Chapter
Format of Financial
Statements
2
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2.1 IAS 1 Presentation of financial statements (revised Sept 2007, affective 1st
January 2009)
The objective of IAS 1 is to set out the overall framework for presenting general purpose financial
statements, including guidelines for their structure and the minimum content.
A summary of IAS 1 are as follows:
1 Fundamental principles underlying the preparation of financial statements (going concern,
accruals, consistency and materiality.
2 No offsetting of assets and liabilities, and income and expenses unless permitted or required
by another IFRS.
3 A complete set of financial statements (balance sheet, income statement, statement of
changes in equity, cash flow statement, accounting policies and explanatory notes). The
names of the financial statements have been changed under the 2007 revision  see below.
4 Comparative prior-period information must be shown in the financial statements and notes.
5 Annual preparation of financial statements. If year end changes then this requires
disclosure.
6 IAS 1 specifies minimum line items to be shown on the face of the balance sheet, income
statement and statement of changes in equity, and gives guidance on additional line items
7 In the income statement analysis of expenses must be by nature or by function. If presented
by function, classification by nature must be provided in the notes.
8 The minimum note disclosures include the accounting policies followed and the judgements
/ assumptions made by the management in arriving at estimations.
9 The 2005 amendment (effective 2007) requires disclosures about the organisation s capital
structure and compliance with capital requirements. Capital structure includes long term
debt and equity.
In September 2007 the IASB issued a revised IAS 1. The revisions to the standard are minor.
Changes include:
� Present all non-owner changes in equity (comprehensive income) either in one statement of
comprehensive income or in two statements (a separate income statement and a statement
of comprehensive income). Components of comprehensive income may not be presented in
the statement of changes in equity.
� Disclose income tax relating to each component of other comprehensive income.
� Disclose reclassification adjustments relating to components of other comprehensive
income.
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IAS 1 changes the titles of financial statements as they will be used in IFRSs:
� 'balance sheet' = 'statement of financial position'
� 'income statement' = 'statement of comprehensive income'
� 'cash flow statement' = 'statement of cash flows'.
Organisation can choose to use the new titles or keep using the old ones. But all existing Standards
and Interpretations are being amended to reflect the new terminology.
The objective of financial statements is to provide information about the financial position,
financial performance, and cash flows of an entity that is useful to a wide range of users in making
economic decisions.
The financial statements of a company consists of
Old titles New titles
Income statement Statement of comprehensive income
Balance sheet Statement of financial position
Cash flow statement Statement of cash flows
Statement of changes in equity Statement of changes in equity
Notes to the financial statement giving details of accounting policies and explanations are also
required.
The format of the income statement and balance sheet is produced in this chapter. The formats
meet the requirements of IAS 1 but they are not mandatory. They can be adapted to the
organisation s specific needs if it would show a much fairer presentation.
The financial statements must "present fairly" the financial position, financial performance and
cash flows of the organisation. Fair presentation requires the faithful representation of the effects of
transactions, other events, and conditions in accordance with the definitions and recognition criteria
for assets, liabilities, income and expenses set out in the framework. The application of IFRSs, with
additional disclosure will hopefully result in financial statements giving a fair presentation.
The changes to IAS 1 will enable users of accounts to analyse changes in a company s equity
resulting from transactions with owners in their capacity as owners (i.e. dividends and share
repurchases) separately from non-owner changes (i.e. transactions with third parties). An
organisation cannot present components of comprehensive income (i.e. non-owner changes in
equity) in the statement of changes in equity. The purpose is to provide better information by
aggregating items with shared characteristics and separating items with different characteristics.
June 2011: IASB issued amendments to IAS 1
On 16 June 2011, the IASB published amendments to IAS 1 Presentation of Financial Statements.
The amendments to IAS 1 retain the 'one or two statement' approach at the option of the entity and
only revise the way other comprehensive income is presented: requiring separate subtotals for
those elements which may be 'recycled' (e.g. cash-flow hedging, foreign currency translation), and
those elements that will not (e.g. fair value through OCI items under IFRS 9).
