The IFRS Interpretations Committee tentatively decided not to add this matter to its standard-setting agenda at its meeting in September 2018. The Committee will reconsider the following tentative agenda decision, including the reasons for not adding the matter to the standard-setting agenda, at a future meeting. The Committee encourages interested parties to submit their responses using the link below.
Tentative agenda decision
The Committee received a request about how an entity applies the requirements in IAS 27 to a fact pattern involving an investment in a subsidiary.
In the fact pattern described in the request, the entity preparing separate financial statements:
- elects to account for its investments in subsidiaries at cost applying paragraph 10 of IAS 27.
- holds an initial investment in another entity (investee). The investment is an investment in an equity instrument as defined in paragraph 11 of IAS 32 Financial Instruments: Presentation. The investee is not an associate, joint venture or subsidiary of the entity and, accordingly, the entity applies IFRS 9 Financial Instruments in accounting for its initial investment (initial interest).
- subsequently acquires an additional interest in the investee (additional interest), which results in the entity obtaining control of the investee––ie the investee becomes a subsidiary of the entity.
The request asked:
- whether the entity determines the cost of its investment in the subsidiary as the sum of:
- the fair value of the initial interest at the date of obtaining control of the subsidiary, plus any consideration paid for the additional interest (fair value as deemed cost approach); or
- the consideration paid for the initial interest (original consideration), plus any consideration paid for the additional interest (accumulated cost approach) (Question A).
- how the entity accounts for any difference between the fair value of the initial interest at the date of obtaining control of the subsidiary and its original consideration when applying the accumulated cost approach (Question B).
Question A
IAS 27 does not define ‘cost’, nor does it explicitly specify how an entity determines the cost of an investment acquired in stages. The Committee noted that cost is defined in other IFRS Standards (for example, paragraph 6 of IAS 16 Property Plant and Equipment, paragraph 8 of IAS 38 Intangible Assets and paragraph 5 of IAS 40 Investment Property). The Committee observed that the two approaches outlined in the request arise from different views of whether the step acquisition transaction involves (i) the entity exchanging its initial interest (plus consideration paid for the additional interest) for a controlling interest in the investee, or (ii) purchasing the additional interest while retaining the initial interest.
Based on its analysis, the Committee concluded that a reasonable reading of requirements in IFRS Standards could result in the application of either one of the two approaches outlined in this agenda decision (ie fair value as deemed cost approach or accumulated cost approach).
The Committee observed that an entity would apply its reading of the requirements consistently to all step acquisition transactions. An entity would also disclose the selected approach applying paragraphs 117–124 of IAS 1 Presentation of Financial Statements if that disclosure would assist users of financial statements in understanding how step acquisition transactions are reflected in reporting financial performance and financial position.
Question B
IFRS Standards do not explicitly specify how an entity applying the accumulated cost approach accounts for any difference between the fair value of the initial interest at the date of obtaining control of the subsidiary and its original consideration. In these circumstances, an entity applies the requirements in paragraphs 10-11 of IAS 8 Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors in developing and applying an accounting policy. The Committee observed that such a difference meets the definitions of income or expenses in the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting. Applying paragraph 88 of IAS 1, the Committee concluded that the entity recognises this difference as income or expense in profit or loss, regardless of whether, before obtaining control, the entity had presented subsequent changes in fair value of the initial interest in profit or loss or OCI.
For Question A, the Committee considered whether to develop a narrow-scope amendment to address how an entity determines the cost of an investment acquired in stages. The Committee observed that:
- it did not have evidence to assess whether the application of the two acceptable approaches to determining cost, outlined in this [tentative] agenda decision, would have a material effect on those affected.
- the matter could not be resolved without also considering the requirements in paragraph 10 of IAS 28 to initially measure an investment in an associate or joint venture at cost. The Committee has not obtained information to suggest that the Board should reconsider this aspect of IAS 28 at this stage, rather than as part of its wider consideration of IAS 28 within its research project on the Equity Method.
On balance, the Committee [decided] not to undertake standard-setting to address Question A. Nonetheless, Committee members expressed their preference for the fair value as deemed cost approach. This is because, in their view, the accumulated cost approach would not provide useful information to users of financial statements. Committee members’ views will be reported to the Board at a future Board meeting.
For Question B, the Committee concluded that the principles and requirements in IFRS Standards provide an adequate basis for an entity to determine its accounting.
Consequently, the Committee [decided] not to add these matters to its standard-setting agenda.
Deadline for submitting comment letters: 21 November 2018
