• 2015 Issued Standard – IFRS for SMEs
  The 2015 Issued Standards include all amendments issued up to and including 1 June 2015.

Registration is required to access the free version of the Issued Standards, which do not include additional documents that accompany the full standard (such as illustrative examples, implementation guidance and basis for conclusions).

The IFRS for SMEs is a standalone document, other than one fallback option to use IAS 39 for financial instruments rather than the relevant sections of the IFRS for SMEs. It simplifies the accounting guidance included in full IFRS by:

• excluding topics which are less relevant to SMEs, such as segment and interim reporting;
• omitting the complex option where there is choice, such as the revaluation model for property, plant and equipment;
• simplifying recognition and measurement criteria, for example borrowing and development costs are all expensed in the period in which they are incurred; and
• reducing disclosure requirements, such that the IFRS for SMEs requires approximately one tenth of the disclosures required by full IFRS.

Who can use the standard?

The IFRS is intended for use by small and medium sized entities (SMEs). These are defined within the standard as entities that:

• do not have public accountability, and
• publish general purpose financial statements for external users.

The IASB has deferred the decision on which entities are required or permitted to use the IFRS for SMEs to the legislative and regulatory authorities and standard-setters in individual jurisdictions.

Accordingly there is no effective date for the standard, as this is dependent upon local adoption.