MAJOR UPDATES TO AP4.0
As promised, we are delivering a major mid-year upgrade this July, with new functionalities that elevate AP4.0’s capabilities to cover 90% of audit engagement tasks.
Starting 14 July 2025, AP4.0 will include cutting-edge new functionalities to further simplify your audits:
- Completed Lead-sheets and Breakdowns: For all financial statement line items.
- Movement Schedules: For all balance sheet line items. Not just Non-current assets and liabilities, but also amounts due from / to related parties!
- Cut-off Tests of Details: Covering sales, cost of sales, and expenditures, justification for sample size written, and samples auto-selected!
- Confirmation Summaries: Generates a control list of selected confirmations, and includes auto-preparation of audit confirmations.
- Interactive Dashboard: The Program is embedded with a Dashboard to allow you to oversee each engagement’s status, and what next steps should be taken.
- Self-Check Diagnostics: Checks the integrity of data and generate an error report based on 500+ data validation rules prior to credit deduction.
All working papers can be generated together with the completed audit program, analytical reviews, sample sheets and other tests of details in a single excel file. Demonstrations of all functionalities of AP4.0 (Existing and New Functions) are now available. Please call us at Tel: 6015-7080, or Whatsapp us at Tel: 9543-3218 to schedule your private Demo. Demonstration takes approximately 1 hour. Save time in completing D-Code engagements today!
Download Latest AP4.0 Deck
New: Leadsheets & Breakdowns
New: Movement Schedules auto-Generated
59 Types of Leadsheets can be auto-generated, including but not limited to:
Non-Current Assets:
- Intangible Assets, PPE, Right-of-use Assets, Investments in subsidiaries, associates, JVs
Current Assets:
- Financial instruments, debt securities, inventories, trade and other receivables, contract assets, retention receivables, amounts due from all related parties, bank balances
Liabilities & Equity:
- Trade and other payables, provisions, obligations under finance leases, bank borrowings, amounts due to related parties, lease liabilities, contract liabilities, Share capital & premium, Exchange reserve, revaluation reserve, NCI, share option reserves, etc
Proift or Loss:
- Revenues, other income, cost of sales, operating expenses, non-operating expenses / incomes, other gain or losses
34 Types of Movement Schedules can be auto-generated, including, but not limited to:
- Non-current assets
- Amounts due from (to) related parties
- Bank borrowings
- Obligations under Finance Leases
- Lease liability
- Statement of Changes in Equity
- Deferred tax assets / liabilities
- Profits tax payable / recoverable
Why Choose AP4.0?
Agentic AI Functionality
Seamless Automation
Cost Effectiveness
AP4.0 operates entirely offline, ensuring absolute data security with no risk of data leakage through online interactions.
From importing client data to generating completed working papers, AP4.0 simplifies the entire process.
Even with the latest upgrades, credit usage remains at 1.8–2.4 credits per engagement, keeping costs below HKD 775 (USD 100) per audit engagement for early adopters.Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.
Act Fast to Save Up To 50% on Credit Prices
To celebrate this major update, we are offering an exclusive discount until 8 July 2025:
- 15% off credits based on June 2025 prices.
- This represents up to 50% savings compared to prices after 15 July 2025.
Additionally, existing users can top up at their last purchase price or the discounted price—whichever is lower—until 8 July 2025.
Starting 9 July 2025, credit prices will increase by 15% to reflect the new functionalities, and we expect another price adjustment when the next functionalities are released.
AP4.0 Demonstration Part 1:
AP4.0 Demonstration Part 2:
What Can Audit Program 4.0 (AP4.0) Do?
Client Acceptance Procedures & UN Sanction Screening:
- Address engagement continuance / client acceptance in recurring qualifications
- Address long-association with clients
- Performs audit risk assessments
- Preliminary engagement activities
- Engagement budget and planning
- Assesses eligibility for adopting SME-FRF
- Assesses need for consolidation / reporting exemption
- Performs initial UN Sanction screening on directors, shareholders and Ultimate beneficial owners, and provides tools for ongoing screening
Completes Audit Planning:
- Uses the 2024-APM (issued by HKICPA)
- Performs auto-calculations on materiality and line-specific performance materiality (for planning, revised & final)
- Reviews accounting estimates and risk assessments on estimates (including inherent & control risk assessments)
- Illustrative documentation on industry-specific internal controls, covering key cycles, such as revenues, cost of sales, inventories, salaries, receivables, payables, treasures, expenditures, PPE, investments, equity & debt securities, investments in subsidiaries, associates and JVs, bank balances, loans, and more!
