Imagine you're an auditor and you've finished checking Rajesh & Co. Pvt. Ltd.'s books. Everything looks fine except for one big problem — the company has valued its closing stock at ₹80 lakhs but you believe the correct value is ₹50 lakhs. What do you say in your report? That's exactly what SA 705 governs: when and how to modify your audit opinion.
SA 705 recognises three types of modified opinions, and which one you give depends on two things: (a) why you're modifying (is it a material misstatement in the financials, or your inability to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence (SAAE)?), and (b) how bad is it — is the impact material but not pervasive, or material AND pervasive? Think of pervasive as "it poisons the whole report, not just one corner." For exam purposes, pervasive means the matter affects so many line items, or such a fundamental disclosure, that users cannot rely on the financials as a whole.
Here's the clean 2×2 logic to memorise: If there's a material misstatement that is not pervasive → give a Qualified Opinion ("except for this issue, everything is fine"). If the misstatement is pervasive → give an Adverse Opinion ("the financials do NOT give a true and fair view"). If you couldn't get enough evidence and the impact is not pervasive → Qualified Opinion again. If you couldn't get evidence and the impact is pervasive → Disclaimer of Opinion ("we cannot form an opinion at all"). The auditor also adds a Basis for Modification paragraph just before the opinion paragraph explaining the reason — this is mandatory under SA 705 and is frequently tested. This is asked frequently as a 4-mark question asking you to identify the correct opinion type given a scenario.
Example 1 — Qualified Opinion (Material Misstatement, Not Pervasive)
Setup: You are auditing Priya Exports Ltd. for FY 2024-25. Total assets = ₹5,00,00,000. The company has not provided depreciation on machinery worth ₹40,00,000 as required by Schedule II of the Companies Act, 2013. You believe depreciation of ₹8,00,000 should have been charged. Management refuses to correct this.
Step 1 — Is there a misstatement? Yes. Depreciation of ₹8,00,000 is understated; profit is overstated by ₹8,00,000.
Step 2 — Is it material? ₹8,00,000 / ₹5,00,00,000 total assets = 1.6%. It affects profit materially but relates only to one asset class.
Step 3 — Is it pervasive? No. It does not spread across multiple headings or make the entire financial statement unreliable.
Answer: Issue a Qualified Opinion. State: "Except for the non-provision of depreciation of ₹8,00,000 on machinery, the financial statements give a true and fair view."
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Example 2 — Disclaimer of Opinion (Inability to Obtain SAAE, Pervasive)
Setup: You are auditing Mehta Trading Pvt. Ltd. The company's entire accounting records for April–December 2024 (9 months of a 12-month year) were destroyed in a fire. No backup exists. These 9 months account for revenue of ₹3,20,00,000 out of annual revenue of ₹4,50,00,000.
Step 1 — Can you obtain SAAE? No. Records destroyed; no alternative audit procedures possible.
Step 2 — Is the impact material? ₹3,20,00,000 / ₹4,50,00,000 = 71% of revenue. Highly material.
Step 3 — Is it pervasive? Yes. It affects revenue, debtors, purchases, stock, GST — virtually every line item.
Answer: Issue a Disclaimer of Opinion. State: "Because of the significance of the matter described in the Basis for Disclaimer of Opinion paragraph, we have not been able to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence to provide a basis for an audit opinion on these financial statements."