Q: What are International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)?

A: Businesses and investors are increasingly making decisions in a global context, resulting in the need for an international accounting language. By adopting IFRS, a business can present its financial statements on the same basis as its foreign competitors, making comparisons easier.

Q: What are the advantages of converting to IFRS?

A: Businesses and investors are increasingly making decisions in a global context, resulting in the need for an international accounting language. By adopting IFRS, a business can present its financial statements on the same basis as its foreign competitors, making comparisons easier.

Q: How widespread is the adoption of IFRS around the world?

A: In 2011, Canada will join the more than 100 countries that have already adopted IFRS, including the United Kingdom and other European countries, and Australia. Japan, China, India, Brazil, South Korea and Israel are all in process of converging with or adopting IFRS.

The Securities and Exchange Commission in the United States has recently published proposals for conversion to IFRS and now permits foreign issuers to file IFRS financial statements without a reconciliation to U.S. GAAP.

Q: Who is affected by IFRS?

A: IFRS applies to Canadian publicly accountable enterprises – profit-oriented enterprises that have responsibilities to a large or diverse group of stakeholders and can include:

• Publicly listed companies
• Enterprises with fiduciary responsibilities, such as banks, insurance companies, credit unions, securities firms, mutual funds and investment banks
• Certain government corporations.