COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) 2015/2231

of 2 December 2015

amending Regulation (EC) No 1126/2008 adopting certain international accounting standards in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1606/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards International Accounting Standards 16 and 38

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1606/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 July 2002 on the application of international accounting standards (1), and in particular Article 3(1) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) By Commission Regulation (EC) No 1126/2008 (2) certain international standards and interpretations that were in existence at 15 October 2008 were adopted.

(2) On 12 May 2014, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) issued amendments to IAS 16 Property, Plant and Equipment and IAS 38 Intangible Assets entitled Clarification of Acceptable Methods of Depreciation and Amortisation. Due to divergent practices, it is necessary to clarify, whether it is appropriate to use revenue-based methods to calculate the depreciation or amortisation of an asset.

(3) The consultation with the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group confirms that the amendments to IAS 16 and IAS 38 meet the criteria for adoption set out in Article 3(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1606/2002.

(4) Regulation (EC) No 1126/2008 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(5) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Accounting Regulatory Committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The Annex to Regulation (EC) No 1126/2008 is amended as follows:

(a) International Accounting Standard (IAS) 16 Property, Plant and Equipment is amended as set out in the Annex to this Regulation;

(b) IAS 38 Intangible Assets is amended as set out in the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

Each company shall apply the amendments referred to in Article 1, at the latest, as from the commencement date of its first financial year starting on or after 1 January 2016.

Article 3

This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 2 December 2015.

For the Commission

The President

Jean-Claude JUNCKER

(1) OJ L 243, 11.9.2002, p. 1.

(2) Commission Regulation (EC) No 1126/2008 of 3 November 2008 adopting certain international accounting standards in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1606/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 320, 29.11.2008, p. 1).

ANNEX

Clarification of Acceptable Methods of Depreciation and Amortisation

(Amendments to IAS 16 and IAS 38)

Amendments to IAS 16 Property, Plant and Equipment

Paragraph 56 is amended and paragraphs 62A and 81I are added. Paragraphs 60–62 are not amended but are included here for ease of reference.

Depreciable amount and depreciation period

…

(a) …

(c) technical or commercial obsolescence arising from changes or improvements in production, or from a change in the market demand for the product or service output of the asset. Expected future reductions in the selling price of an item that was produced using an asset could indicate the expectation of technical or commercial obsolescence of the asset, which, in turn, might reflect a reduction of the future economic benefits embodied in the asset.

…

Depreciation method

…

EFFECTIVE DATE

…

81I

Amendments to IAS 38 Intangible Assets

Paragraph 92 is amended. In paragraph 98, the phrase ‘unit of production method’ has been amended to ‘units of production method’. Paragraphs 98A–98C and 130J are added. Paragraph 97 is not amended but is included here for ease of reference.

USEFUL LIFE

…

Amortisation period and amortisation method

(a) in which the intangible asset is expressed as a measure of revenue, as described in paragraph 98C; or

(b) when it can be demonstrated that revenue and the consumption of the economic benefits of the intangible asset are highly correlated.

98B

98C

…

TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS AND EFFECTIVE DATE

…

130J