The Private Enterprise Advisory Committee assists the Accounting Standards Board (AcSB) with maintaining and improving accounting standards for private enterprises (ASPE) in Part II of the CPA Canada Handbook – Accounting and with identifying the need for non-authoritative guidance about the standards. The Committee makes recommendations to the AcSB but is not authorized to interpret or provide authoritative guidance on ASPE.
The AcSB staff has prepared this document based on discussions held during the Committee’s meeting. The meeting notes do not necessarily represent the AcSB’s views, and nothing in them constitutes authoritative guidance on acceptable or unacceptable application of ASPE. Only the AcSB can make such a determination.
Insurance Contracts with Cash Surrender Value
The Private Enterprise Advisory Committee received an update on the AcSB’s recent discussions and tentative decisions related to a project proposal to address accounting issues for insurance contracts with cash surrender value.
The Committee discussed accounting treatment and presentation options for the cash surrender value and classification of change in cash surrender value and policy premiums. The Committee also discussed the disclosures that would provide sufficient decision useful information. Also, the Committee provided feedback on potential solutions to provide guidance on accounting for insurance contracts with cash surrender value.
The AcSB will consider the feedback from its Private Enterprise Advisory Committee and its Not-for-Profit Advisory Committee at the April 2023 Board meeting.
Agriculture
The Private Enterprise Advisory Committee provided comments on a draft non-authoritative resource staff developed to help stakeholders apply certain disclosure requirements relating to the net realizable value model in Section 3041, Agriculture. Staff developed this resource considering recent stakeholder inquiries. Although the new standard is currently being implemented in practice, most Committee members viewed this resource as helpful and supported publishing it.
The AcSB will consider the feedback from its Private Enterprise Advisory Committee and its Agriculture Advisory Group then determine next steps in publishing this resource at the March 2023 Board meeting.