IFRS Disclosure Checklist 2007

PricewaterhouseCoopers has recently published IFRS Disclosure Checklist 2007. The publication is designed to facilitate the collection and review of disclosures for each component of the IFRS financial statements. It has been updated to outline the disclosures required by all IFRS standards and interpretations issued up to September 2007.

IFRS and Canadian GAAP: An Overview

KPMG Canada has recently published IFRS compared to Canadian GAAP: An overview. The purpose of this publication is to assist readers in understanding the significant differences between International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and Canadian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (Canadian GAAP) in annual reporting for the year ended December 31, 2007.

India - Concept Paper on Convergence with IFRS

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has published a Concept Paper on Convergence with IFRS in India. The paper proposes that IFRS should be adopted by public interest entities (such as listed entities, banks and insurance entities) and large-sized entities for accounting periods beginning on or after April 1, 2011. The ICAI is responsible for the Accounting Standards Board (ASB) which currently issues accounting standards that are based on IFRS but contain modifications to reflect the legal and economic environment in India.

Canada - The Road to IFRS

Canada's Accounting Standards Board has published a summary of anticipated changes to Canadian GAAP for publicly accountable enterprises before the changeover date to IFRS, January 1, 2011. (View Publicly Accountable Enterprises — The Road to IFRS.)

IASC Foundation XBRL Update

The IASC Foundation XBRL Team has published the IFRS-XBRL Update for November 2007. It contains news about IFRS-XBRL internationally and other countries, including Canada, Australia, United States, Belgium, India, Japan, Netherlands, UK and France. It also provides information about the IFRS-XBRL taxonomy and upcoming events, such as the 16th XBRL International Conference. The conference, hosted jointly by XBRL Canada and XBRL US, will be held in Vancouver, Canada on December 3-6, 2007.

SEC eliminates US GAAP reconciliation requirement

On November 15, 2007, the US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) unanimously approved amendments to its rules and forms that will eliminate the requirement for foreign private issuers using International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) to reconcile their financial statements to US GAAP. The SEC will convene two roundtables, on December 13 and December 17, to collect more feedback from the public on the issue of giving US domestic issuers the same option that foreign issuers have - to use either IFRS or US GAAP. (View the SEC Press Release and the IASB Press Release.)

IFRS - Canadian GAAP Comparison

Canada's Accounting Standards Board has issued an update to its Comparison of International Financial Reporting Standards and Canadian GAAP as of March 31, 2007.

Canada - Progress Review on Changeover to IFRS

Canada's Accounting Standards Board has published the Full Analysis of the Preliminary Report on its Progress Review, in accordance with the Implementation Plan for Incorporating International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) into Canadian GAAP.

War on Complexity

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has joined with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) in an all-out “War on Complexity in Accounting.” The SEC’s Advisory Committee on Improvements to Financial Reporting has the overall objective of making recommendations on reducing complexity in financial reporting. It held its second meeting on November 2, 2007. Its charter identifies four areas for attention:

• the current approach to standard-setting;
• the current approach to regulating compliance;
• factors that may drive unnecessary complexity; and
• lessons that can be learned from using international standards.

Fair value of intangibles

The International Valuation Standards Committee (IVSC) has issued a discussion paper on the Determination of Fair Value of Intangible Assets for IFRS Reporting Purposes. The paper reviews the different IFRS under which intangibles might have to be valued and discusses alternative approaches to valuation. It looks at valuation models and benchmarking against the market. It also includes a comparison of the different approaches and a discussion of how these relate to IFRS and the SFAS 157 hierarchy.

IFRS: The right step for US business?

PricewaterhouseCoopers has published a white paper called IFRS: The right step for US business. The paper, which supports its shorter companion paper entitled 10Minutes on IFRS, provides PwC's views concerning the possibility of adopting International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in the United States. It considers what executives and directors need to know about the important IFRS public-policy debate.

EFRAG considers cost-benefit assessments of IFRS

The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) is likely to extend the work that it normally carries out in making IFRS endorsement recommendations to the European Commission to include some form of cost-benefit study for individual IFRS. (Download the EFRAG Update October 2007)

IFRS Model Financial Statements for 2007

Deloitte has published model IFRS financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2007. The statements illustrate the application of presentation and disclosure requirements of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by an entity that is not a first-time adopter. They also contain additional disclosures that are considered to be best practice, particularly where such disclosures are included in illustrative examples provided with a specific Standard. (Download IFRS Model Financial Statements for 2007.)

Canada - Upcoming IFRS events

The following events may be of special interest to those following the development and implementation of IFRS in Canada. (See CA Profession-sponsored courses and conferences.)

Canada - Getting with the IFRS program

More firms are getting with the program when it comes to implementing international financial reporting standards, according to a survey done by Resources Global Professionals at the CICA International Financial Reporting Standards Conference in June 2007. Seventy-nine percent have formulated a strategic plan for IFRS, up from 50% last year. It’s no surprise that there was an increase in the execution of each area of an IFRS strategic plan. Eighty-seven percent have identified the standards to be adopted; 84% have identified areas that are at risk and the resulting issues; 81% have reviewed their financial accounting procedures and 78% are training their staff in IFRS. (See Getting with the IFRS program.)