IASB publishes revised Conceptual Framework

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Mar 29, 2018

On March 29, 2018, the International Accounting Standards Board (the Board) published its revised "Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting". Included are revised definitions of an asset and a liability, as well as new guidance on measurement and derecognition, presentation and disclosure. The new Conceptual Framework does not constitute a substantial revision of the document as was originally intended when the project was first taken up in 2004. Instead the Board focused on topics that were not yet covered or that showed obvious shortcomings that needed to be dealt with.

 

Summary of main aspects of the Conceptual Framework

The 2018 Conceptual Framework is structured into an introductory explanation on the status and purpose of the Conceptual Framework, eight chapters, and a glossary:

Chapter Topic
Status and purpose of the Conceptual Framework
1 The objective of general purpose financial reporting
2 Qualitative characteristics of useful financial information
3 Financial statements and the reporting entity
4 The elements of financial statements
5 Recognition and derecognition
6 Measurement
7 Presentation and disclosure
8 Concepts of capital and capital maintenance
Appendix A Glossary

Review our Global IAS Plus page for a summary of the key content of each chapter.

The Conceptual Framework does not have a stated effective date and the Board will start using it immediately.

 

References to the Conceptual Framework

Together with the revised Conceptual Framework, the Board has also issued Amendments to References to the Conceptual Framework in IFRS Standards. The document contains amendments to IFRS 2, IFRS 3, IFRS 6, IFRS 14, IAS 1, IAS 8, IAS 34, IAS 37, IAS 38, IFRIC 12, IFRIC 19, IFRIC 20, IFRIC 22, and SIC-32. Not all amendments, however update those pronouncements with regard to references to and quotes from the framework so that they refer to the revised Conceptual Framework. Some pronouncements are only updated to indicate which version of the framework they are referencing to (the IASC framework adopted by the Board in 2001, the IASB framework of 2010, or the new revised framework of 2018) or to indicate that definitions in the standard have not been updated with the new definitions developed in the revised Conceptual Framework.

The amendments, where they actually are updates, are effective for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2020.

 

Additional information

The Board also announced that on April 18, 2018, there will be two live web presentations to introduce the revised Conceptual Framework. Please click for more information and registration on the Board's website.

 

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