standard business reporting and xbrl - auasb
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AUASB Bulletin
Standard Business Reporting and XBRL: Information for Audit and Assurance Practitioners
AUASB Bulletin
1 SeeAppendix1forhighlightsabouthowXBRLisbeingadoptedinotherjurisdictions.2 Seewww.sbr.gov.auforfurtherinformationregardingthedevelopmentofSBRinAustralia.3 Seewww.sbr.gov.auforafulllistofformsinscopeforSBR.4 Formoreinformation,seewww.xbrl.org/jurisdictions.aspx
June2010
Introduction
eXtensibleBusinessReportingLanguage(XBRL)ischangingthebasisofbusinessreportingaroundtheworldandthereisincreasingmomentumforitsadoptioninallmajordevelopedcountries.1
InAustralia,StandardBusinessReporting(SBR),whichusesXBRLastheunderlying,harmonizedreportinglanguage,willbeavailablefrom1July2010.
AuditandassurancepractitionersneedtobeawareoftheimplementationofSBRandXBRLandhowitmayimpacttheirwork.
ThisBulletinaimstoincreaseauditandassurancepractitionerawarenessbyprovidinginformationon:
a. thedevelopmentofSBRinAustralia;
b. XBRL:whatitisandhowitworks;
c. theimpactofSBRandXBRLonauditandotherassurancepractitionersinAustralia;
d. whattheAUASBisdoinginrelationtoSBRandXBRL;and
e. whatishappeninginothercountries.
Inparticular,thisBulletinexplainsthatAustralianAuditingStandardscurrentlydonotrequiretheauditortoperformproceduresorprovideassuranceonXBRLtaggeddatainthecontextofanauditorreviewofafinancialreport.
However,auditandassurancepractitionersmaybeengagedtoperformnon-auditservicesrelatingtotheuseofSBRandXBRL,andthisBulletinprovidesexamplesofsuchengagements.Italsohighlightstheethicalconsiderations,includingindependenceissues,thatmayarisewhenauditandassurancepractitionersundertakenon-auditservicesrelatedtotheuseofXBRL.
SBR in Australia
SBRisanAustralianGovernmentinitiativetoreducethebusiness-to-governmentreportingburdenby:
a. simplifyinggovernmentformsbyremovingunnecessaryorduplicatedinformationfromforms;
b. adoptingacommon,orharmonised,reportinglanguage,basedoninternationalstandardsandbestpractice;
c. usingaccountingsoftwaretopre-fillformsautomatically;and
d. introducingasingle,securesign-onforallparticipatingagencies.2
TheGovernmenthaschosentouseXBRLtorepresenttheharmonisedreportinglanguageonwhichSBRisbased.
TheSBRprojectisledbytheAustralianTreasuryandparticipatingagenciesaretheAustralianTaxationOffice(ATO),theAustralianSecuritiesandInvestmentsCommission(ASIC),theAustralianPrudentialRegulationAuthority(APRA),allStateandTerritoryGovernmentrevenueoffices(ROs)andtheAustralianBureauofStatistics(ABS).Itisbeingdevelopedinpartnershipwithsoftwaredevelopers,businessesandtheiraccountants,bookkeepers,taxagentsandpayrollprofessionals.
ExamplesofreportsthatwillbeavailableinSBRformatincludebusinessactivitystatements,companyincometaxreturnsandFBTreturns(ATO),financialreportsandnotificationofhalfyearlyreports(ASIC),financialstatements(APRA),payrolltaxreturns(ROs)andthequarterlybusinessindicatorssurvey(ABS).3
SBRhasnotpresentlybeenmandatedinAustralia,however,theAustralian
GovernmentanticipatesthatSBRwillbecomethepreferredmethodofreportingtoGovernmentbecauseitwillbecheaper,fasterandeasiertouse.
What is XBRL?
