News

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IFRS Foundation translation update

03 Dec 2011

The IFRS Foundation has announced the publication of additional translations of its pronouncements into Arabic, Spanish and Mongolian.

The new translations are:

  • Arabic translation of the 2011 Red Book International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs). The translation can be accessed via the eIFRS site (eIFRS subscribers only) or in printed format from the IASB bookshop
  • Spanish translation of unaccompanied International Financial Reporting Standards 2011. The Spanish translations are available on the IASB's Official IFRS translations page (free registration required, available here)
  • Spanish translation of the Basis for Conclusions and Implementation Guidance for Presentation of Items of Other Comprehensive Income (Amendments to IAS 1) as issued in English by the IASB in June 2011. The Spanish translations are available on the Spanish New and Revised Standards page (eIFRS subscribers only)
  • Mongolian translation of the International Financial Reporting Standard for Small and Medium-sized Entities (IFRS for SMEs) 2009. The Mongolian translation is available on the IASB's Access the IFRS for SMEs page (registration required).
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EFRAG draft comment letter on IFRS for SMEs draft Q&As

02 Dec 2011

The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) has issued its draft comment letter on the SME Implementation Group's (SMEIG) two draft questions and answers.

For the draft Q&A Fallback to IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, the EFRAG agress with the answer provided and thinks the Q&A should be issued. In regards to draft Q&A Recycling of cumulative exchange differences on disposal of a subsidiary, the EFRAG also agrees with the answer provided but does not think the Q&A should be issued.

Comments on the letter are invited by 18 January 2012. The draft comment letter can be downloaded via the press release on EFRAG's website.

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US PCAOB strategic plan 2011-2015

01 Dec 2011

The United States Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) has published its Strategic Plan to guide the Board's programs and operations during the period 2011-2015.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 created the PCAOB as the independent nonprofit overseer of the auditors of public companies. PCAOB has four primary responsibilities:

  • registration of accounting firms (including non-US firms) that audit public companies (including non-US issuers) trading in US securities markets;
  • inspections of registered public accounting firms;
  • establishment of auditing and related attestation, quality control, ethics, and independence standards for registered public accounting firms; and
  • investigation and discipline of registered public accounting firms and their associated persons for violations of specified laws or professional standards.

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FASB (old) Image

IASB and FASB announce revenue recognition webcast

01 Dec 2011

The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) will be hosting a webcast on Thursday, 8 December 2011 regarding the boards' recently published exposure draft Revenue from Contracts with Customers.

The webcast will review the main proposals of the exposure draft developed by the IASB and FASB, also, it will describe how stakeholders can comment on the proposals. In addition, there will be an IASB only webcast on the the exposure draft on Monday, 12 December 2011.

Click for the press release (link to IASB website).

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IFRS for SMEs (mid blue) Image

Deloitte comment letter on five draft guidance Q&As for the IFRS for SMEs

01 Dec 2011

Deloitte's IFRS Global Office has submitted a letter of comment to the SME Implementation Group on its Third batch of SME Implementation Group questions and answer documents.

In the comment letter, we re-iterate our concern over whether the level of SME Implementation Group's due process applied to the Q&As is appropriate and consistent with other similar activities at the IFRS Foundation and IASB. As regards the Q&As included in this batch of documents we question their appropriateness for the following reasons:

  • We are not convinced that the issues are areas in which we consider that the IFRS for SMEs lacks clarity such that inconsistent implementation is likely to occur in the absence of a Q&A.
  • We do not consider publication of a high volume of draft Q&As (nine since February 2011) to be in keeping with the Board's plan for periodic updating of the IFRS for SMEs. We believe that unless issues are clearly urgent, widespread and likely to result in significant divergence in practice they should be addressed through the next omnibus exposure draft of the IFRS for SMEs rather than by producing a continuous stream of new guidance.

Click to download our Comment Letter on the SME Implementation Group draft Q&As. Also see our earlier story on the Third batch of SME Implementation Group questions and answer documents.

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Outcomes from November 2011 AOSSG meeting

01 Dec 2011

The third meeting of the Asian-Oceanian Standard-Setters Group (AOSSG) was held in Melbourne, Australia, on 23 and 24 November 2011.

The meeting was hosted by the Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) and was attended by 21 participating standard setting bodies, which were from Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Dubai, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Japan, Korea, Macao, Malaysia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.  Representatives of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation also attended.