- Assertion-level and financial statement-level risk assessments
- Revenue & Cost of Sales industry-specific analyses identifying point of recognition and documentary evidence specific to reporting framework and industry
- Completes APM sections A to V.
Writes Illustrative Analytical Reviews:
- Writes illustrative line-by-line year-over-year fluctuation analyses
- For each BS & PL line, calculates y-o-y fluctuation and determine if it’s increase / decrease
- Determines performance materiality for each line
- Compares fluctuation against performance materiality
- Determines materiality
- Add audit notes based on trends and materiality on reasons for fluctuation
- Utilizes industry specific knowledge and reporting framework-specific standards in writing illustrative explanations for each line item
- Accounts for risk level to determine if more extensive documentation is needed on high-risk account balances / transactions
- Subsequent audit adjustments would auto-update analytical reviews with a click of a button
Determines Sample Size:
- Directly accesses the trial balance to retrieve population to be tested
- Retrieves performance materiality and materiality from audit planning files
- Directly access ledgers to screen for samples above & below performance materiality
- Creates sample selection planning sheets for all selected BS & PL line items
- Adds titles with specific assertion and BS / PL account tested, renames worksheets with work paper references
- Sorts worksheets alphabetically,
- Determines number of samples above and below performance materiality
Designs Audit Procedures on Each BS & PL Line Item:
- Designs Audit Procedures for test of details for each Balance Sheet and Profit or Loss line-item
- Creates at least 1 test of detail work paper each line item
- Adds procedures directly to tests of detail work papers
- Adds work paper references, renames worksheets using references and sorts worksheets alphabetically
- Adds title, name of balance, objectives, risk levels, PM, and sampling factors to tests of details
- Calculates tested coverages,
- All procedures are industry-specific (As of 2025 June: 272 industries) and
- All procedures are financial reporting framework specific (SME / PE / HKFRS)
- 2000+ types of testing
Auto-Select Samples Directly From Ledger Files:
- Auto Selects most material samples from ledger files
- Copies voucher numbers, voucher dates, description and amounts of selected samples from ledger files into generated test of detail work papers
- Auto-sorts sample selection planning sheets and test of details so they are placed next to each other
- Eliminates human errors and ensures 100% accuracy
- Eliminates mismatch in sample sizes between sample designs and tests of details
Auto-Revise Audit Work Papers:
- Auto-Revises Audit Work Papers,
- By simply adding audit adjustments and the clicking 1 button, Auto-revision includes:
- Re-calculates materiality and performance materiality (without replacing planning materialities)
- Re-calculates sample sizes for each BS & PL sample selection planning sheet
- Based on new sample sizes, accesses ledger files to select additional samples or reduce samples, if needed
- Updates analytical reviews using revised / adjusted trial balances
Integration with Almost Any Accounting Software:
- Integrates with Accounting Software
- Plug-Ins available to directly extract ledger data from excel file formats
- Integrations ready-for-use for Xero, PeachTree, Quickbooks, MYOB, Inspur, KingDee, MasterSoft, Manager.IO, etc.
- By simply clicking 1 button to extract a whole year’s ledger to allow AP4.0 direct access
- There are no extra fees for new plug-in development and usage
AFRC Inspection-Tested:
- Compliance Protection from Regulatory Inspections
- Easily and safely pass AFRC Inspections
- No Last-Minute Preparations,
- Gain Peace of Mind
- All Files Ready for AFRC Sampling & Inspection
- Audit Work Papers Renamed, Filed and Organized
Check Credit Balance Anytime:
- Check Credit Balance Anytime
- By clicking 1 button to check number of credits used
- Check number of credits available
- Check expiry date of unused credits
Diagnostics Report Function:
Self-Checking Validation Before Credit Deduction
We’re pleased to introduce the Diagnostics Report Function — an intelligent self-checking system built into AP4.0 that empowers users to catch and resolve input issues before credits are deducted and audit files are generated. This new feature is designed to enhance accuracy, reduce rework, and ensure smoother audit file generation by flagging potential issues across your main data input forms.
Leveraging over 500 built-in validation rules, the Diagnostics Report scans the critical input files — 2.3 Main_Controller and 2.4 COA Forms — for completeness, consistency, and compliance with the selected financial reporting framework. Instead of manually hunting for issues, users can now rely on a consolidated error report that clearly outlines everything that needs attention.
The report is generated instantly and presents all detected issues in a clean, sortable Excel format, allowing teams to address problems efficiently before moving forward. This ensures that credits are only consumed when your data is audit-ready.
