Practice Aid -- Using an SSAE No. 16 Service Auditor's Report (SOC 1 Report) in Audits of Employee Benefit Plans

It is common for an employee benefit plan administrator to use a third-party administrator or service organization to process certain transactions on behalf of the employee benefit plan.  This practice aid, Using an SSAE No. 16 Service Auditor’s Report (SOC 1 Report) in Audits of Employee Benefit Plans, provides auditors with guidance when auditing the financial statements of an employee benefit plan that uses a service organization.

SOC 1 reports provide information to user auditors that assist them in obtaining an understanding of the entity, including its internal control, for the purposes of planning and performing an audit of a user entity’s financial statements.  This practice aid addresses how a SOC 1 report, should be considered in the audit of an employee benefit plan and which audit procedures should be applied to the information in the SOC 1 report. 

This practice aid provides practice tools to help you in your audit of employee benefit plans such as:

• Audit Program: Auditing the Financial Statements of an Employee Benefit Plan That Uses a Service Organization
• Planning Checklist for Audits of Employee Benefit Plans That Use a Service Organization
• Documentation of Use of a Type 2 Service Auditor’s Report in an Audit of an Employee Benefit Plan’s Financial Statements

Attestation guidance that is new to this practice aid includes:

• SSAE No. 16, Reporting on Controls at a Service Organization (AICPA, Professional Standards, AT sec. 801)

For a topical listing of subject matter by chapter, click on the Table of Contents tab.