CPA Exam: Auditing and Attestation (AUD)

Sources

Everything this course cites. Every source is on an official site: aicpa-cima.com, nasba.org, pcaobus.org, gao.gov, sec.gov, ecfr.gov, federalregister.gov, coso.org.

AICPA Statements on Auditing Standards, currently effective (AU-C sections, current as of August 2026)AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Generally accepted auditing standards for audits of nonissuers, in codified AU-C format, with the listing of changes for May–August 2026 (issuance of SAS No. 150).
AICPA Statements on Quality Management Standards, currently effective (QM sections, current as of August 2026)AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09 · SQMS No. 1 (QM section 10, a firm's system of quality management) and SQMS No. 2 (QM section 20, engagement quality reviews).
AICPA Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services, currently effective (AR-C sections, current as of August 2026)AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09
AICPA Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements, currently effective (AT-C sections, current as of August 2026)AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09
Statement on Auditing Standards No. 149, Special Considerations — Audits of Group Financial StatementsAICPA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Supersedes the former AU-C 600; effective for audits of group financial statements for periods ending on or after December 15, 2026.
Summary of revisions to the Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints effective January 1, 2027AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09 · For AUD, revised examples in four representative tasks in Area III (reliability of data, sources of evidence including technology such as artificial intelligence, sampling methods, investments in securities); not intended to change the nature or scope of AUD content.
Testing of QC 1000: A Firm's System of Quality Control (Board of Examiners, September 23, 2026)AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Provisions of PCAOB QC 1000 not affected by the PCAOB's September 9, 2026 amendments become eligible for AUD testing on January 1, 2027; the amendments become eligible in the first calendar quarter beginning six months after SEC approval.
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints, effective January 1, 2026 (approved by the Board of Examiners August 18, 2025)AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Introduction (section design, testlets, score weighting, skill levels) and the AUD section blueprint, pages AUD1–AUD24: content areas, groups, topics, representative tasks, section assumptions and references.
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints, effective January 1, 2027 (approved by the Board of Examiners September 16, 2026)AICPA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Same AUD design, question counts, content-area weights and skill allocation as the 2026 Blueprints.
AICPA & CIMA Ethics (AICPA Code of Professional Conduct and the Online Ethics Library)AICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09
AICPA ethics tools and aidsAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09
CPA Exam UI changes: What candidates need to knowAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09 · The exam moves to a new delivery platform in July 2027: no testing July 1–11, 2027; testing resumes July 12, 2027; the score release schedule is adjusted for 12 months after launch.
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the CPA ExamAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Testlet navigation (no return to a submitted testlet), breaks, unscored pretest questions, the exam spreadsheet and calculator, English only.
Find out when you'll get your CPA Exam scoreAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Core section scores are released on a rolling basis against published target dates that depend on when the AICPA receives the exam data from Prometric; adjusted schedule after the July 2027 platform change.
Learn more about CPA Exam scoring and pass ratesAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Scores reported on a 0–99 scale; 75 is the minimum passing score; scores are not percentages and are not curved; Core sections weight MCQs and TBSs 50/50.
Learn what to study for the CPA ExamAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09 · The AICPA's page for the Exam Blueprints: the testlet table (AUD 39 / 39 MCQs, then 2, 3 and 2 TBSs), the CPA Exam Policy on New Pronouncements, and downloads of the 2026 and 2027 Blueprints, the 2027 summary of changes, the QC 1000 testing announcement and a retired AUD task-based simulation.
Plain English Guide to IndependenceAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09
Practice for the CPA Exam with Sample TestsAICPA & CIMA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Free, unscored, shorter sample tests for every section in the exam software, up to two hours; content current as of July 1, 2023.
Independence rules comparison: AICPA and DOL (January 2023)AICPA Professional Ethics Division · accessed 2026-11-09 · Side-by-side summary of the AICPA Independence Rule (ET sec. 1.200.001) and its interpretations and the DOL's 29 CFR 2509.2022-01 for auditors of employee benefit plans.
Quality Management: Official release of conforming changes to AICPA ethics contentAICPA Professional Ethics Executive Committee · accessed 2026-11-09
