Technical resource centre

Developments of interest this week are outlined. ROI IAASA has issued a consultation paper seeking the view of stakeholders regarding IAASA’s proposal to issue a revised version of ISA (Ireland) 540 ‘Auditing Accounting Estimates, including Fair Values Accounting Estimates, and Related Disclosures’, to reflect recent revisions to the international standards on auditing issued by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board. Find out more and access the consultation paper here. IAASA has also published its ‘Statement on Scope and Authority of Audit and Assurance Pronouncements’ and notes that the document provides more details on the Auditing Framework for Ireland, as adopted by IAASA. Reminder to register for the Update on UK & Irish GAAP event – At this event, in Chartered Accountants House on 17 September, the Financial Reporting Council (‘FRC’) will discuss what’s changed in FRS 102 as a result of the Triennial Review 2017, and this will be accompanied by a presentation on the key financial reporting requirements of the small and micro company regimes in the Republic of Ireland. There is no charge to attend this event but places are limited so please register for the event. Find out more here. The CRO have issued their regular gazette. UK The FRC held a panel discussion recently about how corporate governance is evolving to meet the needs of all stakeholders. A film of the event is available on the FRC website. International The International Accounting Standards Board has issued a fifth webcast in a series of web presentations regarding the Discussion Paper ‘Financial Instruments with Characteristics of Equity’, entitled ‘Presentation of equity instruments’.  

Developments of interest this week are outlined. ROI Update on UK & Irish GAAP Event – At this event, in Chartered Accountants House on 17 September, the Financial Reporting Council (‘FRC’) will discuss what’s changed in FRS 102 as a result of the Triennial Review 2017, and this will be accompanied by a presentation on the key financial reporting requirements of the small and micro company regimes in the Republic of Ireland. There is no charge to attend this event but places are limited so please register for the event. Find out more here. The Central Bank of Ireland has published its third report on the financial condition of the credit union sector. Read more and access the report here. The CRO have issued their regular gazette. Europe Accountancy Europe has responded to the European Commission’s proposal for amending the Directive on cross-border conversions, mergers and divisions. International The IFRS Foundation, including the International Accounting Standards Board, has relocated. The new address is Columbus Building, 7 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4HD, UK.    

Developments of interest this week are outlined. ROI Reminder: Dublin Metropolitan District Licensing Court; Annual Licensing 2018 – Auditor’s / Accountant’s report - new report agreed. The CRO have issued their regular gazette. UK The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has issued a report which highlights good practice and scope for improvements in audits of pension obligations. The FRC note that they focussed on the quality of audit of pension balances and related disclosures in 51 of its audit inspections in 2017/18 and found that in almost half, improvement was required in at least one aspect of the audit work, as well as identifying areas of good practice. Read more and access the report here. The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has issued a consultation paper in which it sets out its proposed rules for a technical correction to the Solvency II firms: Insurance General Application Part of the PRA Rulebook, along with some consequential changes and minor administrative amendments related to the extension of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime to insurers. This consultation closes on Monday 1 October 2018 and the consultation paper is available here. International IFRS 17 implementation: The next meeting of the Transition Resource Group for IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts will be held on 26–27 September 2018 in the IFRS Foundation’s new office in Canary Wharf, London. Find out more here. The International Accounting Standards Board (Board) have issued the third and fourth webcasts in a series of web presentations regarding the Discussion Paper Financial Instruments with Characteristics of Equity, entitled ‘Classification of derivatives on own equity’ and ‘Classification of compound instruments and redemption obligation arrangements’.    

Chartered Accountants Ireland are delighted to announce the launch of this year’s governance conference which will focus on ethics and governance in the charity and not for profit sector. Amongst other items, the conference will also exclusively present insights and findings arising from the recent research conducted by Chartered Accountants Ireland in production of the forthcoming “Concise Guide of Ethics and Governance for the Charity and Not for Profit Sector”.  To recognise the dedication of those involved in this important sector and encourage leadership in ethics and governance, the event is being hosted and sponsored by Chartered Accountants Ireland, free to attend, in Dublin on 12th September (click here for more details) and Belfast on 26th September (click here for more details).

