IFRS Insights is a newsletter on IFRS aimed at US companies. This issue includes:

• An update covering the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) recent statement and IFRS Work Plan
• An article about IFRS and repatriation planning with a look at the opportunities and challenges in statutory reporting
• An overview of the IASB exposure draft, Financial Instruments: Amortized Cost and Impairment
• An industry update about Rate-regulated activities
• Featured IFRS polling results from a recent Deloitte IFRS Dbriefs webcast.

Click to view IFRS Insights Newsletter for March-April 2010 (PDF 404k). We have Permanent Links to all IFRS Insights on our USA country page.

 

Click to go to the preliminary and unofficial Notes Taken by Deloitte Observers at the meeting.

The SEC Statement provides an overview of the Commission's IFRS activities, summarises some of the public feedback on the proposed IFRS roadmap, and outlines an approach going forward. Deloitte (Colombia) has published a Spanish translation of the Commission's statement: Declaración de la SEC en respaldo de la convergencia y de los estándares globales de contabilidad (PDF 499k).

 

Click to go to the preliminary and unofficial Notes Taken by Deloitte Observers at the meeting.

1.1 Council of the Institute has decided that the IFRS for SMEs may be applied by: a 'public company' or a 'private company', as defined in the Companies Act, 1973 if it does not have public accountability as defined in Section 1 of the IFRS for SMEs. 1.2 For entities other than companies where the founding document or other regulation requires compliance with a 'fair presentation framework' as contemplated by the International Federation of Accountants ('IFAC') the IFRS for SMEs may be applied, if the entity does not have public accountability as defined in Section 1 of the IFRS for SMEs, except in the circumstances described in 1.4 below. 1.3 For entities where legal provisions or other regulations require compliance with a specific financial reporting framework (other than the IFRS for SMEs), such an entity may not apply the IFRS for SMEs even if it does not have public accountability as defined in Section 1 of the Statement of IFRS for SMEs. 1.4 For entities whose financial reporting framework is not set out by legal provisions, the founding statement or other regulations, if such an entity does not have public accountability, as defined in Section 1 of the Statement of IFRS for SMEs, it should assess whether it is appropriate to apply the IFRS for SMEs.

Click to view the Resolution of Namibia Council (PDF 330k).

By Resolution 1255 of 2009, the CPC's SME standard was endorsed by the Brazilian Federal Accounting Council (CFC), the national professional body. (Here is a copy of Resolution 1225 (PDF 794k)). The standard is a temporary and unofficial translation of the IFRS for SMEs that is available on IASPlus (PDF 1,049k). The IASC Foundation is presently organising an official translation. It is anticipated that auditors will be able to report that financial statements that comply with the CPC's SME standard are in conformity with the IFRS for SMEs because there are no substantive differences between the unofficial Portuguese translation and the IFRS for SMEs. The estimated number of SMEs in Brazil (January 2009) was 5.9 million, representing 99% of Brazilian enterprises. While many of them are expected to continue to follow a very simple accounting system permitted under the Brazilian SMEs law, many others are expected to switch to the Brazilian IFRS for SMEs equivalent. For example, the Brazilian National Development Bank (BNDES) is expected to encourage or even require all of its borrowers (approximately 250,000 SMEs) to use the new standard.

That section deals with measurement of liabilities that are within the scope of IAS 37. The original deadline of 12 April 2010 has been extended to 19 May 2010. IAS 37 applies to liabilities not covered by other accounting standards, including liabilities to decommission assets, environmental liabilities, obligations under onerous contracts, and liabilities arising from legal disputes. In June 2005, the IASB had published Proposals to amend IAS 37, including revised measurement requirements. In the light of the comments received, on 5 January 2010 the IASB issued revised proposals that include more guidance on measurement. It is the comment deadline on those revised proposals that has been extended. The IASB intends to replace IAS 37 in the third quarter of 2010. Click for:

• Deloitte's IFRS Global Office has published an IAS Plus Update Newsletter – IASB Refines Proposals for the Measurement of Liabilities in IAS 37 (PDF 89k) explaining the proposals.
• Project Page on IAS Plus

 

EITF Snapshot, published by Deloitte & Touche LLP (USA), enables readers to identify relevant topics and to understand quickly the meeting's outcome. The March 2012 EITF Snapshot (PDF 113k) covers the following issue discussed by the EITF at the meeting:

• Issue 08-9 Milestone Method of Revenue Recognition – Final consensus
• Issue 09-B Consideration of an Insurer's Accounting for Majority Owned Investments When the Ownership Is Through a Separate Account – Final consensus
• Issue 09-F Casino Base Jackpot Liabilities – Final consensus
• Issue 09-G Clarification of the Definition of Deferred Acquisition Costs of Insurance Entities – Partial consensus reached
• Issue 09-H Accounting by Healthcare Organizations (Revenue Recognition; Presentation of Insurance Claims and Related Insurance Recoveries; and Measuring Charity Care for Disclosure) – No consensus reached, discussion will continue at a future meeting (revenue recognition). Consensus-for-exposure (presentation of liabilities related to medical malpractice and other similar claims, and disclosure of charity care).
• Issue 09-I Effect of a Loan Modification When the Loan Is Part of a Pool That Is Accounted for as a Single Asset – Final consensus
• Issue 09-J Impact of Denominating the Exercise Price of a Share-Based Payment Award in the Currency of the Market in Which the Underlying Equity Security Primarily Trades – Final consensus

Initial EITF consensuses (known as 'consensuses-for-exposure') are exposed for a comment period after ratification by the FASB. At its first scheduled meeting after the comment period, the EITF considers comments received and, as warranted, affirms its consensuses-for-exposure as final consensuses. Those consensuses are then provided to the Board for final ratification.

The EITF has recently made the following changes to the structuring of EITF issues: Codification – With the launch of the FASB Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) on July 1, 2009, all EITF Issues are finalised as ASUs. The numbering system for EITF Issues (that is, before their finalisation as ASUs) has also changed. Rather than being assigned a number that corresponds to the year and that Issue's spot in the progression (for example, Issue 08-1 was the first Issue in 2008), a new Issue will be assigned a number that corresponds to the year in which it was added and a letter for where it falls in the progression. For example, the first EITF Issue added in 2010 will be referred to as Issue 10-A. The numbering used for previous EITF Issues under the old system will not change. Proposed Effective Dates – New exposure drafts issued on the basis of consensuses-for-exposure will no longer include proposed effective dates. Instead, future exposure drafts will ask respondents to comment on the effort involved in implementing the proposed updates, which the Task Force will consider during final deliberations in determining the effective date. Basis for Conclusions – New exposure drafts and final ASUs issued after the March 2010 meeting will include a basis for conclusions and dissenting views, if applicable.

Past issues can be downloaded here.

Click to go to the preliminary and unofficial Notes Taken by Deloitte Observers at the meeting.

On 11 March 2010, the IASB published for comment an exposure draft (ED) on the reporting entity concept. The proposals form part of a Joint Project to develop a common and improved conceptual framework that provides the basis for developing future accounting standards. Comment deadline is 16 July 2010. Our newsletter explains the proposals in the ED and their implications for consolidated financial statements and other types of financial statements. Click to view IAS Plus Update Newsletter – IASB publishes Exposure Draft on Conceptual Framework Description of the Reporting Entity (PDF 69k). All of our past IAS Plus newsletters are Here.