Appendix A (AASB1060_03-20_COMPdec21_01-23)

Accounting policies are defined in paragraph 5 of AASB 108 Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors, and the term is used in this Standard with the same meaning.

General purpose financial statements (referred to as ‘financial statements’) are those intended to meet the needs of users who are not in a position to require an entity to prepare reports tailored to their particular information needs.

Impracticable Applying a requirement is impracticable when the entity cannot apply it after making every reasonable effort to do so.

International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) are Standards and Interpretations issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). They comprise:

(a) International Financial Reporting Standards;

(b) International Accounting Standards;

(c) IFRIC Interpretations; and

(d) SIC Interpretations.^[45]

Material:

Information is material if omitting, misstating or obscuring it could reasonably be expected to influence decisions that the primary users of general purpose financial statements make on the basis of those financial statements, which provide financial information about a specific reporting entity.

Materiality depends on the nature or magnitude of information, or both. An entity assesses whether information, either individually or in combination with other information, is material in the context of its financial statements taken as a whole.

Information is obscured if it is communicated in a way that would have a similar effect for primary users of financial statements to omitting or misstating that information. The following are examples of circumstances that may result in material information being obscured:

(a) information regarding a material item, transaction or other event is disclosed in the financial statements but the language used is vague or unclear;

(b) information regarding a material item, transaction or other event is scattered throughout the financial statements;

(c) dissimilar items, transactions or other events are inappropriately aggregated;

(d) similar items, transactions or other events are inappropriately disaggregated; and

(e) the understandability of the financial statements is reduced as a result of material information being hidden by immaterial information to the extent that a primary user is unable to determine what information is material.

Assessing whether information could reasonably be expected to influence decisions made by the primary users of a specific reporting entity’s general purpose financial statements requires an entity to consider the characteristics of those users while also considering the entity’s own circumstances.

Many existing and potential investors, lenders and other creditors cannot require reporting entities to provide information directly to them and must rely on general purpose financial statements for much of the financial information they need. Consequently, they are the primary users to whom general purpose financial statements are directed. Financial statements are prepared for users who have a reasonable knowledge of business and economic activities and who review and analyse the information diligently. At times, even well-informed and diligent users may need to seek the aid of an adviser to understand information about complex economic phenomena.

Notes contain information in addition to that presented in the statement of financial position, statement(s) of profit or loss and other comprehensive income, separate income statement (if presented), statement of changes in equity and statement of cash flows. Notes provide narrative descriptions or disaggregations of items presented in those statements and information about items that do not qualify for recognition in those statements.

Other comprehensive income comprises items of income and expense (including reclassification adjustments) that are not recognised in profit or loss as required or permitted by other Australian Accounting Standards.

The components of other comprehensive income include:

(a) changes in revaluation surplus (see AASB 116 Property, Plant and Equipment and AASB 138 Intangible Assets);

(b) remeasurements of defined benefit plans (see AASB 119 Employee Benefits);

(c) gains and losses arising from translating the financial statements of a foreign operation (see AASB 121 The Effects of Changes in Foreign Exchange Rates);

(d) gains and losses from investments in equity instruments designated at fair value through other comprehensive income in accordance with paragraph 5.7.5 of AASB 9 Financial Instruments;

(da) gains and losses on financial assets measured at fair value through other comprehensive income in accordance with paragraph 4.1.2A of AASB 9;

(e) the effective portion of gains and losses on hedging instruments in a cash flow hedge and the gains and losses on hedging instruments that hedge investments in equity instruments measured at fair value through other comprehensive income in accordance with paragraph 5.7.5 of AASB 9 (see Chapter 6 of AASB 9);

(f) for particular liabilities designated as at fair value through profit or loss, the amount of the change in fair value that is attributable to changes in the liability’s credit risk (see paragraph 5.7.7 of AASB 9);

(g) changes in the value of the time value of options when separating the intrinsic value and time value of an option contract and designating as the hedging instrument only the changes in the intrinsic value (see Chapter 6 of AASB 9);

(h) changes in the value of the forward elements of forward contracts when separating the forward element and spot element of a forward contract and designating as the hedging instrument only the changes in the spot element, and changes in the value of the foreign currency basis spread of a financial instrument when excluding it from the designation of that financial instrument as the hedging instrument (see Chapter 6 of AASB 9);

(i) insurance finance income and expenses from contracts issued within the scope of AASB 17 Insurance Contracts excluded from profit or loss when total insurance finance income or expenses is disaggregated to include in profit or loss an amount determined by a systematic allocation applying paragraph 88(b) of AASB 17, or by an amount that eliminates accounting mismatches with the finance income or expenses arising on the underlying items, applying paragraph 89(b) of AASB 17; and

(j) finance income and expenses from reinsurance contracts held excluded from profit or loss when total reinsurance finance income or expenses is disaggregated to include in profit or loss an amount determined by a systematic allocation applying paragraph 88(b) of AASB 17.