3
2.2 Statement of comprehensive income (income statement)
The statement of comprehensive income (income statement) shows all the income and expenses
during the period for the organisation. Income statements should help investors and other users
determine the past performance of the organisation and help them to predict future performance.
Two formats
The revised IAS 1 allows 2 formats to be adopted showing all income and expenses.
(1) In a single statement called  statement of comprehensive income : or
(2) In two separate statements called  income statement and  statement of other
comprehensive income .
The income statement will show the realised profit and loss for the period. Other comprehensive
income is income and expenses that are not recognised in the realised profit and loss but would
normally appear in the reserves. These would now appear on the face of the  statement of
comprehensive income or  statement of other comprehensive income .
Examples of other comprehensive income include:
(i) Revaluation gains (IAS 16 and IAS 38)
(ii) Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations (IAS 21)
(iii) Gains or losses on re-measuring available for sale financial assets (IAS 39)
(iv) Actuarial gains or losses on defined pension schemes (IAS 19)
(v) Gains / losses on hedging instruments in a cash flow hedge (IAS 39)
Basically all the above items would normally have appeared in the statement of changes in equity
before IAS 1 was revised in 2007. They will now be shown on the face of the comprehensive
income statements as either part 1 or 2 formats detailed above.
The above shows that all the non-owner changes in equity are presented in the comprehensive
income statements (part 1 or part 2 formats). Components of comprehensive income may not be
presented in the statement of changes in equity. Non-owner movements in equity may not be
presented as separate items in the statement of changes in equity. This revision has been made so as
to clearly segregate changes in equity arising from transactions with owners in their capacity as
owners from non-owner changes in equity.
Disclosures by the revised IAS 1 are also required for:
� Income tax relating to each component of other comprehensive income.
� Reclassification adjustments relating to components of other comprehensive income.
Expenses by function or nature
IAS 1 allows two further formats for the income statement relating to how the expenses are
analysed (function or nature). This would relate to the income statement part in the  statement of
comprehensive income and to the separate statement  income statement for the part 2 format
detailed above.
Expenses analysed by function are analysed according to their function, this includes cost of sales,
administration or distribution activities. You will be more familiar with this. If the organisation
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categorises by function, additional information on the nature of expenses (depreciation,
amortisation, wages etc) must be disclosed.
Expenses analysed by nature, are not analysed by their function but by their nature, so for example
purchase of goods, wages, depreciation.
Dividends
Dividends are shown the statement of changes in equity.
IAS 1 does not allow dividends that were proposed after the balance sheet date to be included in
the financial statements and hence the liability is not shown in the balance sheet. This means that
only the dividends that are PAID during the period are shown in the statement of changes in equity.
This could be dividends relating to last year which were declared and paid this year and the current
year s interim dividends paid.
IAS 1 also requires disclosure of  dividend per share for the period to be shown either on the
income statement or statement of changes in equity.
Presentation of information in the statement of comprehensive income / separate income
statement
Minimum items on the face of the statement of comprehensive income / separate income statement
should include:
(a) Revenue
(b) Finance costs
(c) Share of the profit or loss of associates and joint ventures  equity method accounting.
(d) The post-tax profit or loss of discontinued operations
(e) The post-tax gain or loss on the disposal of the assets / discontinued operation
(f) Tax expense
(g) Profit or loss
The following items must also be disclosed on the face of the statement of comprehensive income /
separate income statement as allocations of profit or loss for the period
(a) Profit or loss attributable to non controlling interest (minority interest)
(b) Profit or loss attributable to equity holders (owners) of the parent.
Some items must be disclosed either on the face of the statement of comprehensive income /
separate income statement or in the notes, if material, including:
(i) Write-downs / impairments of assets.
(ii) Restructurings costs and reversals of any provisions for the costs of restructuring.
(iii) Disposals of items of assets (property, plant and equipment, investments).
(iv) Discontinuing operations.
(v) Litigation settlements.
Additional line items can also be added to the face of the statement of comprehensive income /
separate income statement to fairly present the organisation s results of operations.
Extraordinary items are never shown either on the face of the income statement or as notes.
