AI and Ethics for Professional Accountants in Ireland

Using AI at work does not come with a separate ethics rulebook for accountants. According to the Chartered Accountants Ireland article "Ethical use of AI - What every Chartered Accountant should consider" (dated 24 August 2026), the Code of Ethics applies whatever tools members use. This guide sets out what the professional bodies themselves say about AI ethics for accountants, so that finance teams in Dublin and across Ireland can see where their duties sit. For the framework underneath, see our explainer on the IESBA Code of Ethics for professional accountants in Ireland.

The short version

• The ethical principles do not change because a task is done with AI. The IESBA's June 2026 snapshot puts it as "Technology does not break the ethical framework."
• IESBA made technology-related revisions to its Code in 2023, effective from 15 December 2024. They are not AI-only, and they are written to cover "any technology, including to the extent possible, future technologies".
• Chartered Accountants Ireland has published a concise guide for members on the ethical use of AI, and its article lists the threats it wants members to watch for.
• Existing law (data protection, employment, anti-money laundering and so on) still applies when AI is used.

What the IESBA technology-related revisions cover

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) publishes the international Code of Ethics. Its page on the final pronouncement, "Technology-related Revisions to the Code", is dated 11 April 2023, with an update dated 30 May 2023 that corrected some paragraph numbers and cross-references.

The page says the revisions are meant to guide how professional accountants in business and in public practice think and act when they use technology. It describes these areas:

• Mindset and behaviour: strengthened guidance on how accountants conduct themselves when using technology.
• Confidentiality, professional competence and due care: enhanced guidance on these fundamental principles for the digital age.
• Complex circumstances: guidance on dealing with complexity.
• Independence: clarified International Independence Standards on when firms and network firms may or may not provide a technology-related non-assurance service to an audit or assurance client.

The page gives 15 December 2024 as the effective date for the ethics revisions, with the independence changes applying to audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after that date. Early adoption was permitted. Members should check how their own professional body applies the Code.

What IESBA said in June 2026

The IESBA "Snapshot: Ethics and Independence Approach to the Use of Technology" is dated 11 June 2026. It is a short, non-technical explainer covering AI, agentic AI, digital assets and cloud platforms. Its main points include:

• Technology can challenge professional judgement, introduce bias and obscure accountability, and the question is "no longer whether to use these tools, but how to do so responsibly".
• The 2023 revisions cover competence and due care, the inquiring mind, use of technology outputs, automation bias, complexity, confidentiality and independence. The snapshot says "Relying on opaque or unexplained outputs is not acceptable."
• IESBA does not plan further Code changes for now. It wants the 2023 revisions adopted first, to avoid a fragmented Code that quickly becomes outdated.
• Non-authoritative guidance was planned: a technology-agnostic document for the third quarter of 2026 and an AI-specific one for the fourth quarter of 2026. We have not confirmed whether either has been published, so check the IESBA website for the current position.
• A standing Technology Expert Group monitors emerging technologies. The snapshot also flags governance and oversight mechanisms lagging behind AI adoption and "Shadow AI", meaning employees using AI tools without organisational approval.

The Chartered Accountants Ireland guide

The Chartered Accountants Ireland article (24 August 2026) introduces "The Ethical Use of AI Technologies: A concise guide for Members". According to the article:

• For some Chartered Accountants, AI is already part of everyday work, and the question now is how it can be used responsibly, consistent with the trust placed in the profession.
• The Code of Ethics was not written with AI specifically in mind, but its principles remain fully relevant.
• AI does not alter core duties such as integrity, objectivity, competence, due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour. It does create new contexts and new threats that members must identify and address.
• The guide shows how members can apply the Code and its conceptual framework to AI risks.

The threats the article highlights are:

• over-reliance on AI-generated outputs;
• automation bias;
• lack of transparency or explainability;
• embedded bias or discrimination;
• confidentiality and data privacy concerns;
• unclear accountability;
• inadequate human oversight; and
• overstating the reliability or objectivity of AI-generated information.

The law still applies

The same article says AI raises questions beyond just legal compliance and also engages professional and business ethics. It lists areas of existing law that continue to apply when AI is used, including data protection, employment, equality, consumer protection, anti-money laundering, anti-bribery, directors' fiduciary duties and sector-specific rules. In its words, "Using an AI system does not remove or reduce these responsibilities." The law is national and the same wherever in Ireland you work; being a Dublin-based team does not change it.

An older view from IFAC

For context, IFAC published a discussion piece, "Ethics, Technology, and the Professional Accountant in the Digital Age", dated 1 April 2021. It is older than the material above and pre-dates the recent wave of generative AI, so treat it as background. It says the importance of ethics "will not change with the times", although its application may look different. It also raises concern that some machine learning systems may give outputs that even their developer cannot explain, and warns that systems that learn through algorithms might be "technically right but professionally wrong".

Putting it into practice

The following are our suggestions, not requirements from any professional body. Check your own body's Code and guidance first.

• Our suggestion: map each AI use to the fundamental principles. For each tool in use, note which principles are most exposed (for example confidentiality when client data is pasted into a tool, or competence when a team cannot check an output).
• Our suggestion: keep a human reviewer who can explain the result. If nobody on the team can explain how a figure or conclusion was reached, the reliance may fall short of the "opaque or unexplained outputs" point in the IESBA snapshot.
• Our suggestion: write down which tools are approved. The "Shadow AI" point in the snapshot suggests that unapproved use is a governance gap worth closing. Our guide to AI governance for managers covers accountable use in more detail.
• Our suggestion: keep a short record of significant judgements. Where AI contributed to work that a client or regulator may later question, a note of what was checked and by whom helps show due care.
• Our suggestion: build skills deliberately. Competence and due care are fundamental principles, and tools change quickly. See our overview of AI training for accountants in Ireland for ways to approach this.

What this guide does not cover

We have described only what the pages above say, and we give their dates because this area is moving. The Code itself, your professional body's own guidance and your firm's policies remain the authority. Members of other bodies, such as ACCA, CPA Ireland or Accounting Technicians Ireland, should check their own body's published position on AI and ethics. Nothing here is legal advice.

Learnsignal's offices are off Baggot Street in Dublin, and we offer in-person training from there. For current details, see our CPD pages.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a separate AI code of ethics for accountants?

The sources we read do not describe one. The Chartered Accountants Ireland article says the Code of Ethics applies whatever tools are used, and the IESBA snapshot says the Code's principles apply regardless of the tools. Both bodies describe guidance on applying the Code to AI rather than a separate code.

What are the IESBA technology-related revisions?

They are changes to the international Code of Ethics, announced in April 2023 and effective from 15 December 2024, covering areas such as professional competence and due care, confidentiality, complex circumstances and independence when technology services are provided to audit and assurance clients.

Can I rely on an AI output if it looks right?

The IESBA snapshot says relying on opaque or unexplained outputs is not acceptable. The Chartered Accountants Ireland article lists over-reliance, automation bias and inadequate human oversight among the threats to manage. How that applies to a particular task is a matter of professional judgement under your own Code.

Does using AI change who is accountable for the work?

The Chartered Accountants Ireland article states that using an AI system does not remove or reduce existing responsibilities, and it lists unclear accountability as a threat to identify and address.

Where can I find the latest IESBA AI guidance?

On the IESBA website. The June 2026 snapshot said additional non-authoritative guidance was planned for later in 2026, so check there for the current position.

Ethics questions about AI are best settled before a tool is in daily use, not after, so it is worth reading your body's guidance now.