ARTICLE

International Financial Reporting Standards:

A Guide to Sources for International
Accounting Standards
Todd M. Hines

ABSTRACT. International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs), formerly known as International Accounting Standards, are becoming increasingly important in the global economy. Over the last 35 years there has been
a strong push towards the adoption of a uniform set of financial accounting standards to replace the myriad number of country-specific standards
now in use. A major milestone towards the goal of global accounting standards occurred recently. Starting in 2005 most public companies domiciled
in the European Union are required to use the IFRS system when preparing their financial statements. This paper presents the International Financial Reporting Standards framework, including the roles of the rulemaking
bodies and where to access the primary IFRS publications. An annotated

Todd M. Hines is Business Reference Librarian/Assistant Professor, Angelo Bruno

Business Library, Box 870266, The University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa,
AL 35487-0266 (E-mail: thines@bruno.cba.ua.edu).
Journal of Business & Finance Librarianship, Vol. 12(3) 2007
Available online at http://jbfl.haworthpress.com
2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1300/J109v12n03_02

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bibliography of IRFS explanatory materials and useful free Websites is

also included. doi:10.1300/J109v12n03_02 [Article copies available for a fee
from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: <docdelivery@haworthpress.com> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.
com> 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]

KEYWORDS. Bibliographies, International Financial Reporting Standards, International Accounting Standards, Financial Accounting Standards

INTRODUCTION
Historically, individual countries have developed their own sets of financial accounting standards. International Financial Reporting Standards
(IFRSs) were created with the goal of providing a single internationally
recognized set of accounting standards. This article provides an introduction to the framework used for IFRSs, as well as useful primary and
secondary sources.
WHY HAVE INTERNATIONAL
ACCOUNTING STANDARDS?
In an increasingly interconnected world, the operations of international corporations are transnational. In addition, more and more investing takes place on a global level. Historically, different countries have
developed their own national accounting standards. Neighbors Canada
and the United States are similar in many respects but use different financial reporting standards. Numerous worldwide accounting standards can lead to confusion and large complications for preparers and
users of financial statements.
Financial statements prepared under different countries financial accounting rules are often not comparable. For example, if one company
reported under Chinese accounting standards and another under United
States GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles), an investor
would not be able to make apples-to-apples comparisons without making a number of adjusting accounting entries. Otherwise it would be tantamount to comparing two distances, one in miles and the other in
kilometers. Without adjustments the comparison is meaningless.

Todd M. Hines

With so many different national accounting standards, it would not

be unusual for the same company to show a profit if its financials were
prepared under one nations accounting standards, but to show a loss if
using another countrys GAAP. A worldwide set of uniform accounting
rules would solve this problem.
The goal of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) is
to develop a single set of international accounting standards, called International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).1 This goal is not
newits predecessor, the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC), was formed over thirty years ago in 1973 and operated continuously until it was supplanted in 2001 by the IASB. Progression
towards a single set of worldwide standards has occurred in fits and
starts over the years, but in recent years the harmonization effort has
picked up steam.
MOVES TOWARD ACCOUNTING CONVERGENCE
Most publicly traded European Union companies listed on an EU
regulated market are required to prepare their financial statements under IFRS starting in 2005 (Tweedie & Seidenstein, 2005). Elsewhere,
Australia, Hong Kong and South Africa have also directed their companies to use IFRSs starting in 2005. In Latin America, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Panama and Venezuela also have adopted IFRSs
(Tweedie & Seidenstein, 2005). Many other countries are planning to
converge their current standards with the IFRS.
The United States has no current plans to convert to international
standards, but U.S. regulators have taken several steps towards convergence. Currently a foreign company that prepares its financial statements
under International Financial Reporting Standards and is cross-listed on a
U.S. stock exchange must prepare a voluminous filing, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Form 20-F in the United States. The form essentially converts the foreign firms financial statements into United
States GAAP. This can be burdensome and requires a great deal of extra
work. Luckily, the SEC, the main United States financial regulatory
body, has proposed transitional rules that would reduce the amount of
historical information required to be disclosed in the reconciliation on
Form 20-F. This proposal would make it easier on the hundreds of
cross-listed European Union companies, who will now be required to
use IFRSs in their home market (Lo, 2004).

