FASB and IASB Form Joint Transition Group for Rev Rec

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board officially announced the formation Tuesday of a Joint Transition Resource Group for Revenue Recognition.

FASB and the IASB released their long-awaited converged standard on revenue recognition last week (see FASB and IASB Issue Revenue Recognition Standard). They had announced their intention last year to form a transition resource group to help companies and accountants adjust to the new standards, which take effect in 2017 for public companies and 2018 for private companies (see FASB and IASB to Form Revenue Recognition Transition Group).

The goal of the TRG is to inform the IASB and FASB about potential implementation issues that could arise when companies and organizations implement the new standard. The TRG will also provide stakeholders with an opportunity to learn about the new standard from others involved with implementation. The TRG will not issue guidance.

Members of the TRG include financial statement preparers, auditors and users representing a wide spectrum of industries, geographical locations and public and private companies and organizations.

The two boards expect that the TRG will meet twice in 2014 and four times in 2015. The first meeting is scheduled for July 18, 2014. All meetings will be public and co-chaired by the IASB vice chairman Ian Mackintosh and FASB vice chairman James Kroeker.

Any stakeholder can submit a potential implementation issue for discussion at the meetings. FASB and the IASB will evaluate each submission and prioritize the issues for discussion at TRG meetings.

Issues may be submitted by any stakeholder based on the issue submission guidelines. Meeting agenda and discussion summaries will be posted on the meetings page in advance of each meeting. During the meetings, the TRG members will share their views on the issues. A list of the TRG members has been posted here. The TRG will not issue guidance. After each meeting, the IASB and FASB will determine what action, if any, will be taken on each issue.

More information about the TRG, including instructions for submitting a potential implementation issue, is available on the IASB’s Web site and FASB’s Web site.