Peer Review Process

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Step 1: Background Forms
After you have enrolled in the peer review program, the ASCPA Peer Review Administrator will send a "firm background request form" and a "reviewer request form" a few months before your peer review is due. Completed background and reviewer forms allows the Administrator to confirm that the reviewer you have chosen is indeed qualified to perform your review.

Step 2: Reviewer Approval
Once a reviewer has been accepted, the PR Administrator will send a confirmation letter to both the firm and the reviewer. The reviewer will not start a peer review without a confirmation letter, so it is important to return the background and reviewer request forms to the Society office in a timely fashion.

On system reviews, if a peer reviewer’s area of expertise does not match your firm’s area of industry, the Peer Review Administrator will ask you to either add someone to the review team who does have experience in that area, or choose another team captain.

A list of approved reviewers is available upon request. For a list please contact the Peer Review Administrator, Shirley Carroll.

Step 3: Report, Letter of Comments, Letter of Response (if applicable)
The reviewer will request certain items from the reviewed firm, based on the type of review performed. After the reviewer performs the review, the team captain will issue a report. There are several types of reports:

System and Engagement Reviews
Unmodified without a Letter of Comment
Unmodified with a Letter of Comment (to which the firm must submit a Letter of Response)
Modified with a Letter of Comment (to which the firm must submit a Letter of Response)
Adverse with a Letter of Comment (to which the firm must submit a Letter of Response)

Report Reviews
Report without Comments
Report with Comments

Step 4: Technical Review
Once the reviewer has submitted the peer review working papers, report, and letter of comment (if any) and the reviewed firm has submitted a copy of the report, a letter of response (if any) and payment of the administrative fee to the ASCPA office, a technical reviewer will review the file.

Step 5: Peer Review Committee
Review Acceptance / Corrective Action
If the technical reviewer deems the review work satisfactory, the firm review will then be sent to the Peer Review Committee, the Report Acceptance Body of the ASCPA, which meets approximately every 6 weeks.

The Peer Review Committee will evaluate whether a review team’s report, letter of comments, if any, and a firm’s response thereto are in accordance with Peer Review Standards. After the Committee accepts a review, the Administrator will send an acceptance letter to the Firm and the Reviewer.

The Committee may determine that remedial or corrective actions are required to improve the reviewed firm’s quality of practice and/or financial reporting. Examples of such actions include obtaining specified kinds and amounts of CPE, carrying out more comprehensive monitoring procedures, or engaging another CPA to perform preissuance reviews of financial statements and reports.

The Committee will monitor the corrective actions implemented by the firm. When it has determined that the firm has complied, the Committee will accept the review, and the Administrator will send an acceptance letter to the Firm and the Reviewer.

Next Peer Review
When a firm is due for peer review again in three years, as long as the firm has paid their dues, the Peer Review Administrator will send the firm a background request form.