Agreed-upon procedures
Greywood CPA performs agreed-upon procedures (AUP) engagements for grant and contract compliance. In an AUP engagement, the agency, prime contractor or board decides which procedures it wants performed. We perform them and report exactly what we found, without giving an overall opinion.
Agencies use AUPs when they need specific answers, such as whether costs charged to a grant are supported, whether billed hours match timesheets, or whether a closeout report agrees to the books, without paying for a full audit. We are a licensed CPA firm (Virginia Board of Accountancy firm license #134961) working nationwide, at a fixed fee.
Last reviewed: November 2026
An AUP engagement is performed under AICPA attestation standards. The engaging party agrees with the CPA on a specific list of procedures, for example "select 25 invoices charged to the grant and compare each to supporting documentation." The CPA performs them and reports the results factually. Users draw their own conclusions.
| Audit | Agreed-upon procedures | |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Whole financial statements | Only the procedures agreed |
| Result | An opinion | Factual findings, no opinion |
| Cost and time | Higher | Usually lower and faster |
The procedures come from the party that needs the report: a state agency, federal program office, prime contractor or your board. If they have a standard program, we use it. If not, we help draft procedures that answer their question, and they confirm the procedures are appropriate before we begin.
Exceptions are listed exactly as found, so it helps to fix known problems before the work starts.
A 30-minute call about your organization, who needs the report and your deadline.
Scope, report type, timeline and one fixed fee, in writing.
Everything we need, uploaded through a secure portal.
Remote testing, then a draft for your review.
A CPA partner signs, and we walk you or your board through the results.
An audit gives an opinion on the whole financial statements. An agreed-upon procedures engagement covers only specific procedures the user requested and reports findings without an opinion, so it is usually faster and less expensive.
The party that needs the report, such as a funding agency, prime contractor or board, agrees the procedures with the CPA and confirms they are appropriate for its purpose.
No. If you spend $1,000,000 or more in federal awards, the Single Audit is required. AUPs are often used for organizations below that threshold or for specific questions an agency has.
It depends on the number of procedures and samples, but most grant compliance AUPs take a few weeks once records are available.
We quote one fixed fee in writing before any work starts, based on the number of procedures and sample sizes.
Send us the procedures or the request. A senior CPA will send a fixed-fee proposal within 1–3 business days.