CORAA

Opening Balances Checklist — SA 510 Initial Engagement Working Paper

First-year engagement paper: predecessor communication, the nine opening-balance procedures (receivable collections, inventory roll-back, PPE continuity), exceptions and the opinion effect — editable in Word.

Free · CORAA original — SA-aligned
Updated 18 Jul 2026
Standard
SA 510 — Initial Audit Engagements
When
First year, or auditor changed
Covers
Predecessor etiquette + 9 balance procedures
Links
SA 710 comparatives on prior modifications
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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.

OPENING BALANCES — SA 510 INITIAL ENGAGEMENT WORKING PAPER

Entity: ___ · Year ended: ___ · Prepared by: __________ · Reviewed by: __________

Purpose: for an initial audit engagement (first year, or predecessor auditor changed), document evidence that opening balances do not contain misstatements materially affecting the current period, and that accounting policies are consistently applied (SA 510).

Part A — Engagement context

↑ 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.

Must the incoming auditor communicate with the previous auditor?
Yes — ICAI professional etiquette (Clause 8 of Part I of the First Schedule to the CA Act) requires the incoming auditor to communicate with the retiring auditor in writing before accepting. SA 510 separately encourages reviewing the predecessor’s working papers where access is given; the register in Part A records both.
What if sufficient evidence on opening balances cannot be obtained?
SA 510 is explicit: a limitation on opening balances leads to a qualified opinion or disclaimer as appropriate. If opening balances contain a misstatement affecting the current period that is not properly accounted or disclosed, the opinion is qualified or adverse.
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