Final answer:
The audit procedure of comparing payments made to vendors after year-end with the accounts payable listing is known as a subsequent payments review, which is part of accounts payable substantive testing for completeness in financial audits.
Step-by-step explanation:
The procedure referred to in the student's question is known as accounts payable substantive testing or more specifically, a subsequent payments review. When the audit team downloads a list of payments made to vendors after the year-end and compares it to the accounts payable listing, they are verifying that the liabilities were indeed present at the year-end. This is an essential part of completeness testing which ensures that all obligations of the company that should be recorded have been included in the financial statements.
The comparison seeks to identify any payments made after year-end which correspond to liabilities that should have been recognized in the prior period's accounts payable. If a payment made post year-end for goods or services received before year-end does not match with a recorded liability, it suggests the possibility of an underreported accounts payable balance.
Thus, this is an effective audit procedure that addresses the risk that the accounts payable balance might be understated by confirming that outstanding liabilities are adequately recorded at year-end.