Evaluation of the effect of the covid-19 output on auditor's opinions and reports within the context of continuity concept

The Covid 19 epidemic, which emerged in Wuhan, China in December 2019 and affected the whole world, affected the independent audit studies as well as affecting businesses. The aim of this study is to examine the independent audit reports and to reveal the effect of the Covid-19 epidemic on the auditor's opinions and reports in the context of the concept of continuity. In the study, the five-year independent audit reports of the companies included in the BIST 500 in the years 2016-2020 were examined using the quantitative analysis method and content analysis, one of the qualitative analysis methods. The independent audit reports of 2244 companies, which are traded in all sectors and whose reports can be accessed, and the opinions in these reports were examined in the context of the concept of continuity, and the effect of Covid 19 was investigated. As a result of the research, it was seen that the auditors' reports included explanations about continuity and Covid 19, that most of the reports only referred to Covid 19, and that the continuity of the business and the auditor's opinions were not greatly affected by the epidemic. Keywords: Continuity, Independent Audit, Covid 19, Audit reports