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IAS 36 ‘Impairment of Assets’ sets out the requirements entities should follow prior to concluding if an asset should be written down in the financial statements (ie impaired). However, due to the complex nature of the standard, the requirements of IAS 36 can be challenging to apply in practice.

IAS 36 ‘Impairment of Assets’ prescribes the accounting for impairment reviews. There are some detailed requirements of IAS 36 that are complex and challenging for the preparers of financial statements to apply.

IAS 36 ‘Impairment of Assets’ provides the guidance for carrying out impairment reviews of assets (both tangible and intangible). IAS 36 is not a new Standard, and while many of its requirements have been extensively commented on, IAS 36’s guidance is detailed, prescriptive and complex in some areas, and therefore frequently challenging to apply in practice.

The preparation of financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (‘IFRS’) is challenging. Each year, new Standards and amendments are published by the International Accounting Standards Board (‘IASB’) with the potential to significantly impact the presentation of a complete set of financial statements.

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For entities that operate in a variety of classes of business, geographical locations, regulatory or economic environments or markets, high quality management accounts are essential.

The accounting requirements regarding impairment of tangible and intangible assets are governed by IAS 36 ‘Impairment of Assets’. The requirements are not new, however remain challenging as the guidance is detailed and complex in some areas.

IAS 36 ‘Impairment of Assets’ prescribes the accounting for impairment reviews. While the guidance in this area has not changed in recent years, it still remains a challenging area to apply by preparers of financial statements.

IAS 36 ‘Impairment of Assets’ assesses when and how to conduct an impairment review. It contains complex areas of guidance and therefore is challenging to apply in practice.

Acquisitions of businesses can take many forms and can have a fundamental impact of the acquirer’s operations, resources and strategies. These acquisitions are known as mergers or business combinations which should be accounted for using the requirements in IFRS 3 ‘Business Combinations’.

Mergers and acquisitions are becoming more and more common as entities aim to achieve their growth objectives. IFRS 3 ‘Business Combinations’ contains the requirements for these transactions, which are challenging in practice.

Business combinations are infrequent transactions that are unique for each occurrence. IFRS 3 ‘Business Combinations’ contains the requirements and despite being fairly stable in the ten years since its been released, still provides challenges when accounting for these transactions in practice.

The Foundation has acknowledged the need for global sustainability reporting standards and the role it could play in their development. The International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) in late February 2021 said there was an urgent need for globally consistent, comparable, and reliable sustainability disclosure standards and it announced its priorities and vision for a Sustainability Standards Board (SSB) which closely align with those set out by the Foundation.

This publication is designed to give preparers of IFRS financial statements a high-level awareness of recent changes to International Financial Reporting Standards. It covers both new Standards and Interpretations that have been issued and amendments made to existing ones.

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