Audit Confirmation Letter

The letter that asks a bank, a customer or a supplier to confirm a balance directly to your auditor, with the balances table, a positive or negative request, the authorisation, the auditor's address and a reply page.

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Audit Confirmation Letter: infographic with a sketch of the document, when to use it, common mistakes and the country versions.
1 table, 2 parties, 2 signatures, 1 checklist.

Country versions

  • International *
  • United States *
  • United Kingdom *
  • Korea *
  • Japan *
  • Germany *

* check with local advice

A template, not advice.

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What it is

An audit confirmation letter lets an auditor check a figure with someone outside the company. When accounts are audited, the auditor does not rely on the company's own books alone. For important balances, such as cash at the bank, amounts customers owe and amounts owed to suppliers, the auditor asks the other side to confirm the figure directly. This letter is the company's part of that: it states the balances as recorded in the company's books, asks the bank, customer or supplier to confirm them, authorises it to give the information, and tells it to reply to the auditor, not to the company.

Auditing standards use two kinds of request. In a positive request the recipient answers whether or not the figure agrees. In a negative request the recipient answers only if it does not agree, which is weaker evidence, so auditors use it in particular situations. Your auditor decides which to use, and your auditor's own form prevails if it has one. This template covers the common case and has a reply page the recipient can complete and sign.

Pick a country to see its wording. The Korean version adds the seal marks and a note on why a bank needs the company's written consent, the Japanese version uses the formal opening and closing words and a place for the replier's company seal, the German version adds the release from banking secrecy for banks and refers to the German auditing standard, and the US and UK versions name AICPA and ISA (UK) terms.

When to use it
  • Your auditor asks the company to arrange confirmations for the year-end balances.
  • You need a letter that lets a bank confirm accounts and loans directly to the auditor.
  • You are asking customers to confirm what they owe at the balance sheet date.
  • You are asking suppliers to confirm the amount the company owes them.
  • You want one consistent letter and reply page for all of the confirmations.
How to fill it in
  1. Enter your company, your auditor and the confirming party. Use the contact names your auditor gave you.
  2. Choose what is to be confirmed (bank, customer or supplier) and the kind of request your auditor wants.
  3. Set the balance date and the date by which a reply is wanted. List the balances exactly as they stand in your books, with account or invoice numbers.
  4. For a bank, add other arrangements such as loans, guarantees or pledged assets if the auditor asks for them.
  5. Sign for the company. Hand the letter to the auditor to send, or send it as the auditor instructs. The reply must go to the auditor.
Common mistakes
  • Giving the company's own address for the reply. The reply must reach the auditor directly, otherwise it is not independent evidence.
  • Listing balances that differ from the books because they were rounded or updated after the balance date.
  • Using a negative request because it is quicker, when the auditor needs a positive one.
  • Leaving out account or invoice numbers, so that the recipient cannot match the figure.
  • Changing the wording of a form that the auditor has supplied.
Steps at a glance
  1. Fill in
  2. Check the preview
  3. Save as PDF, Word or Excel
Country versions

Pick the country you need. Each version uses the wording and layout commonly found there; a version marked “check with local advice” should be read by someone who knows the local rules before it is used.

  • International (XX): Written in English, Korean, Japanese, German – check with local advice
  • United States (US): Written in English – check with local advice
  • United Kingdom (GB): Written in English – check with local advice
  • Korea (KR): Written in Korean, English – check with local advice
  • Japan (JP): Written in Japanese, English – check with local advice
  • Germany (DE): Written in German, English – check with local advice

Designs

The same form in several designs. The fields and the wording stay the same; only the look changes.

  • Classic
  • Modern
  • Minimal
  • Warm
  • Plain (black and white)
  • Formal
  • Side band
  • Banner
  • Executive
  • Ledger
  • Compact
  • Boxed form

Your details fill it in

Fields that ask for your name, address or company details are filled from My details, so you do not type them again; you can still change any field for one form. Signed in, your details stay in your account; otherwise they stay in this browser only. A passport, identity or social security number is never saved.

Questions

Why must the reply go to the auditor and not to us?
Because evidence that comes straight from an outside party is more reliable than evidence that passes through the company. The auditor needs to know that nobody has changed the answer on the way.
Who sends the letter, the company or the auditor?
It depends on the auditor and on local practice. Often the company prepares and signs the letter and the auditor sends it and receives the reply, so that the auditor stays in control of the process. Follow your auditor's instructions.
What is the difference between a positive and a negative request?
A positive request needs an answer in every case, agree or disagree. A negative request needs an answer only when the figure is wrong, so silence is not proof that it is right. That is why it is weaker evidence and why the auditor chooses.
Does a bank need our permission to reply?
Usually yes, because banks keep their customers' information confidential. The letter contains the company's authorisation to give the information to the auditor, and the notes for Korea and Germany explain the local rule. Some banks also ask for their own form.
Is this audit or legal advice?
No. It is a general template. Your auditor's own form and instructions, the auditing standards and the rules of your country decide what a confirmation must say, so use this letter only where your auditor agrees to it.
Is this form legal, tax or accounting advice?
No. It is a template: it gives you the usual structure and wording, not advice. Rules differ by country and case, so have someone qualified read anything that matters before you sign, send or file it.
Which countries and designs does it come in?
It comes in 6 country versions: International, United States, United Kingdom, Korea, Japan, and Germany. 12 designs.

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A form is a template, not legal, tax or accounting advice. Rules differ by country and case.