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Format of  statement of comprehensive income
A Group: statement of comprehensive income for the period ending 31 March 20X9
20X9 20X8
Ł 000 Ł 000
Revenue X X
Cost of sales (X) (X)
Gross profit X X
Other income X X
Distribution costs (X) (X)
Administrative expenses (X) (X)
Other expenses (X) (X)
Finance costs (X) (X)
*Share of profit of associates X X
Profit before tax X X
Income tax expense (X) (X)
Profit for the year from continuing operations X X
Loss for the year from discontinued operations (X) -
Profit for the year X X
Other comprehensive income
Gain on revaluation of property X -
Exchange loss on re-translation of foreign operation (X) (X)
Gains (losses) on re-measurement of available for sale financial asset X (X)
Actuarial gains (losses) on defined benefit pension scheme (X) X
Gains (losses) on cash flow hedges X (X)
Income tax relating to components for other comprehensive income (X) (X)
Other comprehensive income for the year, net of tax X X
Profit for the year attributable to:
*Owners of the parent X X
*Minority Interest X X
X X
Total comprehensive income for the year attributable to:
*Owners of the parent X X
*Minority Interest X X
X X
Earnings per share X X
* relates to group companies only
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Format of two separate  income statement and  statement of other comprehensive income
A Group: Income statement for the period ending 31 March 20X9
20X9 20X8
Ł 000 Ł 000
Revenue X X
Cost of sales (X) (X)
Gross profit X X
Other income X X
Distribution costs (X) (X)
Administrative expenses (X) (X)
Other expenses (X) (X)
Finance costs (X) (X)
*Share of profit of associates X X
Profit before tax X X
Income tax expense (X) (X)
Profit for the year from continuing operations X X
Loss for the year from discontinued operations (X) -
Profit for the year X X
Profit for the year attributable to:
*Owners of the parent X X
*Minority Interest X X
X X
Earnings per share X X
* relates to group companies only
A Group: Statement of comprehensive income for the period ending 31 March 20X9
20X9 20X8
Ł 000 Ł 000
Profit for the year X X
Other comprehensive income
Gain on revaluation of property X -
Exchange loss on re-translation of foreign operation (X) (X)
Gains (losses) on re-measurement of available for sale financial asset X (X)
Actuarial gains (losses) on defined benefit pension scheme (X) X
Gains (losses) on cash flow hedges X (X)
Income tax relating to components for other comprehensive income (X) (X)
Other comprehensive income for the year, net of tax X X
Total comprehensive income for the year attributable to:
*Owners of the parent X X
*Minority Interest X X
X X
Where this option is selected, the income statement is required to be presented immediately before
the statement of comprehensive income. The standard does not specify whether the statements
should be presented on the same or separate pages.
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Expenses by function or nature
To illustrate how the income statement parts would appear under both of the above formats where
expenses are categorised by function or nature, extracts are as follows:
Income statement for A group for the period ending 31 March 20X9
(Expense by function)
20X9 20X8
Ł 000 Ł 000
Revenue X X
Cost of sales (X) (X)
Gross profit X X
Other income X X
Distribution costs (X) (X)
Administrative expenses (X) (X)
Other expenses (X) (X)
Finance costs (X) (X)
Share of profit of associates X X
Profit before tax X X
Continue as normal& & & &
Income statement for Acorn group for the period ending 31 March 20X9
(Expense by nature)
20X9 20X8
Ł 000 Ł 000
Revenue X X
Other income X X
Changes in inventories of finished goods and work in progress (X) (X)
Raw material and consumable used (X) (X)
Employee benefits expense (X) (X)
Depreciation and amortisation expenses (X) (X)
Impairment of property, plant and equipment (X) (X)
Other expenses (X) (X)
Finance costs (X) (X)
Share of profit of associates X X
Profit before tax X X
Continue as normal& & & &
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2.3 Statement of financial position (the balance sheet)
The statement of financial position (balance sheet) is a snapshot of the company's financial position
on a given date. The statement of financial position (balance sheet) is the only financial statement,
which applies to a single point in time, instead of a period of time.