Owners are holders of instruments classified as equity.

Profit or loss is the total of income less expenses, excluding the components of other comprehensive income.

Reclassification adjustments are amounts reclassified to profit or loss in the current period that were recognised in other comprehensive income in the current or previous periods.

Total comprehensive income is the change in equity during a period resulting from transactions and other events, other than those changes resulting from transactions with owners in their capacity as owners.

Total comprehensive income comprises all components of ‘profit or loss’ and of ‘other comprehensive income’.

Cash comprises cash on hand and demand deposits.

Cash equivalents are short-term, highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and which are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value.

Cash flows are inflows and outflows of cash and cash equivalents.

Operating activities are the principal revenue-producing activities of the entity and other activities that are not investing or financing activities.

Investing activities are the acquisition and disposal of long-term assets and other investments not included in cash equivalents.

Financing activities are activities that result in changes in the size and composition of the contributed equity and borrowings of the entity.

Loans payable are financial liabilities, other than short-term trade payables on normal credit terms.

A related party is a person or entity that is related to the entity that is preparing its financial statements (the reporting entity):

(a) a person or a close member of that person’s family is related to a reporting entity if that person:

(i) is a member of the key management personnel of the reporting entity or of a parent of the reporting entity;

(ii) has control or joint control over the reporting entity; or

(iii) has significant influence over the reporting entity.

(b) an entity is related to a reporting entity if any of the following conditions applies:

(i) the entity and the reporting entity are members of the same group (which means that each parent, subsidiary and fellow subsidiary is related to the others).

(ii) one entity is an associate or joint venture of the other entity (or an associate or joint venture of a member of a group of which the other entity is a member).

(iii) both entities are joint ventures of the same third entity.

(iv) one entity is a joint venture of a third entity and the other entity is an associate of the third entity.

(v) the entity is a post-employment benefit plan for the benefit of employees of either the reporting entity or an entity related to the reporting entity. If the reporting entity is itself such a plan, the sponsoring employers are also related to the reporting entity.

(vi) the entity is controlled or jointly controlled by a person identified in (a).

(vii) the entity, or any member of a group of which it is a part, provides key management personnel services to the reporting entity or to the parent of the reporting entity.

(viii) a person identified in (a)(ii) has significant influence over the entity or is a member of the key management personnel of the entity (or of a parent of the entity).

A related party transaction is a transfer of resources, services or obligations between a reporting entity and a related party, regardless of whether a price is charged.

Close members of the family of a person are those family members who may be expected to influence, or be influenced by, that person in their dealings with the entity and include:

(a) that person’s children and spouse or domestic partner;

(b) children of that person’s spouse or domestic partner; and

(c) dependants of that person or that person’s spouse or domestic partner.

Compensation includes all employee benefits (as defined in AASB 119 Employee Benefits) including employee benefits to which AASB 2 Share-based Payment applies. Employee benefits are all forms of consideration paid, payable or provided by the entity, or on behalf of the entity, in exchange for services rendered to the entity. It also includes such consideration paid on behalf of a parent of the entity in respect of the entity. Compensation includes:

(a) short-term employee benefits, such as wages, salaries and social security contributions, paid annual leave and paid sick leave, profit-sharing and bonuses (if payable within twelve months of the end of the period) and non-monetary benefits (such as medical care, housing, cars and free or subsidised goods or services) for current employees;

(b) post-employment benefits such as pensions, other retirement benefits, post-employment life insurance and post-employment medical care;

(c) other long-term employee benefits, including long-service leave or sabbatical leave, jubilee or other long-service benefits, long-term disability benefits and, if they are not payable wholly within twelve months after the end of the period, profit-sharing, bonuses and deferred compensation;

(d) termination benefits; and

(e) share-based payment.

Key management personnel are those persons having authority and responsibility for planning, directing and controlling the activities of the entity, directly or indirectly, including any director (whether executive or otherwise) of that entity.

Government refers to government, government agencies and similar bodies whether local, national or international.

A government-related entity is an entity that is controlled, jointly controlled or significantly influenced by a government.

The terms ‘control’ and ‘investment entity’, ‘joint control’ and ‘significant influence’ are defined in AASB 10 Consolidated Financial Statements, AASB 11 Joint Arrangements and AASB 128 Investments in Associates and Joint Ventures respectively and are used in this Standard with the meanings specified in those Australian Accounting Standards.