The Accounting Standards Board (AcSB) proposes, subject to comments received following exposure, to incorporate into Part I of the CPA Canada Handbook – Accounting, amendments to IFRS 3 Business Combinations and IAS 36 Impairment of Assets.
This AcSB Exposure Draft reflects proposals made by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) that the AcSB intends to adopt, subject to deliberating comments received, as Canadian generally accepted accounting principles.
Comments are requested from individuals and organizations in Canada who agree with the Exposure Draft proposals as well as from those who do not. Comments are most helpful if they relate to a specific paragraph or group of paragraphs. Any comments that express disagreement with the proposals should clearly explain the problem and include a suggested alternative, supported by specific reasoning.
Comments received on the AcSB Exposure Draft will be available on the website shortly after the comment deadline unless confidentiality is requested. The request for confidentiality must be stated explicitly within the response.
IASB® Exposure Draft
The IASB recently issued the Exposure Draft, “Business Combinations—Disclosures, Goodwill and Impairment,” which is available on the IASB website at www.ifrs.org.
The IASB’s Exposure Draft proposes amendments aimed to improve financial reporting, particularly for business combinations, with a significant focus on disclosure enhancements and simplifying impairment tests. The proposed amendments will also affect how entities perform their goodwill impairment assessments.
The IASB’s Exposure Draft proposes to address the diversity in practice and respond to investor feedback by:
- requiring disclosure of information reviewed by key management personnel about the performance of strategic business combinations;
- enhancing existing qualitative and quantitative disclosures about business combinations, including information about expected synergies, and goodwill;
- directing entities to allocate goodwill and perform impairment assessments at the lowest level monitored by management for the related business; and
- simplifying and improving the calculation of value-in-use.
The IASB’s Exposure Draft includes a Basis for Conclusions which may provide information to interested and affected parties.
Comments Requested
The AcSB encourages interested and affected parties in Canada to respond to the IASB on its Exposure Draft. Specific questions on which the IASB would like input are provided in the Invitation to Comment in its Exposure Draft. The AcSB requests that comment letters be sent directly to the IASB with a copy to the AcSB.
The AcSB would like input from Canadian respondents on the following additional question regarding the proposed amendment:
The IASB has developed the proposed amendments in accordance with its due process for application around the world. Assuming the Exposure Draft proposals are finalized and approved by the IASB in accordance with its due process, do you think that the proposals are appropriate for application in Canada? If not, please specify which aspects of the proposals, and what circumstances, make the accounting requirements proposed in the Exposure Draft inappropriate.
Send responses to this additional question directly to the AcSB.
When to Reply
We value your input and look forward to your feedback. Comments to the IASB are due by July 15, 2024. Responses to the AcSB on the additional question set out above are due on the same date.
If you’d like the AcSB to consider your feedback prior to finalizing its comment letter to the IASB, please send your comments to the AcSB by June 14, 2024. Following the deadline, your feedback to the AcSB is considered as part of our IFRS Accounting Standards endorsement process. We also share Canadian feedback with the IASB through our involvement in international activities.