Glossary›Connection to the financial statements›Restatement of prior-period emissions
Glossary term
Cluster F · F4
Tier 1 · differentiator
Restatement of prior-period emissions
Definition
A restatement is a correction or recalculation of previously reported emissions figures. It happens when an error is found, a methodology changes, the reporting boundary changes through acquisition or disposal, or better data becomes available. AASB S2 requires the entity to disclose the restatement, the reason for it, and its effect on the comparative figures.
On this page
In practice
Restatement is a year-two problem that arrives faster than anyone expects, and it arrives precisely because year one was hard. The first inventory is built with the worst data the entity will ever have. By year two, meters are installed, suppliers have responded, an assurance provider has been through the file, and several year-one figures are known to be wrong.
Three categories of trigger. Errors, which are corrections. Methodology changes, such as moving a Scope 3 category from spend-based to activity-based, which improve the number and change the trend. Structural changes, where an acquisition or disposal makes the prior year not comparable.
A written restatement policy, set before it is needed, is what separates a routine disclosure from a difficult conversation. Without one, every restatement looks like a judgement made after seeing the result.
What the assurer does with it
The assurer tests whether the restatement is properly triggered under the entity’s own policy, whether it has been applied consistently across all affected periods and metrics, and whether the disclosure explains the reason and quantifies the effect. They pay particular attention to restatements that improve the trend, and they will look for evidence the decision was made on the merits rather than on the outcome. A significant restatement is also one of the matters that can attract an emphasis of matter in the assurance report.
Commonly confused with
Restatement in the financial statements, which is governed by the accounting standards and has a different threshold and process. The concepts are parallel; the rules are not.
Sources
1
2
AASB 108 Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors (compiled March 2021)
AASB
3
ASSA 5000 General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements
AUASB
4
ASSA 5010 Timeline for Audits and Reviews of Information in Sustainability Reports under the Corporations Act 2001
AUASB
Review status
Review required
Last reviewed
15 September 2026
Editorial pass, unsigned
Reviewer required
Registered company auditor with financial reporting expertise
Next scheduled review
1 July 2027
Part of
Cluster F, Connection to the financial statements
6 terms on where the sustainability report meets the audited accounts. Small cluster, high consequence: this is where both assurers cross-check each other’s work.
Related terms
The relief whose expiry is what forces most year-two restatements into view
The written policy the assurer tests the restatement against
The threshold that decides whether an error has to be corrected at all
Related questions
What happens if we have to restate last year’s emissions?
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You restate the comparative and disclose what changed, why, and the effect. Restatement is expected as data improves and is not treated as a failure. What the assurance practitioner tests is whether you have a written policy setting out when you restate, and whether you applied it consistently.
What happens if the assurance provider disagrees with our numbers?
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Disagreement is normally resolved before it reaches the conclusion: the practitioner raises a query, you produce more evidence or adjust the number, and the file moves on. A modified conclusion only arrives if you decline to adjust something material, or if they cannot obtain the evidence they need. The second case is far more common in a first year and is entirely preventable through documentation.
What will our auditor actually ask for?
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In year one they ask for evidence behind the disclosures that are actually assured: Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, your governance disclosures, and the specified strategy paragraphs on climate risks and opportunities. In practice that means source documents, a calculation they can rebuild from those documents, and minutes showing the governance you described actually happened.
Where this sits commercially
A written restatement policy set before it is needed is the difference between a routine disclosure and a difficult conversation with the assurer.
Other terms in this cluster