This led to the creation of specialized consulting and audit organizations.

The development of financial and credit organizations, in particular commercial banks, insurance organizations, investment funds, etc., had a significant impact on the activation of audit activities. When concluding contracts with enterprises, they, as a rule, required confirmation of the reliability of their clients' accounts and an assessment of their financial condition from independent auditors. Commercial banks and investment funds, providing loans or acquiring shares, shares of enterprises, first got acquainted with the development strategy of the organization, investment projects to which funds were directed, which also involved the involvement of specialists from consulting and audit firms to prepare the necessary documents, which began to provide services for drawing up business plans, substantiating the investment attractiveness of projects, etc.

These needs determined the rapid development of audit as an element of the infrastructure of a market economy.

The first audit firms appeared in the country in 1989-1990, i.е. at a time when the legal status of the audit has not yet been fixed.

The process of separation of audit activity as a professional business area and an independent business segment intensified in connection with the restructuring of the Russian economic management system during the period of economic reforms.

Firstly, with the change in the structure of economic management of the country, sectoral ministries and the related system of departmental control were liquidated, and non-departmental control bodies, in particular the Control and Auditing Department (KRU) of the Ministry of Finance, due to a significant number of economic entities, could not cope with their inspections. .

Secondly, there was no tax service that controls the payment of taxes by economic entities of various types and forms of ownership in the form in which it currently exists. It was formed only in May 1990, and the main laws on the tax system and taxation procedure were adopted in December 1991 and entered into force on January 1, 1992. In addition, state control through tax services is insufficient, since the area for their verification is limited taxation, and the tax authorities do not have the financial ability to carry out annual inspections of all enterprises without exception.

At the same time, the need for verification of non-state enterprises and organizations increased, as there were entities interested in assessing the legality and effectiveness of financial activities, in the reliability of their accounting. Such subjects included investors, business partners, insurance organizations, etc.

The first audit structures were formed mainly in three forms: self-supporting formations, cooperatives and state joint-stock formations. They provided their services after the conclusion of the relevant contract and for a fee. The services they provided included documentary audits, restoration of accounting, examinations, consulting services for the organization of accounting and internal control, office work, improving the efficiency of resource use, improving financial condition, drafting applications for privatization, and developing business plans.

A characteristic feature of all these organizations was that they were created under state structures. Therefore, they could be classified as auditing with some convention. In general, this period can be called the birth of audit in Russia.

The beginning of the next stage falls on 1989–1991, when a number of laws were adopted, in particular the Law of the RSFSR “On Enterprises and Entrepreneurial Activity”, which contributed to the further development of market relations.

During this period, the number of enterprises and organizations of various forms of ownership increases sharply. There is a rapid formation of the main institutions of the stock market, the first negative experience associated with bankruptcy appears. Accordingly, the need for audit increases. The number of independent audit firms is growing.

Along with the formation of audit firms, there was a process of their first association in public organizations for joint solutions to common problems. Thus, in December 1989, the founding conference of the Association of Accountants of the USSR was held. It was attended by 164 delegates from almost all regions. The Association did a great job of organizing large-scale conferences on the problems of accounting, taxation, and audit. Later it was transformed into the Association of Accountants and Auditors. In March 1991 work began on the training of auditors.

A new stage in the formation of the audit is associated with the development of the first official audit documents, i.e. making the audit official. Temporary Rules for Auditing in the Russian Federation, approved by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of December 22, 1993, as well as regulatory documents that determined the procedure for attestation of auditors, licensing of auditing activities, criteria for the activities of economic entities, according to which their accounting (financial) statements were subject to mandatory annual audit audit, adopted in May 1994, formed the normative basis of the Russian audit. In the same period, the structure of the bodies that were entrusted with the regulation and control of audit activities was formed. In particular, the Commission on Auditing Activities under the President of the Russian Federation, the Methodological Council under the Commission, special units for monitoring auditing activities in the Ministry of Finance and the Central bank of the Russian Federation.