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For a number of years, the SEC has publicly supported the idea
of converging U.S. GAAP and International GAAP into a single globally recognized set of accounting standards. In 2005, the SECs then
Chief Accountant, Donald T. Nicolaisen, stated that he supported convergence and that a common accounting language usable around the
globe would be a dream come true (In the Public Interest, 2005,
p. 70). In another sign of convergence, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), promulgator of United States GAAP, has entered
into a joint project with the IASB to develop a common conceptual
framework, which, if successful, would bring the underlying principles
of U.S. GAAP into line with IFRS (Harrington, 2005). As discussed in a
following section, Principles-Based versus Rules-Based Standards,
the two frameworks are currently very different.
ROAD BLOCKS TO CONVERGENCE
A recent book on this topic identifies several main obstacles to a
worldwide harmonization of accounting standards. The most fundamental obstacles are the large differences between the accounting practices of different countries (Nobes & Parker, 2004). Explaining some of
these major differences is beyond the scope of this introductory article;
the important point is that many countries have accounting standards
vastly different from the International Standards. For example, the entire framework of U.S. GAAP is radically different from that of IFRS.
Another significant obstacle is nationalism. In the foreign policy
arena, the United States has recently been wary of multilateral solutions, preferring to go its own way on a number of international issues.
It has favored solutions that give it unilateral power to make binding decisions. There has been a similar trend in accounting. The United States
has been so cautious about joining a binding global accounting scheme
that it does not have unilateral power to influence or set its own accounting rules. Under the current U.S. GAAP system, all accounting
standards are promulgated by U.S. organizations, with the ultimate
authority residing in a U.S. government agency. A private U.S. organization, FASB, issues standards but the Securities and Exchange Commission retains ultimate authority. If the United States started following
IFRSs, it would not retain this kind of control over the accounting
standards to which its capital markets would adhere.
The new Form 20-F rules discussed earlier illustrate the SECs willingness to take small steps towards harmonization without wholly committing

Todd M. Hines

to adoption of IFRSs. Even though the SEC is attempting to make it easier for cross-listed firms to reconcile their financial statements to U.S.
GAAP on the Form 20-F, there are no current plans to accept financial
statements produced under IFRS without also requiring a reconciliation
to U.S. standards (Lo, 2004).
Although there have been movements towards a global set of accounting standards, many individual countries have retained their own
national standards. In 2001 the global accounting firms Deloitte &
Touche, Ernst & Young, KPMG, Arthur Andersen, PricewaterhouseCoopers, BDO Seidman, and Grant Thornton conducted a survey of the
accounting standards in over 60 countries. They found that only around
20 are, [r]esponding to the challenge of convergence with an active
agenda and proposed changes to national requirements (Nobes, 2001).
Momentum has picked up a bit since then. Information collected by
PricewaterhouseCoopers in July 2005 indicates that IFRSs are now
mandatory for listed companies in 70 of the 110 countries examined
(Bolton, 2006). However, 27 countries, including some of the largest
capital markets in the world, such as the United States and Japan, still
prohibit IFRS use by their publicly traded companies (Bolton, 2006).2

WHO SETS INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL

REPORTING STANDARDS?
International Accounting Standards Board
International Financial Reporting Standards are set by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), a private organization. The
Board has 12 full-time and 2 part-time members. Members are appointed by the Trustees of the International Accounting Standards
Committee Foundation (IASCF) discussed elsewhere. The main qualification for appointment to the board is technical expertise. The IASBs
predecessor, the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC),
was criticized for being too controlled by the accounting profession. To
prevent this from recurring, the IASB is required to include members
from outside of the accounting profession, such as financial statement
users and representatives from academia. Trustees are also charged with
ensuring that the IASB is not dominated by any particular constituency
or geographical interest.

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The IASB lacks the power to mandate that any country follow its
Standards. However, as discussed earlier, a number of nations have now
adopted IFRS, mainly due to the perceived benefits of operating under a
single worldwide set of financial accounting rules. The Boards main
responsibilities are
to develop, in the public interest, a single set of high quality,
understandable and enforceable global financial accounting standards that require high quality, transparent and comparable information in financial statements and other financial reporting to help
participants in the worlds capital markets and other users make
economic decisions;
to promote the use and rigorous application of those standards; and
to bring about convergence of national accounting standards and
International Accounting Standards to high quality solutions
(Hussey & Ong, 2005).
The IASCF oversees the Board. It raises the funds necessary to run
the IASB and, as mentioned earlier, appoints the IASB members. The
IASCF comprises twenty-two Trustees. They are required to be representatives of the worlds capital markets and to be from diverse geographical and professional backgrounds. The IASCF and IASB are
relatively new organizations. They replaced the previous rulemaking
body, the IASC, and came into operation officially in April 2001.
The primary accounting rules prepared and issued by the IASB are
the IFRS, previously known as International Accounting Standards. Before a final Standard is issued, an Exposure Draft is released in order to
obtain input from the public. Further details on IFRSs and Exposure
Drafts are provided later.
Another organization related to the IASB is the International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee (IFRIC). It primarily develops and solicits comments on how to interpret and apply the Standards
promulgated by the IASB. The IASB approves the Interpretations that
are developed by IFRIC. The important IFRIC pronouncements will be
discussed in more detail later.
International Accounting Standards Committee
Prior to the establishment of the IASB, international accounting standards were set by the IASC. This body existed from 1973 to 2001, and

