(1) Acquisition statements that are required by securities legislation to be audited must be accompanied by an auditor’s report and audited in accordance with one of the following auditing standards:
(a) Canadian GAAS;
(b) International Standards on Auditing;
(c) U.S. PCAOB GAAS;
(d) U.S. AICPA GAAS, if the acquired business or business to be acquired is not an SEC issuer;
(e) auditing standards that meet the foreign disclosure requirements of the designated foreign jurisdiction to which the issuer is subject, if the issuer is a designated foreign issuer.
(2) The auditor’s report must,
(a) if paragraph (1)(a) or (b) applies, express an unmodified opinion,
(b) if paragraph (1)(c) or (d) applies, express an unqualified opinion,
(c) unless paragraph (1)(e) applies, identify all financial periods presented for which the auditor’s report applies,
(d) identify the auditing standards used to conduct the audit,
(e) identify the accounting principles used or, if subsection 3.11(5) applies, the financial reporting framework used, to prepare the acquisition statements, unless the auditor’s report accompanies acquisition statements prepared in accordance with Canadian GAAP applicable to publicly accountable enterprises and audited in accordance with Canadian GAAS, and
(f) if paragraph (1) (a) or (b) applies and subsection 3.11(5) does not,
(i) be in the form specified by the standards referred to in paragraph (1)(a) or (b), as applicable, for an audit of financial statements prepared in accordance with a fair presentation framework, and
(ii) refer to IFRS as the applicable fair presentation framework if the financial statements are prepared in accordance with Canadian GAAP applicable to publicly accountable enterprises.
(3) Despite paragraphs (2)(a) and (b), an auditor’s report that accompanies acquisition statements may express a qualification of opinion relating to inventory if
(a) the issuer includes in the business acquisition report, prospectus or other document containing the acquisition statements, a statement of financial position for the acquired business or business to be acquired that is for a date that is subsequent to the date to which the qualification relates, and
(b) the statement of financial position referred to in paragraph (a) is accompanied by an auditor’s report that does not express a qualification of opinion relating to closing inventory.