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Audit File Index — SA 230 Documentation Structure (A to J)

The complete audit-file skeleton: ten sections from acceptance to communications, each with its key papers and SA references, plus the 60-day assembly lock record — editable in Word.

Free · CORAA original — SA-aligned
Updated 18 Jul 2026
Standard
SA 230 — Audit Documentation
Structure
10 sections, acceptance → communications
Deadline
Assemble + lock within 60 days of the report
Test
Experienced-auditor navigability
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Your firm — letterhead
Appears at the top of the document as the audit firm letterhead.
Used as the letterhead block.
Engagement details
The client and period this document is for.
What’s inside

An excerpt from the template.

AUDIT FILE INDEX — SA 230 DOCUMENTATION STRUCTURE

Entity: ___ · Year ended: ___ · Engagement partner: ___ · File locked on: __________

Purpose: one index for the complete audit file, so an experienced auditor with no connection to the engagement can navigate what was done, what was found and what was concluded (SA 230). Assemble and lock the file within 60 days of the auditor’s report; changes after that date are administrative only and documented as such.

Section index

↑ Excerpt only — the full template is what you download as Word
About this template

What you’re downloading, and when to use it.

This template follows the format published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) in the AASB Audit Working Paper Templates (June 2023), the authoritative reference for Indian statutory-audit documentation. Fill in your firm’s letterhead and the engagement details on the form above, click Download Word file, and you’ll get a fully formatted .docx ready to use.

Everything is generated in your browser and on a stateless API endpoint — no account, no email gate, nothing stored. Edit freely in Word, Google Docs or Pages before sending to your client.

Common questions

FAQs.

What is the 60-day rule for audit files?
SQC 1 and SA 230 require the final audit file to be assembled within 60 days of the date of the auditor’s report. After assembly, nothing may be deleted before the retention period ends; additions are administrative only (sorting, cross-referencing, signing off checklists) and any modification must record what changed, when, by whom and why. Peer reviewers routinely check assembly dates.
How long must audit working papers be retained?
SQC 1 sets a minimum of seven years from the date of the auditor’s report. Other laws can extend this — NFRA-covered entities and pending proceedings being the common reasons — so treat seven years as the floor, not the rule.
What is the experienced-auditor test?
SA 230’s benchmark: documentation must let an experienced auditor with no previous connection to the audit understand the procedures performed, the evidence obtained, the significant matters, and the conclusions reached — including how contradictions were resolved. An index like this one is the navigation layer that makes the test passable.
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