High­lights of the podcast include dis­cus­sions on:

• Key de­vel­op­ments since the last board meeting.
• Greenhouse gas emissions.
• ISSB’s decisions on priority work.
• Improvements to clarity.
• Future expectations on industry specific standards.

The podcast can be accessed through the press release on the IFRS Foun­da­tion’s website.

Please click to view the detailed notes taken by Deloitte observers for the ISSB meeting.

On 8 September 2022, the IASB issued ED/2022/1 Third edition of the IFRS for SMEs Accounting Standard, which suggests changes to all of the 35 sections, however, some of the changes are minor. Comments on IASB/ED/2022/1 are requested by 7 March 2023.

For more information, see the press release on the IFRS Foundation’s website.

Below is an analysis of all changes made to the work plan since our last analysis on 26 September 2022.

Stan­dard-set­ting projects

• Cli­mate-re­lated dis­clo­sures — The next step in this project is now the issuance of a final IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standard (no date given).
• Con­trac­tual cash flow char­ac­ter­is­tics of financial assets — This project is now part of the newly added maintenance project Amendments to the classification and measurement of financial instruments.
• Dis­clo­sure ini­tia­tive — Targeted stan­dards-level review of dis­clo­sures — The IASB decided not to continue with any part of the ED — a project summary is expected in the first quarter of 2023.
• General sus­tain­abil­ity-re­lated dis­clo­sures — The next step in this project is now the issuance of a final IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standard (no date given).

Main­te­nance projects

• Amendments to the classification and measurement of financial instruments —This project has been newly added to the work plan. It responds to feedback received on the Post-implementation review of IFRS 9 — Classification and measurement and also incorporates the project on Con­trac­tual cash flow char­ac­ter­is­tics of financial assets. An exposure draft is expected in the first half of 2023.
• Lease liability in a sale and leaseback — This project has now been removed from work plan. The September 2022 work plan had still listed this project although it had been concluded by the issuance of final amendments.
• Non-current liabilities with covenants (Amendments to IAS 1) — Final amendments are now expected in October 2022 (previously November 2022).

Research projects

• Ex­trac­tive ac­tiv­i­ties — A decision on the direction of the project is now expected in first half of 2023 (previously September 2022).
• Post-implementation review of IFRS 9 — Classification and measurement — A feedback statement is now expected in December 2022 (previously Q4 2022).

Other projects

• IFRS taxonomy update — 2022 General Improvements and Common Practice — A proposed IFRS Accounting Taxonomy Update is now expected in November 2022 (previously no date given).
• ISSB consultation on agenda priorities — A request for information is now expected in December 2022 (previously Q4 2022).

The above is a faithful com­par­i­son of the IASB and ISSB work plan at 26 September 2022 and 25 October 2022. For access to the current work plan at any time, please click here.

The agenda for the DPOC meeting is summarised below.

Agenda papers for the meeting are available on the IFRS Foundation website.

The cooperation agreement follows feedback from securities regulators highlighting inconsistency in valuation quality and approach worldwide and aimes at developing a better understanding of the quality and consistency of valuations and the professional standards employed by valuers internationally with the objective of mitigating risks to the quality of financial information for the protection of investors and for the stability of the financial system. The statement of cooperation outlines steps both organisations will take to enhance their cooperation and build mutual understanding of the landscape surrounding the valuation profession and standard-setting process, including governance, due process and credentialing.

Please click to access a press release and the statement of cooperation on the IOSCO website.

The ISSB also made decisions related to the proposed General Requirements Standard, interoperability with jurisdictional requirements, and future agenda priorities.

For more information, see the press release on the IFRS Foundation’s website and our Deloitte’s upcoming summaries on our meeting notes page.

The podcast is hosted by IFRS In­ter­pre­ta­tions Committee Chair and IASB member Bruce Mackenzie and Technical Staff member Patrina Buchanan and focuses on:

• Lessor forgiveness of lease payments.
• Special purpose acquisition companies — Accounting for warrants at acquisition.
• Multi-currency groups of insurance contracts.
• Non-current liabilities with covenants.

For more in­for­ma­tion, see the press release on the IFRS Foun­da­tion’s website.

IFRS 16 Leases includes a broad range of transition relief and ongoing practical expedients designed to facilitate the adoption and ongoing application of the requirements for lessees to recognise lease right-of-use assets and lease liabilities. The AASB and MASB reviewed financial statements and held interviews with a wide range of stakeholders in Australia and Malaysia. They found that the predominant view of stakeholders is that the transition and ongoing practical expedients provided in IFRS 16 are generally understandable and clear.

Preparers were generally very appreciative of the range of transition relief and ongoing practical expedients available to them, auditors generally considered that their clients’ use of transition relief and ongoing practical expedients was manageable and did not create any abnormal audit concerns and the users interviewed appeared to have been well-informed about the transition relief and ongoing practical expedients available to lessees, and understood the choices being made.

However, the research report also notes that it might be beneficial for the IASB to more formally set out factors that should be considered when setting transition relief and ongoing practical expedients. Based on the research performed for the report, the following factors emerged as being important:

• The likely starting point for reporting by the various IFRS stakeholders who will need to adopt the new requirements is important for determining transition relief.
• Providing transition relief and/or ongoing practical expedients based on ‘bright lines’ can provide much needed clarity for all stakeholders.
• Providing flexibility around the scale at which the transition relief or ongoing practical expedients can be applied is important to minimising costs for preparers.
• The design of transition relief or an ongoing practical expedient that has countervailing incentives underpinning its use can be very effective.
• Consideration should be given to the various potential flow-on effects of an ongoing practical expedient
• While the IASB already has a thorough due process, specific consideration should be given to seeking input from users on their tolerance for, and understanding of, the application of various forms of transition relief or ongoing practical expedients.
• The IASB’s deliberations and conclusions on whether the application of ongoing practical expedients might have a material impact on an entity’s reported financial position or performance should be given prominence in educational material.

Please click to access the full report on the MASB website.

The cor­rec­tions relate to IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts.

Editorial cor­rec­tions do not change the meaning or ap­pli­ca­tion of pro­nounce­ments, but instead correct in­ad­ver­tent errors. The editorial cor­rec­tions can be viewed on the editorial cor­rec­tions page of the IASB's website.

In particular, the G20 discussed that “globally consistent data are needed in order to effectively address climate-related financial risks” and are looking “forward to the finalization of standards by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) in support of globally consistent, comparable and reliable climate-related financial disclosures, and its work beyond climate.” In addition, the G20 welcomes “the efforts to achieve interoperability across disclosure frameworks.”

For more information, see the G20 meeting summary on the G20’s website.