XBRLisacomputerbasedlanguageforthecommunicationofbusinessandfinancialdata,promotedbyXBRLInternational,4aninternationalnon-profitconsortiumofcompanies,organisationsandgovernmentagencies.Itisanopenstandard,freeoflicencefees.
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Why use XBRL?
XBRLtechnologyarosefromtheneedformorereliable,timelyandefficientbusinessreportingbyGovernments,regulators,businesses,investors,analystsandfinancialinstitutions.
Currentdisparatereportingtechnologiescreateadministrativeburdensforbusinessesworld-wide.Oftenbusinesseshavetotailorandduplicatethesameinformation,andsupplyittodomesticandinternationalgovernmentagencies,regulatorsandparentorsubsidiarycompaniesinvariousforms.
Financialinformationisusuallypresentedinastaticformat,suchaspaper,pdforhtml,theuniversallanguageforwebbrowsers.Pdfandhtmlimprovetheabilityofuserstoaccessrelevantinformationeasily,regardlessofphysicallocation.However,theseformatsdonotenableelectronicdatainterchangeoffinancialinformation,otherthanthroughbasic“copyandpaste”functionality.
Staticformatsforfinancialinformationcreatethefollowingissues:
a. Usersarerequiredtoaccessasinglefileandreadtheinformationpagebypage;
b. Datamustbeinterpretedbyuserswithinthecontextofthereporttheyarereading,potentiallyleadingtointerpretiveand/ortranspositionerrors;
c. Datamustbecopiedandpasted,orre-keyed,toenablefurtheranalysisorpresentationinadifferentform;
d. Comparativeanalysismayrequireuserstoaccessseveralfiles.Forexample,tocomparetheincomeoftencompaniesforaperiodoftenyears,ananalystmayberequiredtoaccess100discretefiles,searchineachoneforrequiredinformationandthen,iffound,extracttherelevantinformation;
e. Manualmanipulationandre-workoffinancialinformationiserror-prone,time-consumingandexpensive.
Therefore,solutionsweresoughttomakefinancialandotherbusinessinformationdynamic,orinteractive,toenableuserstoeasilyinteractwiththerelevantdatapopulation,improvethequalityofinformationandreduceusagecosts.
XBRLeliminatestheneedforrepeateddatainputting,comparison,transferralandsubmission,thusstreamliningtheprocessesforcollectingandreportingfinancialandotherbusinessinformation.Consumersoffinancialinformation,includingGovernments,regulators,investors,analystsandfinancialinstitutions,canreceive,find,compareandanalysedatamuchmorerapidlyandefficientlyifitisinXBRLformat.
How does XBRL work?
Insteadoftreatingfinancialinformationasablockoftext,asinastandardinternetpageoraprinteddocument,XBRLprovidesacomputerreadabletagsimilartoabarcodetoeachdataitemsothatelectronicallyeachindividualitemofdataisuniquelyidentifiable.
XBRLenablestheautomatedprocessingofbusinessinformationbycomputersoftware.Computerscantreatthedata“intelligently”:theycanrecognisetheinformation,selectit,analyseit,storeit,exchangeitwithothercomputersandpresentitautomaticallyinavarietyofwaysforusers.Inthisway,XBRLgreatlyincreasesthespeedofhandlingoffinancialdata,reducesthechanceoferrorandpermitsautomaticcheckingofinformation.
XBRL tags
Thetagassignedtoaspecificfigureinthefinancialinformationidentifiescertaincharacteristicsthatallowtheinformationtoberead,understoodandmanipulatedbyacomputerprogramthatcanrecognisethetag.Themeaningsofthetagsareincludedinarelevanttaxonomy(definedbelow)interpretedbycomputerprograms,likeanelectronicdictionary.
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5 Taxonomiesarepre-preparedbyvariousorganisationsandarefreelyavailable.6 Seewww.sbr.gov.au.7 TheXBRLSpecificationhasbeenestablishedbytheXBRLInternationalConsortium.FortheITtechnicaldetails,seewww.xbrl.org/Specifications.
