SSAE 16

[ombskid]

We were asked by the auditors of a client for an SSAE 16 letter

Does anyone have experience with this? Is it requested often? A search of the forums comes up empty.

[Bill Presson]

This is what was formerly known as a SAS 70. It's a standard request by every CPA firm for an audited plan. If you are doing daily recordkeeping you should have this done each year, but it can be pricey if you only have a few clients.

It allows the CPA firm to reduce the amount of work they test during the audit so it saves your client money.

[BG5150]

Plus it may give clients a sense of confidence in the TPA b/c the TPA is being kind of audited every year as to their processes and controls.

[Gadgetfreak]

This is an extremely expensive endeavor for small TPAs. Even small recordkeepers, who I agree need to have "something", will find this a burden. As a recordkeeper, you could provide the SAS70 of the recordkeeping software (ASC, Relius, SRT, etc.) and of the financial custodian which has been accepted by some auditors in the past.

In addition, you may want to look into the CEFEX certification program for TPAs and/or recordkeepers in collaboration with ASPPA: http://www.cefex.org/Index.aspx?PageID=28. That has been very helpful for us in providing the confidence that the auditor, etc. need.

[Bill Presson]

We were asked by the auditors of a client for an SSAE 16 letter

Does anyone have experience with this? Is it requested often? A search of the forums comes up empty.

Are you actually doing recordkeeping or just providing TPA services?

[ombskid]

In the current case we are TPA for a 32 person db plan.

We also do in house recordkeeping for a small number of plans.

We have never been asked for SSAE or SAS 70 before.

[Bill Presson]

In the current case we are TPA for a 32 person db plan.

We also do in house recordkeeping for a small number of plans.

We have never been asked for SSAE or SAS 70 before.

Why is a 32 person db plan having an audit?