Todd M. Hines

its membership consisted of major professional accounting bodies from

around the world. The IASC voted to dissolve itself in 1999 and to be replaced by the IASB. A number of reasons were given for supplanting
the International Accounting Standards Committee with the IASB.
Some perceived shortcomings of the IASC were
full-time workload but only a part-time board
need for wider group of countries, constituencies and organizations with decision input
shortage of resources, especially budgetary
weak relationships with national standard setters (Nobes & Parker,
2004)
The establishment of the IASB addressed and improved upon all
these issues. Membership was expanded, the budget was increased,
more full-time staff members were added and an effort was made to establish better relationships with the different national standard setters.
While it was in existence, the IASC issued 41 standards, called International Accounting Standards (IAS). Before a final IAS was issued, an
Exposure Draft (ED) would be published to garner public comment. A
Standing Interpretations Committee (SIC) was established to provide
guidance on implementing the standards. It issued Interpretations to
help users with implementation. These pronouncements will be discussed in more detail later. The International GAAP rules passed by the
IASC were incorporated by the IASB. These rules remain in effect
unless superseded by subsequent IASB Standards.

IFRS FRAMEWORK
In 1989 the IASC issued their Framework for the Preparation and
Presentation of Financial Statements. This framework describes the
basic concepts and parameters to follow when preparing financial statements under International GAAP. It serves as a guide for promulgating
standards, as well as a guide for resolving an issue that has not been specifically addressed in a previous standard. However, the framework itself is not a standard. It cannot override any issued standard. If there is
not a Standard or an Interpretation that specifically applies to a transaction, then IAS 8 requires that judgment be used to develop and apply an

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accounting treatment that produces both relevant and reliable information. In making this judgment, IAS 8 also requires the consideration
of the definitions, recognition criteria and measurement concepts for assets, liabilities, income, and expenses used in the Framework.
PRINCIPLES-BASED VERSUS RULES-BASED STANDARDS
International GAAP is principles based. This means that the standards concentrate on general principles derived from a conceptual framework. The standards tend to provide limited guidance on applying the
principles to specific transactions. Accountants are not given a specific
road map to use when applying the principles to real world situations.
Instead they are encouraged to use professional judgment to apply the
general rules to their particular circumstances.
U.S. GAAP, while having some components of a principles-based
structure such as a conceptual framework, is far more rules based.
Rather than relying upon more general principles, U.S. GAAP often
provides a list of specific rules to apply in given accounting situations.
The goal is to deal with possible contingent scenarios and to plug up any
possible holes. U.S. standards tend to have more specific implementation guidance and bright-line tests of the correct and incorrect accounting treatments than does International GAAP. A 2004 article in the CPA
Journal illustrates this point:
Principles-based accounting for leases is addressed in six IASB
pronouncements and one Interpretation. In contrast, U.S. GAAP
related to lease accounting is addressed in 20 Statements,
nine FASB Interpretations, 10 Technical Bulletins, and 39 EITF
Abstracts. The depth of GAAP coverage of leases is characteristic
of the rules-based accounting system in the U.S. (Shortridge &
Myring, 2004, p. 35).
IMPORTANT IFRS PUBLICATIONS
International Accounting Standards Board: (2001- )
International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). These are the
highest-level pronouncements issued by the IASB. Under the previous

Todd M. Hines

11

standards issuer, the IASC, the highest level standards were the International Accounting Standards (IAS). Note that since the establishment
of the IASB, this board has amended some IASs, proposed making
amendments to other IASs, suggested replacing some IASs with new
IFRSs, and adopted or proposed certain new IFRSs on topics for which
no previous IAS was issued. As of early 2006, seven International
Financial Reporting Standards have been issued. These are numbered
IFRS 1, IFRS 2, and so on.
IFRS Exposure Drafts. Before a final IFRS is issued, the IASB publishes an Exposure Draft to obtain public comments. These are produced to assure that important issues are not missed when a new
Standard is being considered. It also helps to ensure the consideration of
a wide range of viewpoints, not just those of the board members.
IFRIC Draft Interpretations. These are prepared by the IFRIC can be
issued to clarify previously issued Standards, as well to provide guidance on financial reporting issues not specifically addressed by IFRSs
or IASs. Interpretations tend to be necessary when unsatisfactory practices have arisen, or where the Standards lack guidance for particular
business circumstances. A Draft is issued to allow for public comments
and the consideration of these comments before the issuance of the final
IFRIC Interpretation.
IFRIC Interpretations. After a Draft Interpretation has a public comment period, a final Interpretation is considered and approved by the
IFRIC. It must then be approved by IASB before it is issued. As of
2005, seven IFRIC Interpretations have been issued. They are numbered IFRIC 1, IFRIC 2, and so on.
International Accounting Standards Committee: (1973-2001)
International Accounting Standards. During its existence the IASC
developed 41 standards. Many of these have been revised one or more
times over the years. A number of them have been superseded or have
been merged with other Standards. Those that have not been superseded
or merged remain in effect and still retain the IAS number. They are
numbered IAS 1, IAS 2, and so on.
SIC Draft Interpretations. The Standing Interpretations Committee
had a purpose similar to the current IFRIC. The SIC considered accounting issues within the context of the existing IASs and the IASC
Framework and offered guidance on the correct treatment. Unlike the
current IFRIC, the SIC had no authority to provide guidance on financial reporting issues not specifically addressed by existing Standards.