XBRL taxonomies
Thelibraryoftagsrequiredforanyparticularpurposeisreferredtoasataxonomy.5Ataxonomyisessentiallyacollectionofconcepts,similartoadictionary.Individualtagsareknownastaxonomyelements.
IntheSBRcontext,thetaxonomyisacollectionofreportabletermsandtheirassociationwithaccountingandrelatedconcepts.ItisthelanguageusedtoenablebusinesssoftwaretosendreportstoAustralianGovernmentagencies.
TheSBRTaxonomyisbasedoninternationalstandardsandbestpractice.Indevelopingthetaxonomy,participatingagenciesundertookaprocessofrationalisation/harmonisation.Theprocessidentified,definedandlabelledeveryelementofdatathatisreportedtoAustralianGovernmentagenciesforeachoftheformsincludedinthescopeoftheSBRproject.Duplicateitemswithdisparatenameswereharmonisedunderonelabel.Similarly,itemswiththesamename,butdisparatedefinitions,wereidentifiedanduniquelylabelled.
TheSBRTaxonomyhasaround4,000elementsandmayberegardedasadefinitionaltaxonomy.OthertaxonomiesdevelopedinAustraliaforspecificpurposesarecreatedusingelementsfromtheSBRTaxonomy.Forexample,ataxonomymaybecreatedtoenablethelodgementofcompanytaxreturns.
EachnewtaxonomycreatedinAustraliamustreferencetheSBRTaxonomyandmustbeapprovedthroughacentralisedchangecontrolprocess.Inthisway,variationsintheapplicationofharmonisedelementswithintaxonomiesareminimised.
TheSBRTaxonomyisbeingusedbysoftwaredeveloperstobuildandtestSBR/XBRLenabledproductsforspecificpurposes.
Extending a taxonomy
The“X”inXBRLstandsfor“extensible”andaccordinglyXBRLisflexible,enablingareportingentitytocreatespecificelementsbywayof“extensions”toagiventaxonomy.Suchflexibilitysupportstheadaptabilityrequiredtoensurethatthefinancialresults,cashflowsandfinancialpositionofareportingentitycanbepresentedfairlyforanygivenaccountingframework.
TheAustralianSBRTaxonomycontainsalltheelementsrequiredtoenableareportingentitytomeettheminimumstandardstocreateavalidfinancialreport.However,asnotwobusinessesarethesame,notwofinancialstatementsarelikelytobethesame.Itisthereforehighlyunlikelythatanytaxonomycanbecreatedthatcontainsallthevariouselementsanygivenpopulationofreportingentitiesmayrequiretotaguptheirfinancialreports.Forexample,thetagsabankmightneedforitsfinancialstatementsorannualreportwilllikelydifferfromthoserequiredbyamanufacturingcompany,eventhoughbothmayusethesamereportingframeworksuchasAustralianAccountingStandards.Inadditiontheremaybeentityspecificinformation,forexample,analysisofsalesbyproductlinethatwouldbeuniquetothereportingentity.
Theuseofextensionsrequirescaretoensurethatcomparabilitywithotherreportsusingthesametaxonomyisnotundulyhindered.Accordinglyitisimportantthatextensionsareusedappropriately.Comparabilityisclearlyenhancedwhencommonlyusedextensionsareseparatelycodifiedintotheappropriatetaxonomytotheextentpossible.
TheSBRofficeinTreasuryprovidesguidanceonthedevelopmentandpublicationofindustrybasedextensions,6howevertheassuranceandaccuracyofsuchextensionsistheresponsibilityofthecreator.
XBRL Specification
XBRLenabledinformationcanbecreatedandacceptedbyanycomputer,similartothewaythatemailscanbetransmittedandreceivedworldwide.Theserules,orITstandards,arecalledtheXBRLSpecification7andtheyhaveuniversalacceptance.TheSpecificationsetsoutrulesastotheinformationthatisrequiredtocreatevalidXBRLinstancedocuments(describedbelow),taxonomiesandextensionsthereto.InthesamewaythatusersdonotneedtounderstandwhatmakesE-mailwork,usersdonotneedtounderstandthetechnicaldetailsoftheXBRLSpecification.
