Audit Readiness & External Audit Support for UAE Businesses
Prepare the reporting base, schedules and supporting evidence your appointed auditors need.
Haseeb & Partners helps UAE businesses coordinate audit requests, respond to queries, assess proposed adjustments and keep the process moving through final close-out.
What is audit readiness and external audit support?
Audit readiness support helps management prepare the accounting records, reconciliations, schedules, PBC responses and supporting evidence required by its appointed external auditor. Haseeb & Partners can organise audit requests, address accounting matters and coordinate responses throughout the engagement, while the appointed external auditor remains independent and responsible for the audit opinion.
Make the audit process easier to manage
An external audit becomes more demanding when records are incomplete, supporting schedules are scattered or auditor requests do not have clear owners.
We help bring the reporting base, evidence and open matters into one controlled process, so management can respond with greater clarity, reduce the internal burden of chasing audit requests and keep the audit moving.
Audit preparation begins when fieldwork is approaching. It includes organising documents, completing reconciliations and responding to initial auditor requests.
Audit readiness is the wider process of keeping the reporting base, evidence, ownership and open matters under control throughout the reporting cycle.
Identify pressure points before fieldwork begins
A focused readiness review helps management see what requires attention before the external auditor begins detailed fieldwork. The review considers:
Prior-year findings, audit scope and timetable
Reconciliations, supporting schedules and missing documentation
Unusual transactions, judgements and reporting consistency
PBC gaps, submission dates and component reporting matters
Support across the audit cycle
Review the audit timetable and reporting position
Identify missing schedules, reconciliations and evidence
Tie supporting schedules to the trial balance
Prepare the Prepared by Client (PBC) request list
Communicate directly with appointed external auditors
Manage information requests and open queries
Track responsibilities, deadlines and outstanding evidence
Coordinate group audit and component reporting requirements
Support proposed audit adjustments
Update schedules and reporting packs
Help management respond to management-letter matters
Support final audit close-out
A clearer audit file
The exact deliverables depend on the reporting environment and audit scope. Support generally includes a structured trial balance, detailed schedules, and robust evidence indexing.
A well-prepared audit file should allow material balances to be traced from the trial balance to the supporting schedule and underlying evidence without repeatedly reconstructing the explanation during fieldwork.
Reconciled trial balance and supporting schedules
Bank, receivable, payable, fixed asset and intercompany reconciliations
Accrual, provision, prepayment and revenue schedules
Supporting evidence index and document tracker
PBC request list management
Auditor query and response tracker
Proposed adjustment and close-out tracker
Support that scales
The audit process becomes more involved when reporting spans several entities, jurisdictions or reporting requirements. Haseeb & Partners supports:
Group reporting packs and consolidation schedules
Intercompany reconciliations and eliminations
Component reporting information
Coordination with group and component auditors
Mainland and free-zone reporting environments
DIFC, ADGM and DMCC entities
Where formal financial statements fit
Formal financial statement preparation can form part of the agreed engagement where required. Our dedicated IFRS Financial Statement Preparation → service covers the detailed statement set, accounting policies, notes, disclosures and comparatives.
The audit support engagement then focuses on preparing the reporting package, supporting evidence and responses required by the appointed external auditor.
Experience that helps management stay ahead
Haseeb & Partners brings external audit experience, group audit experience and Big Four background to the preparation process. That experience helps us organise reporting schedules, supporting evidence, accounting matters and auditor responses across the audit cycle.
Drawing on extensive experience within top-tier global accounting firms.
Navigating complex multi-entity structures and component reporting requirements.
Providing direct access to experienced professionals throughout the engagement.
Managing communications and information flow directly with appointed auditors.
How the engagement works
01
Understand the position
We review the audit timetable, reporting status, prior-year matters and current information requests.
02
Identify the pressure points
We determine which schedules, reconciliations, evidence and accounting matters require attention.
03
Prepare and coordinate
We organise the audit file, manage the request list and communicate directly with the appointed auditors.
04
Close and improve
We support adjustments, management responses and remediation actions after fieldwork.
Support for management, independence for the auditor
Haseeb & Partners supports management with accounting, reporting, audit preparation and auditor coordination.
We do not act as the independent statutory auditor and do not issue audit opinions. The appointed external auditor remains responsible for the audit and its conclusions.
Audit Readiness & Support FAQs
Audit readiness is the process of preparing the accounting records, schedules and supporting evidence needed for an external audit. Support may include reviewing reconciliations, assembling the audit file, preparing requested schedules, identifying missing evidence and helping resolve accounting matters before and during the audit process.
PBC schedules are reports, reconciliations, breakdowns and supporting documents requested by the external auditor as part of the audit process. We help prepare and organise these schedules so they reconcile to the underlying accounting records and respond clearly to the auditor’s requests. The appointed auditor remains responsible for determining whether the audit evidence obtained is sufficient and appropriate.
No. Haseeb & Partners supports management and works alongside the appointed independent external auditor. We do not perform statutory audits, provide independent assurance or issue audit opinions. Our role is to help the business prepare its records, schedules and supporting information for the external audit process.
Financial statement preparation involves preparing the formal financial statements, notes and disclosures. Audit support focuses on the accounting records, schedules, evidence and responses required during the external audit process. Formal financial statement preparation is provided through our IFRS Financial Statement Preparation service, while audit readiness focuses on helping the business support those statements during audit.
Audit readiness requires sufficiently reliable accounting records. If the books are incomplete, behind schedule or contain unreconciled balances, we first identify the outstanding work and its impact on the audit. Where necessary, the accounting clean-up can be handled through a separate Accounting & Bookkeeping scope, while appropriate audit-readiness work may continue in parallel.
Requirements depend on the entity and the audit scope. We typically review the trial balance, general ledger, prior financial statements where available, key reconciliations, supporting schedules and the external auditor’s PBC list where one has already been issued. We then identify any additional information required for the engagement.
Yes. With management’s authority, we can coordinate with the appointed external auditor, prepare and provide agreed schedules, respond to accounting queries and help track outstanding information requests. Management remains responsible for the financial information provided, and the external auditor retains responsibility for the independent audit and audit opinion.
Timing and pricing depend on the condition of the accounting records, entity complexity, first-time or recurring audit requirements, volume of schedules and supporting evidence, and the level of coordination required with the external auditor. We review the position first, then agree a tailored scope, fee and realistic delivery timetable.
Resolve reporting gaps before audit fieldwork begins
Bring your audit timetable, current reporting pack or latest auditor request list. We will help identify what requires attention and agree the right level of preparation and coordination support.