The FRC has issued FRED 82 (with a consultation stage impact assessment) proposing a number of changes resulting from the second periodic review of FRS 102 and consequential amendments to the other FRSs.

Key proposals include changes in the recognition of revenue and leases based on IFRS 15 and 16.The principal proposed amendments include:

• Revenue accounting requirements – new model of revenue recognition based on IFRS 15’s five-step model, with appropriate simplifications. How entities will be impacted will depend on the form of their contracts with customers.
• Lease accounting requirements – new model of lease accounting based on IFRS 16’s on-balance sheet model, with appropriate simplifications which are mostly optional. Most lessees with operating leases will be impacted.

Other incremental improvements and clarifications proposed to FRS 102 include (but are not limited to):

• Greater clarity for UK small entities applying Section 1A regarding which disclosures need to be provided in order to give a true and fair view.
• Revised Section 2 Concepts and Pervasive Principles to reflect IASB’s Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting.
• New Section 2A Fair Value Measurement, replacing the Appendix to Section 2 and updated to reflect the principles of IFRS 13.
• Removal of the option to newly adopt the recognition and measurement requirements of IAS 39, in preparation for its eventual removal. Entities already applying the option may continue to do so in the meantime.

Similar incremental improvements and clarifications are proposed for FRS 105, when applicable.

The FRC intends to defer aligning FRS 102 with the expected credit loss model of financial asset impairment in IFRS 9, which in practice for trading entities mainly applies to trade receivables, pending the issue of the IASB’s third edition of the IFRS for SMEs Accounting Standard. Any proposals will then be presented in a later FRED.

The proposed effective date of the amendments is 1 January 2025, with early application permitted provided all amendments are applied at the same time.

You can hear more about the proposals by registering for the FRC’s webinar on 19 January 2023, and listening to their podcast.

RSM will be responding to the FRED by the closing date of 30 April 2023. If you have any comments you would like us to include in our response, we would welcome discussing these with you. In the meantime, if you would like further information about how the proposals might impact you, please do not hesitate to contact Danielle Stewart OBE, or your usual RSM contact.