XBRL instance
AnXBRLinstanceisacomputerfilecontainingtheXBRLtagsforagivensetoffinancialinformation.ForexampleifareportingentitytaggeditsfinancialreporttheresultingcomputerfilecontainingthetaggedinformationiscalledanXBRLinstancedocument.
Instancedocumentsarenotmeanttobereadbyusersoffinancialstatements;theyarewrittenincomputercodecreatedforinterpretationbycomputers,comparabletothehtmlcodingthatisbehindmanyinternetpages.
Computerapplicationsconvertinstancedocumentsintohuman-readablereportingformats,inmuchthesamewaythatawebbrowserconvertshtmlcodeintotheinternetpagesthatwesee.
AnXBRLinstanceispreparedoncebutiscapableofusemanytimesandthisflexibilityallowsavarietyofuserneedstobemet.Forexample,aninstancedocumentcouldbeusedbyaninvestortoextractdataforanalysis;bytheATOtoextracttheinformationneededfortaxreturnpurposes;byabankforcreditcontrolpurposesandsoforth.Ineachcasetheuserappliesitsparticularcomputerapplicationtotheinstancetoextracttherequireddata(ifthesetaggeddataareavailableintheinstancedocument).
ThevalueofXBRLtaggingisthatitallowscomputerstorecognise,select,storeandexchangeinformationquicklyandeffectively,sothatdataismoreeasilyaccessible,manipulableandreviewable.XBRLallowsuserstocustomisetheiranalysisandpresentationoftaggedinformation.
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Preparing financial reports in XBRL format
ThereareanumberofwaysforentitiestopreparefinancialreportsforSBRpurposesusingXBRL:
a. ThefinancialreportcanbemappedintoXBRLafterithasbeenfinalised,eithermanuallyorbyusinga‘‘bolt-on’’applicationthatcompilesXBRLdatafromthetraditionalfinancialreportintoXBRLformat;or
b. XBRL-awareaccountingsoftwareproductsmaybeused.Suchproducts,whicharebeingdeveloped,willallowuserstomapchartsofaccountsandotherstructurestoXBRL,therebysupportingtheexportofdatainXBRLform.
Themethodwhichanentityadoptswilldependonitsrequirementsandtheaccountingsoftwareandsystemsituses.8
Whilestandardisedtaxonomiesexist,9taggingfinancialreportscanrequireasignificantamountofjudgementonthepartofthepreparer.Judgementmayberequiredwhere:
a. Therearemultipletagsthatcouldbeseenasapplicabletoaparticularfinancialstatementlineitem;
b. Whenthetaxonomydoesnotcoverallitemsofinformationtobedisclosedanditisnecessarytocreatenewtagsforthoseitems;or
c. Whenpreparersarenotwell-acquaintedwiththetaxonomyandcreateextensionstothetaxonomywhentheyarenotneeded.
Taxonomiesareperiodicallyrevisedandupdatedand,accordingly,preparersneedtoensurethattheappropriatetaxonomyhasbeenusedtotagthefinancialreport.
WhileSBRisexpectedtoimprovethecommunicationanduseoffinancialdata,theinformationprovidedinXBRLdocumentsisonlyasreliableastheunderlyingfinancialdatausedandtheaccuracyandcompletenessofthetaggingappliedtothatdataincreatingtheXBRLdocuments.
Lodging financial reports under SBR
From1July2010entitiesrequiredtolodgefinancialreportswithASICandAPRA,willbeabletodosoinXBRLformat,usingSBR-enabledsoftware.Formsthatwillbeavailablefromthatdateinclude:10
a. ASICForms
(i) Form388 CopyofFinancial StatementsandReports
(ii) FS70 ProfitandLossStatement andBalanceSheet
(iii) 7051 NotificationofHalfYearly Reports
(iii) FINRPT FinancialReportsand Statements
b. APRAForms
(i) StatementofFinancialPerformance;and
(ii) StatementofFinancialPosition.
