ISCA Issues SSSA 5000 General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements

SSSA 5000 deals with assurance engagements on sustainability information. The standard is a comprehensive, stand-alone standard suitable for all types of sustainability assurance engagements, applicable to sustainability information relating to any sustainability matter or topic, prepared under any sustainability reporting framework.

The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) has established an Interim Sustainability Standards Committee (Interim SSC) to set the assurance, ethics and independence standards for sustainability assurance practitioners (SAPs) in Singapore. ISCA has been working with ACRA to review the provisions of ISSA 5000 for local adoption as SSSA 5000, and to consider feedback from relevant stakeholders. ISCA has recommended, and the Interim SSC has approved, the issuance of SSSA 5000.

SSSA 5000 has been issued by ISCA for voluntary use, subject to the effective dates set out below. The issuance of SSSA 5000 marks a significant milestone in strengthening the consistency and quality of sustainability assurance engagements and enhancing confidence in reported sustainability information.

The standard is effective for assurance engagements on sustainability information reported:

(a)           For periods beginning on or after 15 December 2026; or

(b)           As at a specific date on or after 15 December 2026.

Following enactment of the relevant legislation and the formal constitution of the Sustainability Standards Committee, SSSA 5000 is expected to be adopted for application by SAPs providing mandatory climate assurance under Singapore’s climate reporting and assurance roadmap. Mandatory climate assurance will be introduced in phases as follows:

• From FY2029, all listed issuers will be required to obtain limited assurance on their Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
• From FY2032, all large non-listed companies will be required to obtain limited assurance on their Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions.
  

Key Requirements

 The key requirements under SSSA 5000 include:

• Ethics and quality management: Practitioners must comply with applicable ethics and independence requirements under the Ethics Pronouncement (EP) 100 Code of Professional Conduct and Ethics issued by ISCA (ISCA Code) and quality management requirements under the Singapore Standards of Quality Management (SSQMs).
  

  The relevant ethics and independence requirements can be found under Part 5 of the ISCA Code.
  

• Engagement approach: Assurance engagements require suitable and available reporting criteria, a clearly defined scope and reporting boundary, risk and materiality assessments and sufficient appropriate evidence to support the assurance conclusion, including requirements when using the work of others.
  
  
• Risk areas: Particular attention is required for fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, management bias, material omissions and other misstatements, estimates and forward-looking information.
  
  
• Limited assurance vs Reasonable assurance: The nature and extent of these procedures differ depending on the level of assurance. Reasonable assurance requires more extensive procedures, including greater testing of underlying data and processes, while limited assurance primarily involves inquiry and analytical procedures. Requirements that apply specifically to limited assurance engagements are labelled with the letter “L”, while those applicable to reasonable assurance engagements are labelled “R”. These requirements are presented side-by-side for comparability of the depth of work required across the two levels of assurance. Risk assessment is required for both levels of assurance – at the disclosure level for limited assurance and at the assertion level for the disclosures for reasonable assurance.
  
  
• Assurance report: The form and contents of assurance reports are defined and they must clearly identify the information assured, applicable criteria, scope, assurance level and practitioner’s conclusion. Limited assurance reports must also summarise the procedures performed and explain their limitations. The standard includes a set of illustrative reports for consistent and comparable assurance reports.  
  

Signing Convention for Reports Issued under SSSA 5000

Reports issued under SSSA 5000 are restricted to be signed off only by public accountants until further updates. See the signing convention of reports issued under ISCA’s Standards.

Withdrawal of SSAE 3410

SSAE 3410, Assurance Engagements on Greenhouse Gas Statements, will be withdrawn, as SSSA 5000 addresses assurance of all types of sustainability information, including greenhouse gas emissions. The withdrawal will be effective from the effective date of SSSA 5000.

Other Consequential Changes

The following consequential changes will take effect upon the issuance of SSSA 5000:

• SSAE 3000 (Revised), Assurance Engagements Other Than Audits or Reviews of Historical Financial Information – A clarification has been made that SSSA 5000 supersedes this standard in the context of sustainability assurance engagements.
  
• SSQMs – Definitions and requirements have been updated to reflect the profession-agnostic nature of SSSA 5000, with "practitioner" included alongside "professional accountant".
  
• SSA 720 (Revised), The Auditor’s Responsibilities Relating to Other Information – Application material has been amended to recognise that sustainability reports or sustainability-related information may constitute "other information" in a financial statements audit.