The statement of financial position (balance sheet) represents the accounting equation: -
Assets  liabilities = shareholders funds / equity
Minimum items on the face of the statement of financial position (balance sheet)
1 Property, plant and equipment;
2 Investment property
3 Intangible assets
4 Financial assets
5 Investments accounted for using the equity method
6 Biological assets
7 Inventories
8 Trade and other receivables
9 Cash and cash equivalents
10 The total of assets classified as held for sale (IFRS 5), including assets in disposal group
11 Trade and other payables
12 Provisions
13 Financial liabilities
14 Liabilities and assets for current tax as defined in IAS 12 income taxes
15 Deferred tax liabilities and deferred tax assets (IAS 12)
16 Liabilities included in disposal groups (IFRS 5)
17 Non-controlling interests, presented within equity (minority interest for group accounts)
18 Issued capital and reserves attributable to owners of the parent
Additional line items may be needed to fairly present the organisation s financial position.
Issued share capital and reserves require the following disclosures:
(i) Numbers of shares authorised, issued and fully paid.
(ii) Reconciliation of shares outstanding at the beginning and the end of the period.
(iii) Description of rights, preferences and restrictions.
(iv) Treasury shares, including shares held by subsidiaries and associates.
(v) Shares to be issued under options and contracts.
(vi) A description of the nature and purpose of each reserve under equity.
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A group: statement of financial position as at 31 March 20X9
20X9 20X8
Ł 000 Ł 000 Ł 000 Ł 000
Assets
Non-current Assets
Property, plant and equipment X X
*Goodwill X X
Other intangible assets X X
*Investment in associates X X
Available for sale financial assets X X
X X
Current assets
Inventories X X
Trade receivables X X
Other current assets X X
Cash and cash equivalents X X
X X
Total assets X X
Equity and liabilities
Equity attributable to equity holders of the parent
Share capital X X
Other reserves X X
Retained earnings X X
X X
*Non  controlling interest X X
Total equity X X
Non-current liabilities
Long-term borrowings X X
Deferred tax X X
Long-term provisions X X
Total non-current liabilities X X
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables X X
Short term borrowings X X
Current portion of long-term borrowings X X
Current tax payable X X
Short term provisions X X
Total current liabilities X X
Total liabilities X X
Total equity and liabilities X X
* relates to group companies only
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Current & non-current assets and current & non-current liabilities are presented as separate
classifications on the face of the balance sheet.
The distinction between current and non-current is important as it helps the users of accounts in
assessing the liquidity position. The effective management of working capital management shows
how well an enterprise is running, and showing current and non-current items on the face of the
balance sheet aids users understanding of this matter. Current assets and liabilities affect the
working capital.
Current means that the asset or liability will be recovered or settled within 12 months, and non-
current means it will take more than 12 months. Non-current means that it s in use for the long
term.
A long-term liability, which is due to be settled within 12 months, must be shown under current
liabilities
Further sub-classification of items in the balance sheet must be disclosed in the notes to the
accounts.
The revised standard introduced a requirement to include a statement of financial position as at the
beginning of the earliest comparative period whenever an entity retrospectively applies an
accounting policy, or makes a retrospective restatement of items in its financial statements, or
when it reclassifies items in its financial statements.
Here an entity is required to present, as a minimum, three statements of financial position (and
related notes), at:
(i) The end of the current period;
(ii) The end of the previous period (opening period); and
(iii) The beginning of the earliest comparative period.
June 2011: IASB issued amendments to IAS 1
On 16 June 2011, the IASB published amendments to IAS 1 Presentation of Financial Statements.
The amendments to IAS 1 retain the 'one or two statement' approach at the option of the entity and
only revise the way other comprehensive income is presented: requiring separate subtotals for
those elements which may be 'recycled' (e.g. cash-flow hedging, foreign currency translation), and
those elements that will not (e.g. fair value through OCI items under IFRS 9).
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2.4 Statement of changes in equity
The statement of changes in equity shows the reconciliation between opening equity and closing
equity. IAS 1 requires an organisation to present a statement of changes in equity as a separate
component of the financial statements. This is a period statement just like the income statement
and cash flow statement.
The statement of changes in equity is a summary of all changes in equity arising from transactions
with owners in their capacity as owners.