Atthisstage,lodgingafinancialreportwithASICinXBRLformatusingSBRisvoluntaryanddoesnotreplaceanentity’sobligationtolodgethefinancialreportintherequiredpaperorpdfformat.
Audit requirements
NojurisdictiontodatehasmandatedtheauditoffinancialreportspreparedinXBRLformat.
AustralianAuditingStandardsdonotcurrentlyrequireauditorstoperformproceduresorprovideassuranceonXBRLtaggeddatainthecontextofanauditorreviewofafinancialreport.
Furthermore,becausetheXBRLtaggingissimplyamachine-readablerenderingofthedatawithinthefinancialreport,ratherthanadiscretedocument,itdoesnotconstitute‘otherinformation’asdefinedinASA720The Auditor’s Responsibilities Relating to Other Information in Documents Containing an Audited Financial Report.11AccordinglytherequirementofASA720fortheauditorto‘‘read’’theotherinformationforthepurposeofidentifyingmaterialinconsistenciesormaterialmisstatementsoffact12isnotapplicabletoXBRLinstancedocuments.
Similarly,theauditor’sreportinaccordancewiththeAustralianAuditingStandardsdoes
notcurrentlyapplytotheprocessbywhichinformationistaggedforXBRLpurposesortotheXBRL-taggeddatathatresultsfromthetaggingprocess,andnoassuranceisgivenonanyrepresentationoftheXBRL-taggeddata.
AustralianAuditingStandardsdonotprecludetheauditorfromclarifyingtheauditor’sassociationwithXBRL-taggeddataintheauditor’sreport,ifconsiderednecessary.Thismaybedone,forexample,byidentifyingwhatfinancialinformationiscoveredbytheauditor’sreport,orincludinganOtherMatterparagraph13inthereport.
AstheuseofXBRLevolvesinAustralia,itispossiblethatassurancemayberequiredonXBRL-taggeddatabyregulatorsorrequestedbypreparers,orbyinvestorsorotherfinancialreportusers.
Non-audit services
WhileauditorsarenotrequiredtoperformproceduresorprovideassuranceonXBRL-taggeddatainthecontextofanauditorreviewofafinancialreport,theremaybeademandfornon-auditservicestobeperformedbypractitioners.Examplesofnon-auditservicesmayinclude:
a. AdvisingontheimplementationofXBRL,wherenotprohibitedbyrelevantindependencerequirements;
b. AssistingwithorperformingtheXBRLtagging,wherenotprohibitedbyrelevantindependencerequirements;
c. TrainingmanagementandstaffinXBRLtagging;and
d. Otherassuranceengagements(forexample,specifiedassuranceproceduresrelatingtotheaccuracyoftheXBRLtaggingperformedbymanagement,toassisttheauditcommitteeinitsoversightrole;orassuranceonthecontrolsrelatedtotheXBRLtaggingprocess).
Whereotherassuranceengagementsareundertaken,ASA102Compliance with Ethical Requirements when Performing Audits, Reviews and Other Assurance Engagementsrequirestheauditor,assurancepractitionerandfirmtocomplywithrelevantethicalrequirements,includingthosepertainingtoindependence.14Accordingly,theauditorconsiderspossiblethreatstoindependence
8 Itisanticipatedthat,initially,mostAustralianentitieswillmapfinancialreportsintoXBRLaftercompletion.9 Atthisstage,theXBRLtaxonomyforAustralianfinancialreportsisbeingmanagedbyASIC,inconsultationwith
theAustralianAccountingStandardsBoard,accountingfirmsandsoftwaredevelopers.10OtherreportswillalsobeabletobelodgedwithotherregulatorsdirectlyfromSBR-enabledsoftwarefrom1July
2010.Forexample,theBusinessActivityStatementwillbeabletobelodgedfromSBR-enabledsoftwaredirectlywiththeAustralianTaxationOffice.
