PECULIARITIES OF AUDIT SAMPLING

Abstract

Despite the relative elaboration of the sampling issue, the problem of its usage in the case of audit of enterprises, that use public resources remains unsolved, despite the importance of such an audit at the national level. The main task of this study is to determine the main prerequisites and peculiarities of the sampling method in audit. The paper attempts to generalize the main prerequisites and features of the use of the sampling method in auditing. Emphasis was placed on the audit of enterprises that use public resources. It is determined that terminological problems in the field of selective research method are primarily due to the fact that in some cases the terms are borrowed from probability theory and mathematical statistics, and in some – are autonomous and formed exclusively in the field of audit. The dual nature of the concept "audit sample" is established. On the one hand it is a way to obtain audit evidence (sample method of research), and on the other the sample from which this evidence is formed. This vision expands the position of international standards, where the audit sample is defined as "the application of audit procedures" or the method of obtaining audit evidence. Sampling method is based exclusively on the professional judgment of the auditor. For sampling under ISA 530, statistical and non-statistical methods can be used in the audit. After analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of the non-statistical method of research, in the case of auditing enterprises, that use public resources, it is recommended to use only statistical sampling methods. If the auditor intends to use non-statistical sample observation, it is better to replace it with audit of the whole population. It is proved that this approach avoids the risk of anomaly. The flowchart of the audit sample in the audit of enterprises, that use state resources is constructed. The flowchart can be used by auditors to determine the applicability of the audit sample and method of sampling. Despite the possibility of using a sampling which corresponds to the principle of "sufficient confidence", the question about the methodology of its conduct is still open. Further research will be carried out in this direction.