IFRS
IFRS: The countdown to 2011 begins here!
Happy New Year to everyone and welcome to the final edition of Countdown!
The Countdown clock has officially struck on January 1, 2011 marking the official date of transition to IFRSs for Canadian publicly accountable enterprises. This year has seen many twists and turns down the IFRS transition route with some significant developments in the timing and scope of International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) projects under development.
The focus in this final issue looks back on, and forward to, IFRS developments. In our lead article, we look back at significant events relevant to Canada’s IFRS transition and look forward through a snapshot of the key IASB projects. A similar theme continues in the Real Deal as Lightyear conducts a final transition check with Hugh Guardian, their Deloitte advisor and gets ready to move out of transition and into the steady state world of IFRSs.
Given we are at the final issue of Countdown, I’d also like to share some perspectives of my own with you and give you a small taste of what is to come from Deloitte.
Regarding IFRS transition, time seems to have passed by very quickly since we released our first issue of Countdown in January 2008. My observation is that over this time period, our Countdown writers frequently switched gears and produced more in depth articles and analyses as our readers’ knowledge of IFRSs grew.
Even though Lightyear has now transitioned to IFRS, they are still aware that 2011 will be another phase of transition under IFRS, with Lightyear taking one last look at the opening IFRS balance sheet as well as gearing up for their first interim IFRS statements.
As such, Lightyear has established an IFRS Centre of Excellence (COE), outsourced to Deloitte, for assistance in this next phase of transition. The COE will make sure Lightyear is up to date on all forthcoming changes and is aware of the practical implications.
The earlier issues of Countdown were focused on the IFRS “basics” – explaining the standard requirements of IFRS 1, the need to plan for conversion early and considerations relevant to systems, IFRS resources, training and other ancillary impacts. As IFRS transition grew closer, we updated our IFRS “news” to respond to the general increased comfort level with, and knowledge of, IFRSs. This has been done in the form of “The Real Deal” which looks at practical considerations and application issues as well as articles focused on future developments in IFRSs and the IASB project plan. In short, we have come a long way and there is much less transition focused news to report with more interest on keeping up to date with the “new GAAP” and understanding how to apply the principles on a day to day basis. With this in mind, I am pleased to say that, while we will indeed be saying a fond farewell to Countdown, we will also be providing a warm welcome for two new publications for our Countdown readers from Deloitte Canada. You can look forward to receiving the first of these publications “IFRS in Focus – Canada” soon (and thereafter approximately each month) and the first issue of our second new publication will be issued on a quarterly basis.
On that note, I will leave you to read through the rest of the final issue of Countdown and thank you for your continued interest and communications over the last few years. We do of course welcome suggestions and feedback and would welcome any thoughts or comments on the types of financial reporting news that you would like to hear from us in the future.
Good Luck and Congratulations – we are nearly there!
We have prepared a selection of publications and web-based education resources that you will find on the site.
Deloitte Update Webcasts
- March 27, 2012: IFRS quarterly technical update - Moving ahead in an IFRS world
- December 14, 2011: IFRS quarterly technical update - Moving ahead in an IFRS world
- September 27, 2011: IFRS quarterly technical update - Moving ahead in an IFRS world
- June 21, 2011: IFRS quarterly technical update - Moving ahead in an IFRS world
- March 23, 2011: IFRS quarterly technical update - Moving ahead in an IFRS world
Deloitte Publications
| Closing out 2011 This special edition of IFRS in Focus provides an overview of new and revised IFRSs and Interpretations issued by the IFRIC that are effective for December 2011 calendar year-ends and subsequent accounting periods. |
 |
| Deloitte iGAAP 2012: A guide to IFRS, Global edition A thorough and detailed guide for companies reporting to IFRS in the face of complex and frequently changing standards.. |
 |
| Canadian Securities Administrators approve IFRS-Related Amendments to Securities Rules and Policies Accounting alert This alert summarizes the amendments to securities rules and policies reflecting the changeover to IFRS in the continuous disclosure rules, prospectus rules and certification disclosures. |
 |
| Enhancing the quality of IFRS financial statements 10 ideas for companies in transition or post-conversion Enhancing the quality of such statements is one of the key factors that add value to an IFRS conversion compared to a basic compliance approach. |
 |
| IAS 34 - Interim financial reporting A Canadian perspective This guide is intended as a comprehensive practical and reference source to IAS 34 – Interim Financial Reporting for financial statement preparers and users with a working knowledge of Canadian GAAP and Canadian securities requirements. |
 |
| Out of 100: What's your degree of financial literacy? Test your knowledge! |
 |
Resources
Dig Deeper
Authoritative Guidance
- Canadian Authoritative Guidance
- Staff Notice 52-328, Disclosures About Accounting Policies in the Year of Changeover to International Financial Reporting (CSA)
- National Instrument 52-107 Acceptable Accounting Principles and Auditing Standards (CSA, 234-page PDF File)
- Guidance on how adoption of IFRS will affect PAEs tax reporting, Income Tax Technical News (Canada Revenue Agency, PDF)
- Assurance Implications of the Changeover to IFRSs (CICA)
- Staff Notice 52-718, IFRS Transition Disclosure Review (OSC, 2010/02/05)
- CICA microsite on Transition to IFRS
- Interim Financial Statements (AcSB)
- Canadian Securities Regulators Prepare for Changes to Investment Fund Disclosure Resulting from International Financial Reporting Standards (CSA, 2009/10/16)
- SEC Approves Statement on Global Accounting Standards (SEC, 2010/02/24)
- Review the Commission Statement in Support of Convergence and Global Accounting Standards (PDF)
- Acceptance From Foreign Private Issuers of Financial Statements Prepared in Accordance With International Financial Reporting Standards Without Reconciliation to U.S. GAAP (SEC)
- Staff Observations in the Review of IFRS Financial Statements (SEC)
- Staff Comments on Annual Reports Containing Financial Statements Prepared for the First Time on the Basis of International Financial Reporting Standards (SEC)
- First-time Application of International Financial Reporting Standards (SEC)
- IASB Web site
Thought Leadership
- Canadian Thought Leadership
- The Effects of IFRS on Financial Ratios: Early Evidence in Canada (CGA-Canada)
- OSC Corporate Finance – IFRS Release No. 2: A Reminder Before You File Your First IFRS Interim Financial Report (OSC, PDF)
- The First Interim Report Under IFRSs (CICA, PDF)
- An Analysis of the Accounting Errors that Arise During the Transition to IFRS (Social Science Research Network, PDF)
- IFRS and Spreadsheets: A High-Risk Combination (CICA, PDF)
- Transition to IFRSs – Communicating the Impact of the Changeover (CICA, PDF)
- Webcast on Strategic Opportunities in Canada’s Transition to IFRS, a webcast replay (CPAB, AcSB, Free registration required)
- Assessing the IASB: Results of a Business Survey about International Financial Reporting Standards and IASB's Operations, Accountability, and Responsiveness to Stakeholders (Duke & Oxford Universities, PDF)
- IFRS Conversions: What CFOs Need to Know and Do (CICA, PDF)
- Introduction to IFRS - Implications for Canadian Business , eLearning program (CICA)
- IFRS Questions and Answers (AICPA, PDF)
- IFRS, an AICPA Backgrounder (AICPA, PDF)
- Towards a Global Reporting System: Where Are We and Where Are We Going? (FASB)
- Guide to IFRS in Canada (CICA, PDF)