11SeeASA720,paragraph5(a).12SeeASA720,paragraphs8and14.13SeeASA706Emphasis of Matter Paragraphs and Other Matter Paragraphs in the Independent Auditor’s Report.14SeeASA102paragraph5.
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andobjectivityandwhetheritisappropriatetoaccepttheengagementand,ifso,whethertoapplyappropriatesafeguards.
Certainotherjurisdictionshaveissuedguidanceaboutnon-auditservicesrelatingtoXBRL.15TheAUASBismonitoringthesedevelopmentswithaviewtodeterminingthedemandforandapplicabilityofsuchguidanceinAustralia.
Potential implications of XBRL for audit and assurance
AstheadoptionofXBRLincreasesandusersbegintointeractwiththeXBRLdataavailabletothem,thedemandforauditofthatdataislikelytoincrease.Accountants,auditors,regulatorsandacademiaarebeginningtoconsiderwhattheimplicationsforauditandassurancemightbe.
Inpart,thewayinwhichXBRLisusedforfinancialreportingwilldeterminethenatureoftheassuranceprovidedonthatinformation.Forexample,whereXBRLisappliedafterthefinancialreporthasbeencompleted,suchthatthereisbothahumanreadablereportandanXBRLreport,thecurrentauditmodelmaycontinuetoapply.Thismodelprovidesfortheexpressionofanopinionbytheauditoronwhetherthefinancialreport,asawhole,presentsfairlyinallmaterialrespectsthefinancialpositionandresultsofanentity.AssuranceontheXBRLreport,inthisinstance,islikelytoinvolvereferencingtheequivalenthumanreadablereport.
However,whereXBRLisappliedatthechartofaccounts,ordata,level,suchthattheendproductisacomputerreadable,XBRLreportonly,newauditmethodologiesmayberequired,asthecurrentauditmodeldoesnotprovideforassurancetobegivenatthedatalevel.
XBRLwillenabledynamicinformationtobeprovidedtothemarket,allowinguserstoextractandre-useonlythoseelementsofanXBRLfinancialreportthatarerelevanttotheirenquiry.Anissuethereforearisesaboutassuranceatthedisaggregated,ratherthanreport,level.WillusersassumethatthedisaggregatedXBRLinformationhasbeenaudited?Willusersdemandassuranceofthisdisaggregatedinformation?Whatlevelofassurancewillberequiredandwillit
bepossibletoprovidethatassuranceatareasonablecost?
Toassiststandardsetters,policymakersandregulatorsunderstandandprepareforthechangestoauditandassurancepractice,researchisbeingundertakeninmanyjurisdictionsbyacademicinstitutions.Someoftheareasbeingexaminedinclude:
a. TheimplicationsofXBRLforauditsof,orotherassuranceserviceson,financialstatements;16
b. TheneedforaconceptualframeworkforprovidingassuranceonXBRLinstancedocumentsandasetofassertionssimilartothemanagementassertionsforfinancialaudits;17and
c. Theapplicabilityoftraditionalauditconceptssuchasmateriality,errorandsamplinginadata-centric,XBRLenvironment.18
IAASB work in relation to XBRL
TheInternationalAuditingandAssuranceStandardsBoard(IAASB)hascommissionedaresearchprojectontheimplicationsofXBRLforthefinancialstatementauditandisundertakingaconsultationprocesstodeterminetheneedsofpreparersandusersofXBRL-taggeddatatoassisttheIAASBinassessingwhetheritisnecessaryandinthepublicinteresttodevelopapronouncementaddressingassociationwithand/orassuranceonXBRL-taggeddata.19
AUASB work in relation to XBRL
TheAUASBiscloselymonitoringlocalandinternationaldevelopmentsintheXBRLareawithaviewtodeterminingwhetheritisinthepublicinteresttoissueapronouncementtoassistauditandassurancepractitioners.Inparticular,theAUASBismonitoringtheworkbeingdonebytheIAASB,theAustralianTreasury,ASIC,APRAandacademia.