Simultaneous Employment: Official Release of New Ethics Guidance (September 15, 2025)AICPA Professional Ethics Executive Committee · accessed 2026-11-09 · Revised interpretation on simultaneous employment or association with an attest client (ET sec. 1.275.005) and new definition (ET sec. 0.400.49); effective September 15, 2026.
Guidance on Internal Control (Internal Control — Integrated Framework)Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) · accessed 2026-11-09
Internal Control — Integrated Framework: Executive Summary (2013)Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) · accessed 2026-11-09
CPA Exam Candidate Guide (November 2, 2026)NASBA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Three Core and one Discipline section, each four hours; 75 to pass each; credit rules set by each jurisdiction; Notice to Schedule; the 5-minute limit on introductory screens; the standardized 15-minute break after the first TBS testlet; score release through boards of accountancy; Candidate Performance Report.
CPA Exam FAQNASBA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Core sections (AUD, FAR, REG) can be scheduled year-round; Discipline sections only in the first month of each quarter; no exams July 1–11, 2027; credit periods set by each state board.
Score InformationNASBA · accessed 2026-11-09 · Passing score of 75; 50% MCQ / 50% TBS for AUD; target release dates are not guaranteed; score review and appeal availability varies by jurisdiction.
2 CFR 200.1, Definitions (Uniform Guidance)Office of Management and Budget (eCFR) · accessed 2026-11-09
2 CFR Part 200, Subpart F — Audit Requirements (Uniform Guidance)Office of Management and Budget (eCFR) · accessed 2026-11-09 · Single audit required at $1,000,000 or more of Federal awards expended in a fiscal year (200.501); auditor's responsibilities (200.514); reports (200.515); findings (200.516); major program determination (200.518); submission deadline (200.512).
Amendments Related to Aspects of Designing and Performing Audit Procedures that Involve Technology-Assisted Analysis of Information in Electronic FormPublic Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09 · Amendments to AS 1105 and AS 2301, effective for audits of fiscal years beginning on or after December 15, 2025.
AS 2201: An Audit of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting That Is Integrated with An Audit of Financial StatementsPublic Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09
AS 3101: The Auditor's Report on an Audit of Financial Statements When the Auditor Expresses an Unqualified OpinionPublic Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09
Auditing Standards of the PCAOB for audits of financial statements for fiscal years beginning on or after December 15, 2024Public Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09 · Includes AS 1000 (general responsibilities), AS 2310 (confirmation, effective for fiscal years ending on or after June 15, 2025) and the amendments on other auditors (AS 1201, AS 1206).
General Responsibilities of the Auditor in Conducting an Audit (AS 1000)Public Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09 · Effective for audits of fiscal years beginning on or after December 15, 2024; reduced the documentation completion period in AS 1215 from 45 to 14 days, phased in by firm size.
PCAOB Auditing StandardsPublic Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09
PCAOB Ethics and Independence RulesPublic Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09
PCAOB Rules, Section 3: Auditing and Related Professional Practice Standards (including Ethics and Independence Rules 3520–3526)Public Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09
QC 1000, A Firm's System of Quality Control (effective December 15, 2026)Public Company Accounting Oversight Board · accessed 2026-11-09
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, Public Law 107-204 (as enacted)U.S. Congress (text hosted by the PCAOB) · accessed 2026-11-09 · Public domain. Title II (auditor independence: sections 201–206), Title III (corporate responsibility: sections 301, 302), Title IV (enhanced financial disclosures: section 404), section 906.
29 CFR 2509.2022-01, Interpretive bulletin relating to guidance on independence of accountant retained by employee benefit planU.S. Department of Labor (eCFR) · accessed 2026-11-09 · Published at 87 FR 54372 (September 6, 2022). It replaced the bulletin formerly at 29 CFR 2509.75-9, the citation the AUD Blueprints still use.
Government Auditing Standards: 2024 Revision (GAO-24-106786)U.S. Government Accountability Office · accessed 2026-11-09 · Public domain. Effective for financial audits, attestation engagements and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after December 15, 2025, and for performance audits beginning on or after December 15, 2025.
Yellow Book: Government Auditing StandardsU.S. Government Accountability Office · accessed 2026-11-09
17 CFR 210.2-01, Qualifications of accountants (Regulation S-X Rule 2-01)U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (eCFR) · accessed 2026-11-09 · The SEC's auditor independence rule: general standard, financial, employment and business relationships, prohibited non-audit services, contingent fees, partner rotation, audit committee pre-approval and compensation.
17 CFR 210.2-06, Retention of audit and review recordsU.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (eCFR) · accessed 2026-11-09