The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB)’s Integrated Reporting Working Group has released a Discussion Paper, Supporting Credibility and Trust in Emerging Forms of External Reporting: Ten Key Challenges for Assurance Engagements.

The Discussion Paper explores:

• the factors that can enhance credibility and trust, internally and externally, in relation to emerging forms of external reports;
• the types of professional services covered by the IAASB’s international standards most relevant to these reports, in particular assurance engagements;
• the key challenges in relation to assurance engagements; and
• the type of guidance that might be helpful to support the quality of these assurance engagements.

It also sets out the principal findings from research and outreach regarding developments in EER frameworks and professional services most relevant to EER reports, irrespective of whether such reports are part of the annual report or published as separate reports.

Comments to the Discussion Paper are requested by February 3, 2017.