ThecommencementofvoluntarylodgementoffinancialreportsinXBRLformatwithASICfrom1July2010willbecloselywatchedbytheAUASBasanindicatorofthetake-upofthetechnologyforfinancialreportinginAustralia.
15Forexample,seetheAmericanInstituteofCertifiedPublicAccountants(AICPA)StatementofPosition09-1Performing Agreed-Upon Procedures Engagements that Address the Completeness, Accuracy, or Consistency of XBRL-Tagged Data(April2009).
16 Seewww.ifac.org/MediaCenterfortheIAASBmediareleaseregardingthisresearchproject.17 Forexample,seeSrivastava,RajendraP.andKogan,Alex,Assurance on XBRL Instance Document: A Conceptual Framework of Assertions(September2009)18 Forexample,Plumlee,R.DavidandPlumlee,MarleneA.,Assurance on XBRL for Financial Reporting(September2008)19Seewww.ifac.org/IAASB/ProjectHistory.
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What is happening in other countries?
XBRLandstandardbusinessreportingarebeingadoptedtovaryingdegrees,andfordifferentpurposes,inmanycountries,includingBelgium,Canada,China,Denmark,France,Germany,HongKong,India,Israel,Italy,Japan,Korea,theNetherlands,Singapore,Spain,Sweden,Thailand,theUnitedStatesofAmericaandtheUnitedKingdom.DevelopmentsinthesecountriesaretooextensivetodescribeinthisBulletin,however,certainhighlightsareprovidedtogivethereaderasenseoftheadoptionofXBRLworldwide.
United States of America
FromDecember2008,thetop500publiccompanieshavebeenrequiredtofiletheirfinancialstatementswiththeSecuritiesandExchangeCommission(SEC)inbothtextand“interactive”20format.
Netherlands
TheNetherlandswasthefirstcountrytoembarkonastandardbusinessreportingprogramandtheAustralianSBRprogramisbasedontheirapproach.SinceJanuary2007,DutchbusinesseshavebeenabletomaptheirfinancialdatainacommonXBRLlanguageandsendreportsdirectlyfromtheirsoftwaretotherelevantgovernmentagency.BusinesseswhousethefacilitiesoftheDutchSBRprogramhaveestimatedtheysaveupto15percentoftheircompliancereportingcosts.
United Kingdom
TheonlinefilingofallCompanyTaxReturnsusingInlineXBRL21willbemandatoryfrom1April2011,whichwillresultinmorethantwomillionreturnsbeingprocessedbyHerMajesty’sRevenueandCustoms(HMRC)eachyear.
Germany
InJanuary2010,theFederalMinistryofFinanceissuedaTaxDeregulationActmandatingthestandardisedsubmissionoffinancialstatementsinXBRLformatforfiscalperiodsbeginningonorafter31December2010.Thislegislationisakeypartofaministerialinitiativetoreducethetaxreportingburden.Itisbeingco-ordinatedthroughtheFederalCONSENUS(co-ordinatedsoftwaredevelopmentforelectronictaxadministration)project.
Spain
InMarch2010,theSpanishBusinessRegistryannouncedtheavailabilityofannualfinancialstatementsinXBRLformatforusersofitsonlineportal,www.registradores.org.Todate,therehavebeenmorethen600,000submissionstotheBusinessRegistryinXBRL.ThisfollowsthepublicationofOrder BOE JUST/206/2009intheofficialjournaloftheSpanishgovernmentinFebruary2009,mandatingtheuseofXBRLinthepresentationofannualfinancialstatements.