Topics discussed included:

  • Administrative matters. The group confirmed Kevin Stevenson (Chairman of the AASB) as Chair of the AOSSG and elected of the Chair of the Hong Kong Institute of CPAs (HKICPA) Financial Reporting Standards Committee, Clement Chan, as the Vice Chair of the AOSSG. The meeting agreed to extend the terms of the AOSSG Chair and AOSSG Vice-Chair from one year to two years to facilitate the long-term efficiency and effectiveness of the Group
  • IAS 41 Agriculture. The group members discussed a working group proposal, recently submitted to the IASB, to make a limited revision to IAS 41, specifically on bearer biological assets. The IASB members present tentatively expressed their support for considering the limited revision. The working group is also expected to begin considering a long-term research project that would involve performing a comprehensive review of IAS 41
  • Islamic finance. Members considered a working group presentation on the result of a recent survey on Islamic finance and noted some of the salient features of Islamic finance that may need to be considered when the IFRSs are being developed. In this regard, the working group suggested an Islamic Finance Advisory Group be established to provide input to the IASB and assist in the development of IFRSs
  • Emissions trading schemes. The group acknowledged the need for a global accounting standard on the emissions trading schemes (ETS) and urged the IASB to accelerate its ETS project
  • Other technical matters. The group discussed many IASB projects such as the agenda consultation, revenue recognition, leases, investment entities and financial instruments, and discussed other technical matters related to foreign currency translation and present valuing future cash flows.

Click for Communiqué from the meeting (link to AOSSG website). An informal meeting of the AOSSG is planned for March 2012 in Kuala Lumpur.

 

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IASB meets with CIS and Baltic States for IFRS update

30 Nov 2011

On 28 and 29 November 2011, members of the IFRS Foundation and the IASB met with representatives of professional accounting and auditing bodies and ministries from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Baltic States.

The meetings updated these countries on current projects, and the direction and future agenda of the IASB. The meeting also provided a forum to discuss the use of IFRSs within these jurisdictions, including the adoption of IFRSs and the IFRS for SMEs, as well as the process for translating the standards.

The event was attended by representatives from the following countries: Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Latvia, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Many of these countries have already adopted or permit the use of IFRSs and/or IFRS for SMEs.

The representatives also met with the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) and the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) to discuss adoption and implementation of International Standards on Auditing (ISAs).

Click for the IASB press release (link to IASB website). An IAASB press release is also available (link to IFAC website).

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Stay Tuned Online — IFRS and UK GAAP update

28 Nov 2011

The Deloitte London IFRS Centre of Excellence is running a series of hour-long Internet-based financial reporting updates, aimed at helping finance teams keep up to speed with IFRSs and other financial reporting issues.

Each update lasts no more than an hour, and sessions are normally held three times a year, approximately at the end of March, July, and November. We intend to make a recording of each session available on IAS Plus for a period of at least four months from the date of the presentation. The topics covered in the November 2011 webcast:

  • A review of UK corporate reporting
  • Latest IFRS developments
  • IAS 19(2011) Employee Benefits — update
  • The future of UK reporting including UK GAAP
  • The IASB’s revised revenue proposals

To access the recording click here. There's a permanent link on our UK country page.

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Updated EFRAG 'endorsement status report'

28 Nov 2011

The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) has updated its report showing the status of endorsement, under the EU Accounting Regulation, of each IFRS, including standards, interpretations, and amendments.

Click to download the Endorsement Status Report as of 28 November 2011 (PDF 194k). Currently, the following twelve IASB pronouncements await endorsement action:

  • IFRS 9 Financial Instruments
  • IFRS 10 Consolidated Financial Statements
  • IFRS 11 Joint Arrangements
  • IFRS 12 Disclosures of Interests in Other Entities
  • IFRS 13 Fair Value Measurement
  • IAS 27 Separate Financial Statements (2011)
  • IAS 28 Investments in Associates and Joint Ventures (2011)
  • Amendments to IAS 12 Deferred tax: Recovery of Underlying Assets
  • Amendments to IFRS 1 Severe Hyperinflation and Removal of Fixed Dates for First-Time Adopters
  • Amendments to IAS 1 Presentation of Items of Other Comprehensive Income
  • Amendments to IAS 19 Employee Benefits
  • IFRIC 20 Stripping Costs in the Production Phase of a Surface Mine

You can always find the endorsement status report here.

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EU formally adopts IFRS 7 amendments

28 Nov 2011

The European Union has published the Commission Regulation (EC) No 1205/2011 endorsing the amendments to IFRS 7 'Financial Instruments: Disclosures' published by the IASB on 7 October 2010.

The amendments will allow users of financial statements to improve their understanding of transfer transactions of financial assets (for example, securitisations), including understanding the possible effects of any risks that may remain with the entity that transferred the assets. The amendments also require additional disclosures if a disproportionate amount of transfer transactions are undertaken around the end of a reporting period.

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