Since 1994, a stable market for audit services has developed in Russia, which has been characterized by extensive growth. During this period, the number of audit firms in all regions of the country grew rapidly. The activity of large foreign audit firms has intensified, which have created joint ventures in Russia (the big "six", then the "five" and now the "four"). Taking into account the image of foreign partners, these firms have taken a very prominent place in the Russian market of audit services, serving the largest commercial organizations with access to foreign markets, preparing audit reports on the largest investment projects, for which the funds of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and others were allocated. international organizations or large foreign investors. The leaders of the Russian audit clearly stood out. By this time, the ratings of audit firms began to be constantly published, specialized exhibitions were held (for example, the exhibition "Accounting and Audit", which was held for the tenth time in 2003), all-Russian and regional conferences.

For the period 1995–2002 CALAC of the Ministry of Finance of Russia decided to issue licenses for audit activities to 26.5 thousand licensees, including audit organizations - 15.9 thousand and individual entrepreneurs - 10.6 thousand, including general audit - 21.7 thousand, for the audit of insurers - 0.9 thousand (taking into account earlier decisions of Rosstrakhnadzor), for the audit of stock exchanges, off-budget funds and investment institutions - 1.2 thousand and 2.7 thousand unified licenses without specifying the types of audit.

Licenses were denied to 179 applicants, 20 previously issued licenses were cancelled. A total of 7.5 thousand licenses were in force in 2003, including 2.7 thousand unified ones. A greater number of audit firms are registered in Moscow and St. Petersburg. The exchange of certificates of auditors has begun. After a break in 2002, the training of auditors began in accordance with the new rules.

Over the years, an audit community has formed, professional public organizations have been actively working (the Russian Audit Chamber, the Board of Auditors, the Union of Professional Auditing Associations, the Association of Accountants and Auditors "Sodruzhestvo"), a network of Training and Methodological Centers has developed that trained auditors, organized seminars to improve their qualifications, held professional conferences and seminars. Since 1996, rules (standards) for auditing activities have been developed.

It should be emphasized that Russian audit has developed in close contact with international audit organizations and has practically adapted to the international audit community. This was largely facilitated by the reform of accounting and the harmonization of the reporting of Russian enterprises in accordance with the requirements of international financial reporting standards.

At the same time, the practice of audit in a number of cases was ahead of its regulatory framework. A large number of audit firms, the desire for a rapid increase in the number of auditors, the expansion of the types of services provided by audit firms, often led to an insufficiently demanding attitude towards the qualifications of auditors and the quality of audit reports, which urgently required more precise legislative regulation of audit activities and an increase in the quality of work and prestige of auditors .

In 2001, the Federal Law "On Auditing" was adopted, which marked the beginning of the reform of auditing in Russia and defined the tasks of the current stage of its development.

It should be noted that the period of reforming the audit activity in Russia coincided with the crisis of audit activity in the leading countries - the USA, Great Britain, caused by the identified violations in the conduct of audits and the objectivity of assessing the financial condition of the audited entities. In this regard, at present, in almost all countries, under the auspices of international public organizations of accountants and auditors, a significant reform of the audit is being carried out, aimed at improving the quality and reliability of assessments of the reliability of financial statements.

The objective need to improve legislation and the organization of audit activities is explained by significant changes that have occurred in recent years in the Russian economy:

Formation of sustainable organizational and production structures of business entities that are oriented towards the integration of different forms of ownership, sustainable economic ties and increasing production efficiency;

Focus on recovery and development of the real sector economy;

Establishment of a stable legal framework that defines the rules of management in terms of ownership, disposal and use of property, financial and credit relations, taxation, relations between employers and employees;

Harmonization of accounting and financial reporting with the requirements of international standards;

Development of the system of financial and credit organizations and restoration of the stock market;

Expansion of foreign economic relations and preparation for joining the World Trade Organization, integration into the world community and active participation in solving global problems of economic development.

The orientation towards sustainable economic development in all countries has put forward the task of more complete control over costs, which should ensure the full restoration of resources and a high standard of living, financial condition and financial stability of organizations and the effectiveness of their activities. In these conditions, auditors are increasingly tasked with assessing not only the reliability of reporting, but also the financial stability of the organization. In recent years, the term "performance audit" has been increasingly used.