The statement of changes in equity is a financial statement which shows the amount of equity the
owners have in the business at the beginning of the accounting period and the amount of their
equity at the end of the period. Remember that the income statement summarises the revenues and
expenses during the accounting period. The balance sheet shows the position of the organisation at
the end of the accounting period.
Changes in equity between the beginning and the end of the period show the increase or decrease
in the net assets during the period. Except for changes resulting from transactions with owners in
their capacity as owners (for example issue of new equity shares, repurchase of equity shares with
all the direct transaction costs and dividends), the overall change in equity during a period
represents the total amount of income and expense, including gains and losses, generated by the
entity s activities during that period.
The statement of changes in equity must show:
1 Total comprehensive income for the period, showing separately the total amounts attributable
to owners of the parent and to non-controlling interests;
2 For each component of equity, the effects of retrospective application or retrospective
restatement recognised in accordance with IAS 8
3 For each component of equity, reconciliation between the carrying amount at the beginning
and the end of the period, separately disclosing changes resulting from (a) profit or loss, (b)
each item of other comprehensive income and (c) transactions with owners directly.
An entity shall present, either in the statement of changes in equity or in the notes, the amount of
dividends recognised as distributions to owners during the period, and the related amount per share.
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A group: Statement of changes in equity for the period ending 31st March 20X9
Share Revaluation Translation Retained Total Non Total
Capital reserves Reserve earnings controlling
interest
Balance as at 01/04/X8 X X X X X X X
Changes in accounting policy (X) (X) (X) (X)
Restated balance X X X X X X X
Dividends (X) (X) (X) X
Total comprehensive income for X X X X X X
the year
Issue of share capital X X X
Transfer to retained earnings (X) X
Balance as at 31/3/X9 X X X X X X X
If there has been a change in accounting policy or correction of error under IAS 8 resulting in
retrospective adjustments, the opening balances in the statement of changes in equity are adjusted
on the face of the statement showing the retrospective adjustments (as apposed to just showing the
adjusted balances bought forward).
2.5 Notes to the financial statements
Notes to the financial statements give users of the accounts more information about the figures.
Each company will have their own set of unique notes, but IAS 1 does require certain order and
detail of particular items.
The notes must be prepared in an orderly manner and cross referenced to the figures on the face of
the financial statements.
The notes amplify the information given in the financial statements by:
� Giving a detailed analysis and breakdown of the figures
� Giving narrative information about the figures
� Giving more information about the company, and other issues not shown in the financial
statements (e.g. court cases etc).
The notes to the financial statements under IAS 1 must:
� Present information about the basis of preparation of the financial statements and the
specific accounting policies used.
� Disclose any information required by IASs/IFRSs that is not presented on the face of the
financial statements
� Provide additional information that is not presented on the face of the financial statements
that is deemed relevant to an understanding of any of them.
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IAS 1 recommends a certain order for the notes
The measurement basis used in preparing the
financial statements
The accounting policies used and compliance with
IASs and IFRSs
Supporting information for the figures, their
breakdown and analysis in the order they appear
Disclosure on judgements used to estimate figures
where required
Other disclosures on items like dividend proposed,
nature of activities etc.
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Disclosure of judgements
An organisation must disclose the judgements, apart from those involving estimations, that
management has made in the process of applying the organisation s accounting policies that have
the most significant effect on the amounts recognised in the financial statements
Disclosure of key sources of estimation uncertainty
An organisation must disclose the key assumptions concerning the future, and other key sources of
estimation uncertainty at the balance sheet date, that have a significant risk of causing a material
adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year.
Disclosures about dividends
The following must be disclosed either on the face of the income statement or the statement of
changes in equity or in the notes
(i) The amount of dividends recognised as distributions to equity holders during the period.
(ii) The related amount per share.
(iii) The amount of any cumulative preference dividends not recognised
The amount of dividends proposed after the balance sheet date must also be disclosed in the notes
to the accounts as these have not been accrued for.
Other disclosures
IAS 1 requires further disclosures as follows:
(i) The organisation s objectives, policies and processes for managing capital.
(ii) Quantitative data about what the organisation regards as capital.
(iii) Whether the organisation has complied with any capital requirements if not the
consequences of non-compliance.