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As with the current IFRIC Interpretations, a draft was issued to obtain

input from the public before a final SIC was issued.
SIC Interpretations. After a Draft Interpretation was issued and comments were received from the public, a final SIC Interpretation was considered and approved by the Committee. It was then submitted to the
IASC and, if approved, was issued in final form. There were a few occasions when the IASC remanded an Interpretation back to the SIC to be
reworked, as well as instances where the IASC did not adopt the final
SIC Interpretation. The SIC passed 33 Interpretations during its existence. They are numbered SIC 1, SIC 2, and so on.
Framework for the Preparation and Presentation of Financial Statements (the Framework). In 1989, the IASC published the Framework for
the Preparation and Presentation of Financial Statements, which is intended to outline the concepts serving as the foundation of the international
financial reporting system. It still serves as a guide in the IFRS system for
resolving accounting issues not addressed directly in a Standard.
HOW DO THE STANDARDS FIT TOGETHER?
Guidance for applying international accounting standards exists in
the IASB Framework, the IFRSwhich includes any IASC material that
has not been replaced or mergedand the Interpretations.
Using IAS 8 as a guide, the following hierarchy, in decreasing authority of guidance within IFRS, is followed in developing and applying
an accounting policy where no specific IFRS or IAS deals with the
transaction:
A. The requirements and guidance in the IFRS/IAS and IFRIC/SIC
Interpretations dealing with similar and related issues;
B. The Framework, in particular the definitions, recognition and measurement criteria for assets, liabilities, income and expenses; and
C. The most recent pronouncements from other standard-setting bodies that use a similar conceptual framework to develop accounting
standards, other accounting literature and accepted industry practice to the extent that these do not conflict with (1) and (2).
WHERE TO ACCESS IFRS MATERIAL
Several commercial databases, as well as the IASB itself, provide access to the full-text IFRS material. Note that RIA, who has not previously

Todd M. Hines

13

had a database with full-text International GAAP, plans to add IFRSs to

their Checkpoint database in 2006. All of the services listed, except for
one, require a subscription. As in the following discussion, it is possible
to obtain much of the full-text IFRS material for free through the European Union Website. However, the EU site is poorly organized and difficult to navigate.
Comperio (Subscription database)
https://www.pwccomperio.com
This database is produced by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), one
of the Big Four accounting firms. Accounting standards from many different countries are available as part of a subscription, including U.S.
and International. All the official International Standards in full text can
be added to a subscription. A helpful component to the IFRS package is
Applying IFRS, a PWC publication that provides plain-English explanations of International GAAP. It also provides over 1,000 real-world
IFRS examples, illustrating how the Standards should be applied in
practice. Using the default search option retrieves both U.S. and International GAAP information. This can be confusing, especially for
beginners who might not understand that these are two completely different sets of accounting standards.
Accounting Research Manager (Subscription database)
http://www.accountingresearchmanager.com
The accounting firm Arthur Andersen originally created this database. After Andersens dissolution because of the Enron scandal, CCH
purchased Accounting Research Manager. A subscription can include
both U.S. and International Standards. The editors at CCH provide explanations of the correct treatment for hundreds of accounting topics
and a link to the authoritative literature. For the novice it is generally
much easier to read a plain-English explanation first and then proceed to
using the actual Standards.
Accounting Research Online (Subscription database)
https://www.aro.kpmg.com/
KPMG, another Big Four accounting firm, produces this database. Like
the Comperio and Accounting Research Manager databases, a module

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containing both the authoritative international accounting literature, as

well as explanatory material from KPMG is available as a subscription.
The U.S. GAAP literature can be added to the database for an additional
fee. The accompanying IFRS explanatory material Insights into IFRS is
KPMGs practical guide to IFRS and is similar to the explanatory material available in Comperio and Accounting Research Manager.
International Accounting Standards Board Website
http://www.iasb.org/
Summaries of the Standards and Interpretations that have not been
superseded are available for free on the IASB Website. The full-text
versions are available for sale on the site in several formats.
IASB Comprehensive Subscription Service (Subscription database)
http://shop.iasb.org.uk/onlineservices
A subscription provides online access to all IFRSs, IASs and Interpretations online. Very little explanatory material is included.
The subscription mainly provides access to the full-text Standards. Because most users can also benefit from the explanatory
material available in Comperio, Accounting Research Manager
and Accounting Research Online, a subscription to one of those
services is generally preferable to subscribing only to the IASB
database.
2006 International Financial Reporting Standards (Annual).
London: International Accounting Standards Board, 2006. (Also
available on CD-ROM.)
The IFRS Bound Volume is the only official and complete printed
edition of the authoritative pronouncements issued by the IASB
and is issued annually. It includes the latest versions of all IFRSs,
including IASs, issued up to December 31, 2005 and required to
be applied on or by January 1, 2006. An obvious disadvantage to
the print version is that it is updated only once a year. A CD-ROM
version can also be purchased separately.
European UnionAccounting Regulations
http://europa.eu.int/comm/internal_market/accounting/
ias_en.htm#iasb-adoption
When IASB standards are endorsed by the Accounting Regulatory
Committee of the European Commission for use in the European Union,

