FASB issues guidance on financial statement presentation of unrecognized tax benefit

  • FASB (US Financial Accounting Standards Board) (lt blue) Image

18 Jul 2013

The FASB has issued ASU 2013-11, which provides explicit guidelines on how to present an unrecognized tax benefit in a financial statement when a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward exists.

The main provisions provided in this ASU are:

An unrecognized tax benefit, or a portion of an unrecognized tax benefit, should be presented in the financial statements as a reduction to a deferred tax asset for a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward, except as follows. To the extent a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward is not available at the reporting date under the tax law of the applicable jurisdiction to settle any additional income taxes that would result from the disallowance of a tax position or the tax law of the applicable jurisdiction does not require the entity to use, and the entity does not intend to use, the deferred tax asset for such purpose, the unrecognized tax benefit should be presented in the financial statements as a liability and should not be combined with deferred tax assets. The assessment of whether a deferred tax asset is available is based on the unrecognized tax benefit and deferred tax asset that exist at the reporting date and should be made presuming disallowance of the tax position at the reporting date.

Currently, IFRS does not contain any explicit guidance on the presentation of unrecognized tax benefits.

The amendments are effective for public entities with fiscal periods beginning after December 15, 2013. For nonpublic entities, the ASU is effective for fiscal periods beginning after December 15, 2014. Early adoption is permitted.

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