(iv) For puttable financial instruments classified as equity instruments, disclose quantitative
data about the amount classified as equity, its objectives, policies and processes for
managing its obligation to repurchase or redeem the instruments when required to do so by
the instrument holders, including any changes from the previous period. The expected cash
outflow on redemption or repurchase of that class of financial instruments; and information
about how the expected cash outflow on redemption or repurchase was determined.
(v) Domicile and legal form of the entity, its country of incorporation and the address of its
registered office or principal place of business.
(vi) Description of the nature of the entity s operations and its principal activities;
(vii) Name of the parent and the ultimate parent of the group.
(viii) For limited life entity, information regarding the length of its life.
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Key summary of  Formats of financial statements
The objective of financial statements is to provide information about the financial position,
financial performance, and cash flows of an entity that is useful to a wide range of users in
making economic decisions.
The financial statements of a company consists of
Old titles New titles
Income statement Statement of comprehensive income
Balance sheet Statement of financial position
Cash flow statement Statement of cash flows
Statement of changes in equity Statement of changes in equity
Statement of comprehensive income (income statement)
The statement of comprehensive income (income statement) shows all the income and expenses
during the period for the organisation. Income statements should help investors and other users
determine the past performance of the organisation and help them to predict future performance.
IAS 1 allows 2 formats to be adopted showing all income and expenses.
(1) In a single statement called  Statement of comprehensive income : or
(2) In two separate statements called  income statement and  statement of other
comprehensive income .
Items that normally appeared in the statement of changes in equity before IAS 1 was revised will
now be shown on the face of the comprehensive income statements as either part 1 or 2 formats
detailed above.
Expenses by function or nature
IAS 1 allows two further formats for the income statement relating to how the expenses are
analysed (function or nature). This would relate to the income statement part in the  statement of
comprehensive income and to the separate statement  income statement for the part 2 format
detailed above.
Expenses analysed by function are analysed according to their function, this includes cost of
sales, administration or distribution activities. You will be more familiar with this. If the
organisation categorises by function, additional information on the nature of expenses
(depreciation, amortisation, wages etc) must be disclosed.
Expenses analysed by nature, are not analysed by their function but by their nature, so for
example purchase of goods, wages, depreciation.
Dividends
Dividends are shown the statement of changes in equity.
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Statement of financial position (the balance sheet)
The statement of financial position (balance sheet) is a snapshot of the company's financial
position on a given date. The statement of financial position (balance sheet) is the only financial
statement, which applies to a single point in time, instead of a period of time. The statement of
financial position (balance sheet) represents the accounting equation: -
Assets  liabilities = Shareholders funds / equity
The top half of the statement of financial position (balance sheet) shows all the assets and the
bottom half shows all liabilities and equity.
Statement of changes in equity
The statement of changes in equity shows the reconciliation between opening equity and closing
equity. IAS 1 requires an organisation to present a statement of changes in equity as a separate
component of the financial statements. This is a period statement just like the income statement
and cash flow statement.
The statement of changes in equity is a summary of all changes in equity arising from transactions
with owners in their capacity as owners. The statement of changes in equity must show:
1 Total comprehensive income for the period, showing separately the total amounts
attributable to owners of the parent and to non-controlling interests;
2 For each component of equity, the effects of retrospective application or retrospective
restatement recognised in accordance with IAS 8
3 For each component of equity, reconciliation between the carrying amount at the beginning
and the end of the period, separately disclosing changes resulting from (a) profit or loss, (b)
each item of other comprehensive income and (c) transactions with owners directly.
Notes to the financial statements
Notes to the financial statements give users of the accounts more information about the figures.
Each company will have their own set of unique notes, but IAS 1 does require certain order and
detail of particular items. The notes must be prepared in an orderly manner and cross referenced
to the figures on the face of the financial statements.
The notes to the financial statements under IAS 1 must:
� Present information about the basis of preparation of the financial statements and the
specific accounting policies used.
� Disclose any information required by IFRSs that is not presented on the face of the balance
sheet, income statement, statement of changes in equity, or cash flow statement.
� Provide additional information that is not presented on the face of the balance sheet, income
statement, statement of changes in equity, or cash flow statement that is deemed relevant to
an understanding of any of them.
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