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15

they (minus the non-mandatory guidance and all bases for conclusions)
are published in the Official Journal of the European Union in all the
EU languages. This can be accessed online at the above-listed URL
Starting in 2005, public companies from EU countries are required to
prepare their financial statements under IFRS, thus the availability of
much of the IFRS material through the EU Website. Because the EU
Webpage is cluttered and difficult to navigate, this method of access is
recommended only for very advanced users. Moreover, it is very difficult to discern what IFRS information is available from this source and
what is omitted.
Miller International Accounting Library Online (Subscription database)
http://tax.cchgroup.com/TaxResearch/ResearchResources/
AccountingAndAudit/
The Miller GAAP Guides are well-known sources for obtaining easier-to-understand explanations of accounting standards. They generally
contain practice pointers, illustrations, and examples. The Miller International Accounting Library Online includes the Miller explanatory
material for IFRSs. This entry is listed in this section because, for an additional fee, the full-text IFRS material can be added to a subscription.

OTHER INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL REPORTING

STANDARDS SOURCES
A recent study identified the academic journals that publish the most
international accounting research (Prather-Kinsey & Rueschhoff, 2004).
Some of the major journals specializing in this area are listed. Most of
the top-tier accounting journals also publish articles in this area, but until now it has been a small portion of their total articles. Top-tier journals
such as Contemporary Accounting Review, Journal of Accounting and
Economics, as well as Accounting, Organization & Society have all
published less than ten percent of their articles in the international accounting area during the last several decades. This section concentrates
on journals that specialize in this area, as well as some related newsletters and trade publications.

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Journals and Annuals

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal. Bi-monthly. Bradford, UK.: Emerald Group Publishing. 1988-.
Advances in International Accounting. Annual. Greenwich, CT:
JAI Press. 1987- .
International Accounting and Reporting Issues. Annual. New
York, NY: United Nations Centre on Transnational Corporations.
1984- .
The International Journal of Accounting. Quarterly. New York,
NY: Elsevier Science. 1989- .
Journal of International Accounting, Auditing, and Taxation.
Semi-annual. New York, NY: Elsevier Science. 1992- .
Journal of International Accounting Research. Annual. Sarasota,
FL: American Accounting Association. 2002- .
Journal of International Financial Management and Accounting.
Tri-annual. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. 1989- .
Newsletters and Trade Publications
Several newsletters are published by the IASB, and all the Big Four
accounting firms publish monthly electronic IFRS newsletters. They
primarily discuss current IASB developments.
Global EYe on IFRS. Ernst & Young. 2004- .
http://www.ey.com/global/content.nsf/International/Assurance_-_
IAS_-_Tools_and _Resources
IAS Plus. Monthly. Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. 2000- .
http://www.iasplus.com/iasplus/iasplus.htm
IASB Insight: The Newsletter of the International Accounting
Standards Board. Quarterly. London, UK: International Accounting Standards Board. 2002- .
IASB Update. Monthly. London, UK: International Accounting
Standards Board. 2001- .
IFRIC Update: Newsletter of the International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee. Monthly. London, UK: International Accounting Standards Board. 2003- .

Todd M. Hines

17

IFRS in Brief. Monthly. London, UK: KPMG. 2003- .

http://www. kpmgifrg.com/pubs/pub_brief.cfm
IFRS News. Monthly. London, UK: PricewaterhouseCoopers. 2004- .
http://www.pwcglobal.com/Extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/
E3BB625A0A6E1A1380256C2800375319
Explanatory Material: Print and Electronic Book Sources
Hundreds of publications have been produced over the last several
decades on international accounting topics. Because so many substantive changes have been made to the international accounting standards
structure and procedures during the last few years, the focus here is on
more recent material. Because of the European Unions requirement
that many EU companies use IFRSs starting in 2005, there have been a
large number of recent IFRS explanatory material publications.
Afterman, Allan. International Accounting, Financial Reporting, &
Analysis. Looseleaf. New York, NY: Warren Gorman Lamont,
1995- . Available electronically at: http://ria.thomson.com/eStore/
detail.aspx? ID=WINAT
This looseleaf service, written from a U.S. perspective, contrasts the
accounting standards used in twenty-four countries to U.S. GAAP.
IFRSs are included. It is recommended here as a way to easily compare
and contrast IFRS and U.S. GAAP. Quick-scan charts comparing accounting practices by country are available and over 150 examples of financial statement presentations, and footnotes from both foreign and
U.S. annual reports are included.
Alexander, David and Simon Archer. Miller International Accounting/Financial Reporting Standards Guide (2005). Annual.
New York, NY: Aspen Publishers, 2005.
This Guide provides current information on IFRSs and proposed
changes. A separate section provides guidance for entities adopting
International Standards for the first time. Both general and industry-specific standards are covered. It is often helpful to read the analysis
here first to develop a general understanding and then proceed to the
full-text standards. This information is also included in the Miller
International Accounting Library Online database discussed in the
section Where to Access IFRS Material.