Key checks performed in the Diagnostics Report include:
- Mandatory fields check: Identifies any required fields left blank.
- Dropdown validation: Flags values that don’t match the pre-defined dropdown options.
- Framework-specific logic: Detects incompatible financial statement line items based on the selected framework (e.g. Contract Assets under SME-FRS).
- Cross-file consistency checks: Highlights mismatches between 2.3 Main_Controller and 2.4 COA Forms.
- Ledger misuse detection: Identifies cases where ledger files were attached to accounts that had no movement during the reporting period.
Benefits:
- Prevents audit credit deduction until validations are cleared
- Reduces time spent manually searching for data input issues
- Supports junior staff with clear, structured error guidance
- Enhances file quality before submission to audit managers or reviewers
- Promotes compliance with applicable framework restrictions
- Provides a clear audit trail of input validations performed
Multi-Engagement Management Dashboard:
- Engagement Management Tools that allow users to check what has been generated and when,
- Helps with progress checking
- Helps resuming work by checking what was last generated for each audit engagement
- Especially advantageous with staff turnover, handover of work and engagement continuity
- Embedded features for rollover of audit work papers
- Easy migration to next Audit Program versions
Preview Expected Outputs Before Credit Usage:
- Preview Expected Outputs before any credit usage
- Lists out all titles, work paper references and nature of work papers in alphabetic order
- Allows for screening of adequacy of audit procedures prior to credit deduction
- Allows for adjustment of input parameters such as a complexity meter adjustable based on user’s level of assurance to be obtained via the program’s designed audit procedures
- Three (3) available tiers of complexity: Simple, Moderate, or Comprehensive
Affordable, Cost-Saving & Time-Saving:
- Affordable, Cost-Saving & Time-Saving
- Costs as low as HK$600 per audit engagement
- Generates all work papers in less than 5 minutes
- Saves 90% of time costs in most audit documentation
- Completes work papers in much better quality and greater compliance!
- Automation now solves all pain points of SMPs including:
- Talent Shortage,
- Incomplete & Unorganized Work Papers,
- Audit Inefficiency,
- Regulatory Challenges, and
- Low Profitability!
Credit Usage:
New Pricing Structure:
Download AP4.0 Deck (Jul 2025)
More About Audit Program 4.0 (AP4.0)
Schedule a Free Demonstration
Why Upgrade Now?
With AP4.0, you can:
- Slash audit time by up to 90%
- Ensure compliance with the latest HKFRS, HKFRS for PE, or SME-FRF
- Prepare confidently for AFRC Inspections
Ready to experience the future of audit?
Call 6015-7080, email services@eqcadvisory.com, or click here to schedule your AP4.0 Demo.
At EQC, we’re not just compliance experts and Ai-Software vendors – we’re your audit compliance partners. That’s why we have expanded our after-sales support for AP4.0 subscribers, ensuring you maximize value and minimize headaches.
Auto Import Data from:
What's New in After-Sales Support?
- Bi-Weekly In-Person Training: Hands-on sessions every 2 weeks at our office (Free for subscribers). Register online, send your staff and get real-time troubleshooting.
- Comprehensive User Manual: Now online with easy table-of-contents navigation and clickable sections.
- Pre-Recorded Video Tutorials: Unlimited online access – learn at your own pace, revisit any feature, anytime.
- Half-Yearly Program Update: Stay compliant with every new standard or Ordinance – updates are delivered twice a year.
- Credit Usage Backup: Your data is confidential. In case of system crashes, we will quickly reinstate your unused credits with no data compromise.
- Remote Access Support: Installation, troubleshooting, or updates can all be done via TeamViewer – even when your team is out at clients’ offices.
- Monthly On-Demand Demonstrations: Join our regular group demos, or book a private session for your team.
Unlock the Future of Audit Efficiency with Audit Program 4.0
We are thrilled to introduce Audit Program 4.0 (AP4.0), a game-changing upgrade to our previous Audit Program 3.0, designed to revolutionize audit workflows for CPA firms. Developed by auditing professionals combining insights from regulatory inspections conducted by the AFRC, alongside cutting-edge technologies like Python, VBA, and AI-powered Large Language Models (LLMs), AP4.0 is the most advanced audit automation solution available worldwide.
Why Choose Audit Program 4.0?
AP4.0 builds on the solid foundation of AP3.0 but introduces groundbreaking new functionalities that address the real challenges CPA firms face today, including cost pressures, talent shortages, and increasing compliance demands.
1. Significant Cost Reduction:
– AP4.0 generates completed audit working papers directly from financial data, drastically cutting manpower requirements.
