Did you know?

your accounting and disclosures for the plan will change significantly in Q1 - 2013?

IAS 19, Employee Benefits (revised) applies retrospectively to years beginning on or after January 1, 2013. Key changes include:

1. immediate recognition of actuarial gains and losses (now called "remeasurements") in OCI without recycling to the profit and loss account in subsequent periods,
2. measurement of pension expense based on the net defined benefit asset or liability without consideration of an expected return on plan assets,
3. presentation alternatives within the income statement, and
4. significantly changed and enhanced disclosure requirements that will require more judgements.

Click here or call us to learn more about the revised standard, what it means for your company and the policy elections you should be thinking about upon adoption.

the IFRIC recently weighed in on the accounting for deferred stripping?

IFRIC 20, Stripping costs in the production phase of a surface mine, is effective January 1, 2013 and sets out the accounting for overburden waste removal (stripping) costs in the production phase of a mine. Stripping may create a benefit either through inventory produced or improved access to the ore and capitalization of direct costs incurred as inventory or an enhancement to an asset is appropriate in such cases. The IFRIC's new guidance requires that these capitalized costs be attributable to an identifiable component of an ore body, which is likely to require a significant amount of judgement and information, particularly as life-of-mine strip ratios will generally not be appropriate.

Click here or call us to learn more about this guidance, what it means for your company and how others are expected to apply it.

there are 8 new or amended IFRS standards that apply starting in 2013?

Entities reporting under IFRS have to contend with no less than 8 new or amended standards in their first quarter of 2013. Significant new or amended standards include:

• IFRS 10 - Consolidated financial statements
• IFRS 11- Joint arrangements
• IFRS 12 - Disclosures of interest in other entities
• IAS 19 - Employee benefits
• IAS 1 - Presentation of items of other comprehensive income
• IFRS 13 - Fair value measurements and disclosure requirements

The 8th amendment is the annual improvements project, through which the IASB made changes to 5 other standards. Our best advice? Be prepared and start thinking about Q1 before your current year-end. Call us to learn more about the upcoming changes and what they mean for your company.

payments contingent upon the seller's continued employment will be compensation expense, separate from the acquisition?

Certain contingent consideration arrangements may be tied to the continued employment of the acquiree’s employees or the selling shareholders. Under IFRS 3, Business Combinations, these arrangements are recognized as compensation expense in the post-combination period, identical to the requirements under the provisions of U.S. GAAP. An acquirer, however, should consider the specific facts and circumstances of contingent consideration arrangements with selling shareholders that have no requirement for continuing employment to determine whether such payments represent part of the purchase consideration or are separate transactions to be recognized as compensation expense in the post-acquisition period.

Call us to learn more about this guidance and how it may apply to your acquisitions.

proportionate consolidation of joint ventures is no longer permitted?

A joint arrangement is an arrangement where two or more parties contractually agree to share control. Effective January 1, 2013, management will need to evaluate how the requirements of IFRS 11, Joint Arrangements, will affect the way they account for existing or new joint arrangements. The most significant change is likely to be the requirement to equity account for investments in joint ventures, removing proportionate consolidation as an option. As a result, there may be significant impacts on an entity's financial results and financial position, which could affect leverage, capital ratios, covenants, financing agreements and performance measures, including EBIT and EBITDA.

Click here or call us to learn more about the new standard, what it means for your joint arrangements and how an assessment of alternatives now can help to avoid headaches later.