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Bonham, Mike. International GAAP 2005. Annual. London, UK:

Butterworths, 2004.
Prepared by the international accounting firm Ernst & Young, this
source provides practical guidance on IFRS. Its focus is to interpret and
provide guidance to the standards set by IASB.
Britton, Anne, David Alexander, and Ann Jorissen. International
Financial Reporting and Analysis. 2nd ed. London, UK: Thomson,
2005.
The primary emphasis of the book is to explain the structure and specific rules of the IFRS; it also discusses European Union and United
States accounting directives that do not follow IFRS. A number of examples of financial reporting using IFRS from real companies accounts are included.
Choi, Frederick D.S. and Gary K. Meek. International Accounting. 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005.
This books scope is wider than just international accounting standards. The topics covered include comparative accounting, managerial
planning and control, foreign currency translation, accounting for changing prices, international accounting harmonization, international financial statement analysis, financial risk management, international taxation
and transfer pricing.
Epstein, Jay, Peter J. Walton and Abbas Ali Mirza. Wiley IFRS
2005: Interpretation and Application of International Accounting
Standards. Annual. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2005 (also available in
CD-ROM).
This source is updated annually and is a one-stop resource for understanding current IFRSs. It gives explanations of the International GAAP
literature, as well as advice on its use and implementation.
Greuning, Hennie van. International Financial Reporting Standards: A Practical Guide. Revised edition. Washington, DC: World
Bank, 2004.
Looking at the title of this book, it is reasonable to assume that this
source will provide explanations of the current IFRSs. However, it only
provides specific examples of how to treat various accounting topics
under IFRS, such as inventory, business combinations, employee benefits, impairment of assets, etc. It is best for someone who has an under-

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19

standing of IFRSs and needs to see some examples. Not as useful for
someone with no background in the area.
Hallstrom, Kristina Tamm. Organizing International Standardization: ISO and the IASC in Quest of Authority. Northampton,
MA: Edward Elgar, 2004.
This book provides information on the establishment, negotiation
and maintenance of international standards. Specifically, the author examines the functions of two international standardizations bodies: the
International Standards Organization (ISO) and IASC. The ISO works
to pass international standards in numerous areas such as math, sciences, information technology, telecommunications, etc. It does not
deal with accounting standards. As discussed throughout this paper the
IASC, the predecessor organization to the IASB, was primarily concerned with setting international financial reporting standards. The
book discusses the reasons why there is a push for international standards in many different areas and illustrates the many difficulties that
must be overcome in order to institute them.
Hussey, Roger and Audra Ong. International Financial Reporting
Standards Desk Reference: Overview, Guide, and Dictionary.
Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2005.
This volume aims to provide a wide range of information on IFRSs in
one volume. As the title states, the first several chapters give a history of
international standards. Summaries and overviews of the IFRS Interpretations and Standards are also provided. The final section has a useful dictionary of many of the specialized terms used in this area. It can
be a helpful quick reference source, though many of the other sources
discussed in this section do a better job of explaining the actual International GAAP rules. The main problem here is that only a summary, albeit easy to read, is provided for each Standard issued. In general the
other explanatory sources listed in this section provide explanations by
topic. For example, intangible assets are addressed in IAS 36, IAS 38,
and IFRS 3. Someone using this source for an overview of intangible assets would have to read summaries for all three Standards in order to
learn the correct GAAP treatment, as opposed to reading one entry giving a collective overview of intangible assets under IFRS.
Holt, Paul. International Accounting. 6th ed. Mason, OH: Thompson Custom Publishing, 2003.

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This title is several years old but has been included because it clearly
explains many of the most important issues for international companies,
such as worldwide differences in financial reporting, auditing and taxes.
It discusses the historical trends behind the strong push for uniform
global financial reporting standards, which have occurred over the last
few decades.
Keuleneer, Luc, Dirk Swagerman, and Willem Verhoog, eds. Is
Fair Value Fair?: Financial Reporting from an International Perspective. Chichester, UK: Wiley, 2003.
Most of the books covered in this paper provide an overview of international accounting standards. This book is a bit more specialized. A
fair value accounting system values assets at their current worth as opposed to their historical cost. The IFRS system is predicated on fair
value while other systems, notably U.S. GAAP, use historical cost. This
work presents a number of essays discussing the advantages and disadvantages of fair value.
Kirk, Robert. International Financial Reporting Standards in Depth.
Oxford, UK: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, 2005.
The International Standards are examined in this reference work. As
the title suggests, it is done with some depth but the book itself is less
than 300 pages. It would be most useful to someone who is already familiar with IFRSs and wants a focused reference source to consult.
Leuz, Christian, Dieter Pfaff, and Anthony Hopwood, eds. The
Economics and Politics of Accounting: International Perspectives
on Research Trends, Policy, and Practice. Oxford, UK: Oxford
University Press, 2004.
While its main concentration is on the economic and political factors
that determine what types of accounting rules are implemented, this
book is included here because of the issues importance in the drive for
international accounting standards. This title also shows some of the large
hurdles that must be overcome in order to implement any accounting
standards, and examines the important roles accounting plays in society.
Nobes, Christopher W., ed. Developments in International Accounting: General Issues and Classification. The New Library of
International Accounting. Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar, 2004.
A more advanced source, this monograph contains recent journal articles on current international accounting issues. There are a total of 22