– Even CPA firms with hundreds of audit clients can now operate with just one qualified practising accountant and a small support team to import data, allowing the accountant to focus entirely on review.
2. New Functionalities in AP4.0:
– AML Name Sanction Screening: Seamlessly screens clients for compliance with anti-money laundering regulations.
– Sample Selection Sheets and Audit Tests of Details: Automatically generates sample selections and step-by-step audit procedures.
– Auto-Selection of Samples for Audit Confirmation and Tests of Details: Minimizes manual work by identifying samples directly from imported trial balances.
– Line-by-Line Analytical Reviews: Uses logic, programming, and generative AI to conduct year-over-year fluctuation analyses of financial statement line items.
3. Regulatory Compliance Across the Audit Cycle:
– From client acceptance (KYC) to audit planning and completion, AP4.0 generates working papers that comply with the latest regulatory standards.
4. Innovative Technology with Global Reach:
– AP4.0 is the first and only solution in the world that can generate completed, compliant audit working papers in one iteration for multiple engagements.
– Simultaneous launches in 9 countries, including the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, Malaysia, Singapore, UAE, and Hong Kong, ensure global standards are met.
Addressing Hong Kong’s CPA Talent Shortage
With the ongoing talent shortage in Hong Kong’s CPA industry, AP4.0 provides a timely and effective solution. By automating the most time-consuming aspects of the audit process, AP4.0 allows firms to maintain high-quality output with significantly fewer resources, all while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.
Exclusive Benefits of Early Subscription
To maximize value for our subscribers, we have aligned all AP4.0 audit program credits to expire on June 30, 2026, regardless of the subscription date. The earlier you subscribe, the longer the validity period of your credits will be. Don’t miss this opportunity to secure a competitive edge in the market while optimizing your firm’s efficiency.
Discover the Power of AP4.0 Today
We invite you to experience the future of audit with a live demonstration of AP4.0 or by attending one of our demo events scheduled from January to March 2025 (details attached). Witness firsthand how AP4.0 will transform your audit practice, streamline operations, and position your firm as an industry leader in innovation.
This is a once-in-a-generation innovation that will change the world of auditing. Be among the first to adopt this revolutionary technology and join elite firms already embracing the future of audit.
Four More Reasons to Use AP4.0
i. Resolves the Most Common Practice Review Findings
In the past months, EQC has been constantly improving our documentation in addressing common practice review findings, and we can confidently confirm that our Audit Program 4.0 can effectively address TEN of the most prevalent audit deficiencies that are commonly found in audit programs across the entire SMP industry.
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- Lack of evaluation of the internal controls on the allocation of the contract costs to different projects and service contracts / on key business processes.
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- Lack of risk assessment on the assertion level.
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- Lack of fraud risk considerations and inadequate procedures on management override of controls.
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- Lack of evidence of ongoing name screening for AML purpose.
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- Lack of considerations of assertion and financial statement level risks in determining sample sizes for extent of substantive tests of details.
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- Lack of arithmetical calculations and risk-based approach in determining extent of test of details.
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- Lack of audit documentation on the substantive tests of details performed.
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- Lack of documentation on the use of a proper audit opinion.
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- Absence of documentation on analytical reviews.
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- Post-Modification of working papers.
ii. Fastest Completion of Audit Work Papers in the Market
Working papers can be generated for multiple engagements in a matter of minutes. Imagine how many audit engagements you can complete with 1 staff in one week!
iii. Save 99.9999% of your Time Costs
Through our determination on digital transformation, we have been able to lower the cost to levels significantly below the equivalent time-cost of a typical audit junior.
The cost it takes to complete an audit file with an audit fee of HK$20,000 may involve a junior, a senior providing coaching, and a partner / manager reviewing the workpapers with back and forth revision. When using AP4.0, it only takes an administrative clerk 2 hours to complete the entire work papers and approximately 2 Audit Program credits. That is a cost of as low as under HK$800. Now calculate your operating profit margin.
iv. Technology Helps to Eliminate Human Errors
Human mistakes arising from carelessness is always inevitable. If you have previously purchased / encountered working paper templates available in the market, you would realize that it would almost be an impossible feat to digest the 1000-page long audit practice manual to ensure that the documented procedures have indeed been carried out in your working paper files.
Any inconsistencies between your firm’s audit practice manual and the archived working papers would be undisputable indicator of weakness in the firm’s engagement performance procedures.
Find us now at Tel: 6015-7080 for more detailed information of our services (or Whatsapp: 9160-5960).
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