Auditors have upped their intensity since the ATO sent out letters last year questioning the investment strategies of SMSFs, a senior executive in the sector has said.

The internal controls of an SMSF need to be taken into account when performing an audit, regardless of the type of audit being carried out, a specialist practitioner has said.

SMSF auditors will have their work processes examined by the ATO after new guidelines were introduced governing the scope of their independence.

The Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) must take action against tax agents believed to have misused SMSF auditor numbers (SAN) to prevent it happening again, a specialist auditor says.

There is an increasing onus on SMSF auditors to detect fraud and the processes to do so are becoming more substantial, a leading practitioner has said.

Advocating on behalf of clients can compromise the level of independence an auditor is seen to have, a leading specialist practitioner has said.