What is AIGAS?
AIGAS stands for AI Governance Assurance Standard. It is a practical governance framework created by PPCS to help accounting firms manage AI responsibly, proportionately, and in a way that can be evidenced.
It is built around the reality of how firms are actually using AI today – through embedded features in practice software, staff experimentation with general AI tools, and increasing pressure to deliver more with less.
AIGAS is not a theory document. It is a working framework that helps firms identify AI use, assess risks, define oversight, and build a clear pathway from basic visibility to stronger governance maturity.
Why AIGAS Exists
Most accounting firms are already using AI in some form, whether they formally recognise it or not. It may be embedded in software, introduced informally by staff, or adopted without a clear internal governance process.
That creates a gap. Firms may have AI use, but no reliable inventory. They may have automation, but no defined accountability. They may have efficiency gains, but no evidence of oversight if a regulator, insurer, client, or internal leader asks questions.
AIGAS exists to close that gap – giving firms a realistic way to move from uncertainty to structure without needing a large compliance team or enterprise-level governance programme.
Designed Specifically for Accountants
AIGAS is designed around the way accounting firms work – client confidentiality, regulated services, workflow tools, professional judgement, documentation expectations, and growing pressure to do more with fewer resources.
It is especially relevant for firms using practice software with embedded AI, experimenting with tools like ChatGPT or Copilot, or trying to understand where AI is already affecting tax, accounts, advisory, workflows, client communication, or internal operations.
This is why AIGAS feels practical. It starts from the accounting environment first – not from a generic technology standard trying to fit every industry equally.
A Practical Alternative to Big Standards
Clear and proportionate
Built as a pathway
Many firms understand the need for AI governance, but when they look at large international standards the path can feel too distant, too costly, or too heavy for where they are today.
AIGAS gives firms a practical alternative. It provides a structured way to begin now, using proportionate governance controls that can mature over time. It is not anti-standard – it is a realistic bridge between today’s operational reality and stronger future governance.
For firms that later want to move toward broader frameworks such as ISO 42001, AIGAS helps create the internal discipline and evidence base that makes that journey far more achievable.
How AIGAS Works
Identify AI use
Start by understanding what AI tools are already in use across the firm, including embedded and informal usage.
Assess risk
Review where risk sits, what requires oversight, and how tools interact with client data, decision making, and operational processes.
Apply governance
Introduce practical controls, roles, documentation, approval logic, and evidence that show governance is active rather than assumed.
Build maturity
Progress from a basic, structured starting point into stronger governance readiness over time as AI adoption grows.
Bronze and Silver Levels
Bronze
Bronze is designed for firms that need a credible, structured foundation for AI governance. It helps establish visibility, basic oversight, documented ownership, and proportionate control around current AI use.
It is the right level for firms that want to move out of informal AI use and into an evidence-based governance position without taking on the full weight of enterprise-grade assurance.
Silver
Silver is for firms that want stronger governance maturity, deeper controls, and a clearer assurance story. It moves beyond simple visibility and into repeatable governance practices that can stand up to greater scrutiny.
For firms considering a future move toward broader AI management systems or ISO 42001 alignment, Silver provides a more structured stepping stone.
The AI Register
The free AI Register is the practical entry point into AIGAS. It helps firms capture which AI tools are being used, by whom, for what purpose, and with what level of governance consideration.
This matters because most firms do not have a complete view of their current AI footprint. Before governance can become effective, visibility has to exist. The AI Register gives firms that first layer of structure.
It also acts as the natural starting point for firms wanting to assess governance readiness, identify gaps, and move toward Bronze or Silver maturity in a more controlled way.
Why This Matters Now
Oversight expectations are rising
Governance is becoming a differentiator
Firms are under growing pressure from multiple directions at once – operational efficiency, client expectations, staff experimentation, software changes, professional accountability, and risk exposure.
The firms that do well will not simply be the firms that use AI fastest. They will be the firms that use AI with clarity, discipline, and confidence. That means being able to explain what is being used, where it is being used, how risk is considered, and who is accountable.
That is why governance matters now. It is no longer a future concern. It is a present operating requirement.
With governance, firms gain
Built and Backed by PPCS
AIGAS has been created by PPCS as part of a broader focus on practical AI governance for accountants. It sits alongside the AI Register and a wider pathway for firms wanting governance structure that is relevant to professional services rather than borrowed from a generic corporate environment.
For firms that want to understand how AIGAS relates to broader AI management system thinking and potential future ISO 42001 alignment, PPCS also provides additional guidance on that pathway.
Transparency and Practicality
AIGAS is designed to be practical, not performative. It is about helping firms build a working governance position that reflects how AI is actually being used – not creating unnecessary paperwork for the sake of appearances.
The aim is simple: help accounting firms adopt AI more safely, more confidently, and with clearer evidence of responsibility.
Start with visibility. Build governance from there.
If your firm is already using AI, the right first move is to understand where it is being used and how governance should apply. That is exactly what the free AI Register is designed to help you do.