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papers from journals such as the Journal of Accounting Literature and

Abacus. While the focus of the papers is broader than just IFRS issues,
the source can be useful to the IFRS scholar because it concentrates on
current topics, many of which are related to international accounting
standards.
Nobes, Christopher, ed. Developments in International Accounting: International Harmonization of Accounting. The New Library of International Accounting. Northampton, MA: Edward
Elgar, 2004.
As discussed earlier, the desire for a single set of recognized worldwide accounting standards has been one of the main drivers behind the
growth of the IFRS system. This title presents some of the academic research papers that have been published in this area since the late 1980s.
It is a more advanced source but very useful for someone examining this
important accounting issue.
Radebaugh, Lee H., Sidney J. Gray, and Ervin L. Black. International Accounting and Multinational Enterprises. 6th ed. Hoboken,
NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2005.
Coverage is not limited to the IASB. The emphasis is on the IASBs
efforts to establish a single set of accounting standards worldwide and
its interactions with different national standard setters. Because the
United States has the largest capital markets and has recently experienced several accounting scandals, the authors focus on how these two
factors have affected the goals of establishing a uniform set of international standards. The emphasis is on how multinational corporations
deal with the current global accounting climates.
Roberts, Clare, PaulineWeetman, and Paul Gordon. International
Financial Accounting: A Comparative Approach. 3rd ed. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, 2005.
The focus of this text is to discuss and contrast the efforts for convergence on global accounting standards with the continuing causes of national diversity in accounting standards. The book has been updated to
reflect the recent changes made to international accounting standards. It
also contains specific examples of accounting practices drawn from the
published accounts and reports of multinational corporations such as
Kodak, Heineken, and Wal-Mart.
Saudagaran, Shahrokh M. International Accounting: A User Perspective. 2nd ed. Mason, OH: South-Western, 2003.

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Though now several years old this book is included because of its
concentration on international accounting issues from the perspective of
future and current managers of multinational enterprises. It focuses more
on how these issues can affect organizations and which are most important, rather than providing a recitation of the IFRS pronouncements.
Tiffin, Ralph C. The Complete Guide to International Financial
Reporting Standards. London, UK: Thorogood, 2004.
This book is aimed at executives who need to get up to speed on
IFRS. It explains the principles of IFRS, explains many of the rules in
place, as well as the disclosure requirements and possible compliance
problems.
Walton, Peter, Axel Haller, and Bernard Raffournier, eds. International Accounting. London, UK: Thomson Learning, 2003.
The strength of this book is its wide scope. There are separate chapters on the accounting rules of most of the important industrialized nations, such as the United States, Australia, Japan, and many European
Union states. It describes the national accounting rules of emerging nations such as Russia and several of the Eastern European countries. The
establishment of the IASB and the increasingly rapid moves toward
global standards during the last decade are also discussed. It is a useful
one-volume overview of many of the accounting rules and issues throughout the world.
Explanatory Material: Free Websites
A number of the sources discussed in this paper are accessible over
the Internet, but this section will concentrate on free Websites that have
useful IFRS material. While many sites have a bit of information about
the IFRS, the ones listed here are more in-depth. Although none of the
sites have full-text access to the IFRS Standards and Interpretations,
they all provide useful explanatory material. The Big Four accounting
firms all have useful, free Websites related to the IFRS.
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
http://www.accaglobal.com/ifrs/
The ACCA is a global professional association for accountants. It is
included here because of its section on IFRS. The ACCA issues a