Belgium
Thefilingofregisteredcompanies’annualreportstotheNationalBankofBelgiuminXBRLformatwasmademandatoryinApril2007.Sincethen,over98%ofthe235,000registered,unlisted,non-financialcompaniesinBelgiumhavefiledreportsinXBRLformat.
China
ChinapioneeredtheadoptionofXBRLreportingin2003withapilotprogramunderwhich118annualreportswerefiledinXBRLformatwiththeShanghaiStockExchange(SSE).InApril2010,864companieslistedonSSEsuccessfullylodgedannualreports(for2008)inXBRLformat.
APPENDIX 1
20 Theterm“interactive”iscommonlyusedintheUnitedStates,ratherthantheacronym“XBRL”.21 InlineXBRL(iXBRL)useswebbrowsertechnology(htmlorxhtml)toprovidewebbrowserpresentationsofinstancedocuments.Itprovidesamechanismfor
takingXBRLfragmentsinfinancialandbusinessinformationinhtmlandaddingtoithiddenmetadata,ortags,whichcanbeusedtoconstructamachine-readablecopyofthesameinformation.TheobjectiveistoprovidedocumentswhichcanbeviewedinawebbrowserwhilemakinguseofXBRLtagswhichcanbeprocessedautomaticallybyconsumingapplications.
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TherearenumerouswebsiteswhichprovideinformationaboutXBRLanddemonstrationsofhowXBRLcanbeused.ThefollowingwebsitesprovideexamplesofthetypesofXBRL,andSBR,informationavailableontheinternetandusefulstartingpointstolearnmoreaboutXBRL.Thereare,however,manymorewebsitesandtoolswhichareavailableandthislistprovidesonlyafewexamples.
• www.sbr.gov.au ThisistheAustralianGovernmentwebsitefortheSBRinitiative,developedoveranumberofyears,whichprovidesforthecommencementofreportingtoGovernmentinXBRLformatfrom1July2010.ThewebsiteprovidesextensiveinformationontheSBRPrograminAustralia,aswellasinformationaboutXBRL,includinglearningprogramstailoredforbusiness,reportingprofessionals,softwaredevelopersandthepublic.
• www.xbrl.org ThisisthemainwebsiteforXBRLInternational.ItprovidesextensiveinformationaboutthedevelopmentofXBRLgloballyandlinkstootherwebsites.
• www.iasb.org/xbrlThisistheInternationalAccountingStandardsBoardXBRLwebsite.ItprovidesashortsummarydescribingXBRLanddetailsofhowitworks.
• usgaap.xbrl.usThisisthewebsiteoftheUSjurisdictionofXBRLInternational,aseparatenon-profitorganisation.ItprovidesusefulinformationaboutXBRLintheUS,aswellascasestudies,whitepapersandfactsheets.
Copyright
©2010AuditingandAssuranceStandardsBoard.Thetext,graphicsandlayoutofthisBulletinareprotectedbyAustraliancopyrightlawandthecomparablelawofothercountries.ReproductionwithinAustraliainunalteredform(retainingthisnotice)ispermittedforpersonalandnon-commercialusesubjecttotheinclusionofanacknowledgmentofthesource.RequestsandenquiriesconcerningreproductionandrightsforcommercialpurposeswithinAustraliashouldbeaddressedtotheExecutiveDirector,AuditingandAssuranceStandardsBoard.Otherwise,nopartoftheBulletinmaybereproduced,storedortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeanswithoutthepriorwrittenpermissionoftheAUASBexceptaspermittedbylaw.
Disclaimer
AUASBBulletinsareissuedtoraiseageneralawarenessofmattersthatareofinteresttoauditorsandassurancepractitioners.TheydonotprovideauthoritativeguidanceanddonotamendexistingAUASBStandardsandGuidanceStatements.NoresponsibilityistakenfortheresultsofactionsoromissionstoactonthebasisofanyinformationcontainedinthisAUASBBulletin,oranyerrorsoromissionsinthedocument.
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