IAPC (International Auditing Practices Committee)

IAPC stands for International Auditing Practices Committee. It was founded in March 1978 under the auspices of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) to develop international guidelines for the auditing of financial statements.

The IAPC is a historical body. In 2002 it was reconstituted as the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), which now develops international auditing and assurance standards. NATO's glossary of acronyms also expands IAPC as International Auditing Practices Committee, so the term can turn up in allied reference documents.

Founding of the IAPC in 1978

IFAC established the IAPC in March 1978 as its auditing standard-setting committee. Its initial work covered the object and scope of financial-statement audits, engagement letters, and general auditing guidelines. These topics gave auditors in different countries a common starting point for how an audit is framed and agreed with a client.

From IAPC guidelines to International Standards on Auditing

The committee issued its output as international auditing guidelines. In 1991, those guidelines were recodified as International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). The recodification is the link between the IAPC and the ISAs that auditors refer to today. The IAPC's work relates historically to the ISAs. It is not a current auditing standard in its own right.

• 1978: the IAPC is founded under IFAC.
• 1991: IAPC guidelines are recodified as International Standards on Auditing.
• 2002: the IAPC is reconstituted as the IAASB.

Reconstitution as the IAASB in 2002

The IAPC no longer operates under that name. Its successor, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, develops auditing and assurance standards and guidance for professional accountants. The IAASB reports that more than 111 jurisdictions use its suite of International Standards on Auditing and Assurance. Anyone looking for the current source of international auditing standards should look to the IAASB and the ISAs, not the IAPC.

IAPC in NATO's glossary of acronyms

The NATO glossary of acronyms and abbreviations, published as AAP-15, lists IAPC as International Auditing Practices Committee. This confirms the expansion in an allied reference source. The entry is a glossary listing and does not turn the acronym into a defence procurement requirement. The full glossary is available from the NATO archives.

What IAPC means for a supplier bidding on Canadian public contracts

IAPC is not a buyer designation, solicitation category or standing supplier obligation. Canadian tender notices and contract records are published on CanadaBuys, and past federal contracts can be reviewed through the Government of Canada contracts search. Neither establishes a procurement use for the term.

If IAPC appears in a solicitation, read the clause around it. Its meaning and any required response come from that clause or from the standard it incorporates. Where a bid asks for audited financial statements, the relevant framework is the current International Standards on Auditing or the Canadian equivalent named in the document. Confirm the requirement with the contracting authority through the question period stated in the tender notice.