Applications for renewal of licenses are due by 3 September 2018.   As members are aware, the Court requires an ‘Independent auditor's or accountant's certificate confirming up to date compliance with all filing and tax requirements pursuant to the provisions of the Companies Act 2014’. Having corresponded with the Court regarding why professional accountants should not sign such a certificate, the Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies-Ireland (CCAB-I) met with senior representatives of the Court in recent weeks, at which the attached report format was agreed. Members are advised to use this report format in fulfilling this requirement of the Licensing Court. The attached report will also be available via the Licensing Office in Áras Uí Dhálaigh. Dublin District Licensing Court _ auditor's or accountant's report_July 2018

Developments of interest this week are outlined. ROI Dublin Metropolitan District Licensing Court; Annual Licensing 2018 – Auditor’s / Accountant’s report. New report agreed.  The CRO have issued their regular gazette.  UK David Styles, Director of Corporate Governance, and Catherine Horton, Policy Adviser, recently spoke about the key changes and hopes for the new UK Corporate Governance Code.  The FRC has this week released the 2018 UK Corporate Governance Code which puts the relationships between companies, shareholders and stakeholders at the heart of long-term sustainable growth in the UK economy. Europe Accountancy Europe recently responded to the European Commission’s consultation document Fitness check on the EU framework for public reporting by companies. International International Accounting Standards Board (Board) Technical Director Kumar Dasgupta provides an overview in a recent webcast of the Discussion Paper Financial Instruments with Characteristics of Equity that was published in June 2018. The IASB has published a pocket guide on rein­sur­ance contracts held and a simple example of a rein­sur­ance contract held to support the im­ple­men­ta­tion of IFRS 17 'Insurance Contracts'. The International Federations of Accountants (IFAC) has updated the Guide to Using ISAs in the Audits of SMEs, Fourth Edition (the Guide) to help firms efficiently and proportionally apply ISAs on SME audits. The IAASB has issued Exposure Draft, ISA 315 (Revised), Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement.  Comments are requested by 2 November.      

It has been brought to our attention this week that the Valuation Office have issued  form LP1 Valuation of Licensed Premises to a large number of licensed premises owners as part of a national revaluation programme of commercial and industrial properties in Ireland for rates purposes.    The form requests certain figures to be extracted from the books and records of the licence holder and for an accountant to sign the form in addition to providing their professional membership details.  This form requests the signature of an accountant in a form that is not acceptable to professional accountants as it includes a requirement to “certify that the information provided is true and accurate in relation to the above subject property”.  As members are aware we consider that this is wording which accountants would not normally be in a position to use as it implies complete accuracy and absolute certainty. We advise our members not to sign the form but to send it with a covering letter confirming that the numbers have been extracted from the books and records of the licence holder.

Developments of interest this week are outlined. Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland charity regulators to be included in new charity sector SORP-making body. ROI IAASA has published its annual Profile of the Profession, which contains statistical data regarding the nine Prescribed Accountancy Bodies (‘PABs’) within IAASA’s supervisory remit in Ireland for the year 2017. The Companies Registration Office annual report for 2017 is now available as a pdf from the  CRO Corporate Publications webpage or as a webpage: CRO report. The Registry of Friendly Societies annual report for 2017 is now available from the CRO Corporate Publications webpage. UK  The FRC has published its first list of companies whose reports and accounts have been reviewed by its Corporate Reporting Review function. International The June IASB podcast now available

Developments of interest this week are outlined. ROI    IAASA has published its 2017 Annual Report.  The Report, which was laid before the House of the Oireachtas in recent days, details the work the Authority carried out throughout 2017 across its various areas of responsibility. The CRO have issued their regular gazette. UK The Financial Reporting Council has this week issued a consultation on proposed amendments to the FRC Taxonomies to support the objectives of enhancing the quality and accessibility of financial reporting in the UK and to enable digital reporting of IFRS and UK GAAP standards.  Investors are calling on companies to reassess how they report their performance metrics, according to a new report from the Financial Reporting Lab (the Lab). The FRC has recently withdrawn Practice Note 26 – Guidance on Smaller Entity Documentation. The current version of the Practice Note was issued in December 2009, and no longer supports the documentation requirements of a high quality audit. Sir Win Bischoff, Chairman FRC, speaks on corporate reporting at the FRC's Financial Reporting Lab's Conference, Reporting Now! International On 5 June 2018, CFA Institute and the IFRS Foundation hosted a panel debate at the Guildhall in London, asking whether traditional metrics are still relevant amidst rapid technological advancements. The June IASB Update has been issued which includes summaries of discussions at the recent IASB and FASB joint education meeting and the monthly IASB meeting.