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regular electronic newsletter, IFRSdirect, on current developments in

international standards; a free email subscription to this is available on
the site. While the site contains advanced information providing guidance to applying the Standards, there are also several portions that beginning users will find helpful, such as the FAQ section.
Ernst & Young: International Financial Reporting Standards
http://www.ey.com/GLOBAL/content.nsf/International/Assurance_
_ IAS_Overview
This page, located on the Ernst & Young (E&Y) accounting firm
Website, provides reports on specific IFRS issues, such as recommendations for companies converting to International Standards for the first
time. Ernst & Young also issues numerous updates on the current activities and agenda items related to IFRSs. Users will have to navigate
through several E&Y sales pitches on the site, but that is often the price
paid for accessing free information over the Internet.
IAS PlusDeloitte & Touche
http://www.iasplus.com
The Big Four accounting firm Deloitte & Touche maintains this site.
It has more material available than the sites maintained by the other Big
Four firms. Both beginning and advanced users will find helpful information here. Available material includes sample IFRS financial statements and checklists, as well as free e-modules that cover many of the
issued IASs and IFRSs. For beginners, this site does a very good job of
explaining how IFRS works and how it is organized. As mentioned in
an earlier footnote, this site maintains a page showing IFRS implementation status by country.
International Accounting Standards Board
http://www.iasb.org
Summaries of all Standards issued under the auspices of IASB and its
predecessor the IASC are available here. As mentioned earlier, a paid
subscription is required to access full-text copies of Standards and Interpretations issued by IASB and the International Accounting Standards
issued by IASC. There is access to Board press releases and speeches.
Another useful section is the Current Events part of the site. It

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provides updates on the current activities of the IASB and its related
entities.
KPMG InternationalInternational Financial Reporting Standards
http://www.kpmgifrg.com
KPMG, a Big Four accounting firm, does a good job of posting current developments on IFRS to this Website. There is usually at least one
update posted a week. Some very advanced material is available at no
cost. For example, a free guide to the IFRS rules on financial securities
is over 230 pages long. Most of the available material is advanced and is
not written for IFRS neophytes.
PricewaterhouseCoopersCorporateReporting:
International Finanal Accounting Standards
http://www.pwcglobal.com/ifrs/
This Website, produced by a Big Four accounting firm, contains no
unique material that distinguishes it from those of its Big Four colleagues. But overall it does a good job of providing access to advanced
IFRS explanatory material. Someone unfamiliar with IFRS would be
better served using Deloittes IAS Plus Website because its material is
more targeted towards beginners.

CONCLUSION
The enormous growth of global capital markets, especially in the last
twenty-five years, has precipitated the drive for one set of globally recognized accounting standards. Creditors and investors have become increasingly frustrated that the financial statements of companies in
different countries cannot be compared. This has led to a campaign to
harmonize the worlds different accounting standards. The International Accounting Standards Committee was established in 1973 and
thereafter developed a set of accounting standards with the intent of
having them used around the world. Despite this push the developed
countries of the world continued to use their own national accounting
standards.

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Over the last several years the international accounting movement

has gained momentum. In 2001, the IASC was reorganized into the International Accounting Standards Board. A major step occurred when
the European Union adopted a regulation requiring most publicly traded
EU companies to use the IFRS starting in 2005. Some non-EU countries
have also replaced their national standards with IFRSs, while others like
the United States have publicly indicated their intention to converge
their standards with IFRSs. This paper presented information on sources
of IFRS material. Useful databases for obtaining full-text IFRS material
was also discussed, as well as recommended explanatory sources, international accounting journals and free Websites.

NOTES
1. In this paper the use of the term IFRS may refer to the specific numbered standards passed by the IASB (e.g., IFRS 1, IFRS 2), but usually it will be referring to the
entire body of literature that comprises the International Financial Reporting Standards. This body of literature is also commonly referred to as International GAAP.
2. Deloitte & Touche maintains a regularly updated Webpage showing IFRS implementation status by country at: http://www.iasplus.com/country/useias.htm.

REFERENCES
Bolton, L. (2006, January). IFRS Use By CountryThe Big Picture. Accountancy, 137,
88.
Harrington, C. (2005). The Accounting Profession: Looking Ahead. Journal of Accountancy, 200(4), 43-48.
Hussey, R. & Ong, A. (2005). International Financial Reporting Standards Desk Reference: Overview, Guide, and Dictionary. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
In the Public Interest: A Conversation with the Chief Accountant of the SEC. (2005).
Journal of Accountancy, 199(1), 63-70.
Lo, K. (2004, September 29). A Slow and Steady Convergence Project. Financial
Times, 1.
Nobes, C. W., ed. (2001). Introducing GAAP 2001. Retrieved December 14, 2004,
from http://www.iasplus.com/resource/g2001sum.pdf/
Nobes, C. W. & Parker, R. (2004). Comparative International Accounting. Essex, UK:
Pearson Education.
Prather-Kinsey, J. J. & Rueschhoff, N. G. (2004). An Analysis of International Accounting Research in U.S.- and Non-U.S.-Based Academic Accounting Journals.
Journal of International Accounting Research, 3(1), 63-81.

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Shortridge, R. T. & Myring, M. (2004). Defining Principles-Based Accounting Standards. The CPA Journal, 74(8), 34-37.
Tweedie, D. & Seidenstein, T. R. (2005). Setting a Global Standard: The Case for Accounting Convergence. Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business,
25(3), 589-608.

SUBMITTED: 12/16/2005
REVISION SUBMITTED: 04/28/2006
ACCEPTED: 06/28/2006
doi:10.1300/J109v12n03_02