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Post-employment benefits — Comprehensive project

Background

Accounting for employee benefits, particularly pensions and other post-retirement benefits, has long been a complex and difficult area.

The IASB has approached this project in two phases:

  • Amendments to IAS 19 - improvements to the recognition, presentation and disclosures of defined benefit plans (IASB only, see our separate project page)
  • Comprehensive project - improvements to the measurement of defined benefit plans and contribution-based promise plans, including plans that have the characteristics of both defined benefit and defined contribution plans (joint with FASB).

In addition, in July 2009 the IASB agreed to under a separate project to urgently amend IAS 19 paragraph 78 to remove the requirement to use a government bond rate when there is no deep market in high quality corporate bonds and to provide guidance on how to estimate a high quality corporate bond rate. The IASB did not ultimately proceed with this amendment.

Current status of the project

Detailed discussion on the second phase of the project has not yet commenced. In the longer term, the IASB intends to work with the FASB towards a common standard on post-employment benefit promises.

Project milestones

DateDevelopmentComments
July 2006 Project added to the IASB's agenda
March 2007 Employee Benefits Working Group established
27 March 2008 Discussion Paper Preliminary Views on Amendments to IAS 19 Employee Benefits published Comment deadline 26 September 2008

Related Discussions

  • Post-employment benefits

  • Feb 15, 2011

  • The IASB considered the following topics: (1) p resentation of remeasurements (2) feedback on tentative decisions to date (3) project status (4) effective date of any amendments and transitional requirements.

  • Post-employment benefits

  • Feb 02, 2011

  • The IASB (1) received an updated timetable for issue of the standard (2) discussed the distinction between defined benefit plans and defined contribution plans (3) considered the accounting for risk sharing features in a defined benefit plan.

  • Post-employment benefits

  • Jan 21, 2011

  • The IASB (1) reconsidered an earlier tentatively decision to retain the option of presenting the remeasurement component in either profit or loss or other comprehensive income (2) interactions between the projects on IAS 19 and IAS 37.

  • Post-employment benefits

  • Dec 13, 2010

  • The staff presented the IASB with an analysis of the responses received on the Exposure Draft 'Defined Benefit Plans'. Topics included (1) past service costs, curtailments and settlements (2) multi-employer plans (3) tax and administration costs (4) mortality assumptions (5) incorporating IFRIC 14 (6) identification of back-end loaded plans (7) interim reporting (8) state plan and group plan disclosures.

  • Post-employment benefits

  • Nov 16, 2010

  • The IASB continued its discussion of the proposals in the exposure draft 'Defined Benefit Plans'. In response to the main issues raised by respondents, the staff developed recommendations for specific disclosure, presentation, and classification items.

  • Post-employment benefits

  • Oct 20, 2010

  • The IASB discussed: (1) comments received on the Exposure Draft 'Defined Benefit Plans' (2) the recognition of changes in the defined benefit liability or asset (3) the disaggregation of changes in the defined benefit liability or asset into the service cost, finance cost and remeasurement components (4) the definition of the finance cost component.

  • Post-employment benefits

  • Sep 16, 2010

  • The IASB considered a very broad summary of the feedback received from the extensive outreach activities conducted during the exposure period of the ED 'Defined Benefit Plans', including an overview of the main issues raised by participants.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Feb 18, 2010

  • The Board discussed a proposed disclosure package to accompany the forthcoming exposure draft of amendments to IAS 19 Employee Benefits.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Jan 21, 2010

  • The staff presented proposed disclosure requirements on the disaggregation of information about actuarial gains and losses arising on the defined benefit obligation and to the total amount of post-employment benefit expense in the period.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Nov 17, 2009

  • The Board discussed the presentation of pension costs and its tentative decision to require disclosure of accumulated benefit obligation.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Sep 15, 2009

  • The Board discussed a timetable proposed by the IASB staff for the proposed Post Employment Benefits exposure draft.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Apr 22, 2009

  • The Board discussed (1) Recognition of changes in defined benefit obligation and in plan assets and (2) administration costs.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Mar 18, 2009

  • The Boards discussed (1) the remeasurement component, (2) classification of the effects of settlements, curtailments, and the effect of the asset ceiling, (3) discount rate, (4) multi-employer exemption, (5) attribution to periods of service, (6) plans with risk sharing, (7) definition of short and long term and (8) tax relating to pension costs .

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Feb 17, 2009

  • The Board discussed the project timetable and defining the remeasurement component.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Jan 23, 2009

  • The staff presented papers outlining a proposed scope on the future work that arises from the DP Amendments to IAS 19.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Nov 19, 2008

  • The IASB staff provided a high-level summary of comments it had received on the IAS 19 discussion paper.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Mar 14, 2008

  • The Board held a very brief discussion of a sweep issues arising on the forthcoming Discussion Paper of Preliminary Views on Amendments to IAS 19 Employee Benefits.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Feb 21, 2008

  • The staff had recommended clarifying what was meant by the Board's preliminary view that the measurement of contribution-based promises should not include the possibility that an entity might reduce the benefits provided.

  • Post-employment Benefits

  • Dec 14, 2007

  • The Board discussed several issues raised by Board members on the first pre-ballot draft of Preliminary Views on Amendments to IAS 19 Employee Benefits.

All Related