Identified asset

Identified asset – 2 Complete with comprehensive examples

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Identified asset

a term from IFRS 16 Leases. Let’s see what it is all about….

A lease is a contract, or part of a contract, that conveys the right to use an asset (the underlying asset) for a period of time in exchange for consideration.

The key factors to consider when applying the lease definition are as follows.

Identified asset

1. Specified asset

An asset can be either explicitly specified in a contract (e.g. by a serial number or a specified floor of a building) or implicitly specified at the time it is made available for use by the customer. (IFRS 16.B13, IFRS 16.BC111)

Food for thought – What does ‘implicitly specified’ mean?

An asset is implicitly specified if the facts and circumstances indicate that the supplier can fulfil its obligations only by using a specific asset. This may be the case if the supplier has only one asset that can fulfil the contract. For example, a power plant may be an implicitly specified asset in a power purchase contract if the customer’s facility is in a remote location with no access to the grid, such that the supplier cannot buy the required energy in the market or generate it from an alternative power plant.

In other cases, an asset may be implicitly specified if the supplier owns a number of assets with the required functionality, but only one of those assets can realistically be supplied to the customer within the contracted time-frame – i.e. the supplier does not have a substantive right to substitute an alternative asset to fulfil the contract – see 3.3. For example, a supplier may own a fleet of vessels but only one vessel that is in the required geographic area and not already being used by other customers.

1.1 Capacity portions

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Leases and No leases examples – 9 essential cases

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9 Essential Leases and no leases examples

– shows the difference between cases of entities involved in contracts containing a lease under IFRS 16 Leases and similar but different cases of entities involved in contracts NOT containing a lease under IFRS 16 Leases.

To start setting the stage, the definition of a lease: A contract, or part of a contract, that conveys the right to use an asset (the underlying asset) for a period of time in exchange for consideration.

1. Lease Rail cars

The case
A contract between Customer and a freight carrier (Supplier) provides Customer with the use of 10 rail cars of a particular type for five years. The contract specifies the rail cars; the cars are owned by Supplier. Customer determines when, where and which goods are to be transported using the cars. When the cars are not in use, they are kept at Customer’s premises. Customer can use the cars for another purpose (for example, storage) if it so chooses.

However, the contract specifies that Customer cannot transport particular types of cargo (for example, explosives). If a particular car needs to be serviced or repaired, Supplier is required to substitute a car of the same type. Otherwise, and other than on default by Customer, Supplier cannot retrieve the cars during the five-year period.

The contract also requires Supplier to provide an engine and a driver when requested by Customer. Supplier keeps the engines at its premises and provides instructions to the driver detailing Customer’s requests to transport goods. Supplier can choose to use any one of a number of engines to fulfil each of Customer’s requests, and one engine could be used to transport not only Customer’s goods, but also the goods of other customers (ie if other customers require the transportation of goods to destinations close to the destination requested by Customer and within a similar timeframe, Supplier can choose to attach up to 100 rail cars to the engine).

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Software as a service

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What is cloud computing and more specific software as a service?

Cloud computing is essentially a model for delivering information technology services in which resources are retrieved from the internet through web-based tools and applications, rather than a direct connection to a server. Data and software packages are stored in servers. Cloud computing structures allow access to information as long as an electronic device has access to the internet.

This type of system allows employees to work remotely. Cloud computing is so named because the information being accessed is found in the ‘clouds’, and does not require a user to be in a specific place to gain access to it. Companies may find that cloud computing allows them to reduce the cost of information management, since they are not required to own their own servers and can use capacity leased from third parties. Additionally, the cloud-like structure allows companies to upgrade software more quickly.

There are various types of cloud computing arrangements. Cloud services usually fall into one of three service models: infrastructure, platform and software. Here the focus is on software as a service (SaaS).

What is SaaS?

SaaS is a software distribution model in which the customer does not take possession of the supplier’s hardware andSoftware as a service application software. Instead, customers accesses the supplier’s hardware and application software from devices over the internet or via a dedicated line. In these types of arrangements, the customer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure, including the network, servers, operating systems, storage, and even individual application software capabilities, with the possible exception of limited user-specific application software configuration settings, nor is the customer responsible for upgrades to the underlying systems and software.

The key issues

In practice, it is clear that there are various application issues relating to the customer’s accounting in SaaS arrangements. These arrangements may often be bundled with other products and services, such as implementation, data migration, business process mapping, training, and project management.

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IAS 16 Generation assets for Power and Utilities

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Generation assets for Power and Utilities

– are often large and complex installations. They are expensive to construct, tend to be exposed to harsh operating conditions and require periodic replacement or repair. This environment leads to specific accounting issues.

1 Fixed assets and components

IFRS has a specific requirement for ‘component’ depreciation, as described in IAS 16 Property, Plant and Equipment. Each significant part of an item of property, plant and equipment is depreciated separately. Significant parts of an asset that have similar useful lives and patterns of consumption can be grouped together. This requirement can create complications for utility entities, because many assets include components with a shorter useful life than the asset as a whole.

Identifying components of an asset

Generation assets might comprise a significant number of components, many of which will have differing useful lives. The significant components of these types of assets must be separately identified. This can be a complex process, particularly on transition to IFRS, because the detailed record-keeping needed for componentisation might not have been required in order to comply with national generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). This can particularly be an issue for older power plants. However, some regulators require detailed asset records, which can be useful for IFRS component identification purposes.

An entity might look to its operating data if the necessary information for components is not readily identified by the accounting records. Some components can be identified by considering the routine shutdown or overhaul schedules for power stations and the associated replacement and maintenance routines. Consideration should also be given to those components that are prone to technological obsolescence, corrosion or wear and tear that is more severe than that of the other portions of the larger asset.

First-time IFRS adopters can benefit from an exemption under IFRS 1 First-time Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards. This exemption allows entities to use a value that is not depreciated cost in accordance with IAS 16, and IAS 23 Borrowing Costs as deemed cost on transition to IFRS. It is not necessary to apply the exemption to all assets or to a group of assets.

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Does a contract include a lease?

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Does a contract include a lease? is a game like type of thing, walk through a few questions and you have decided whether a contract includes a lease or not. As from 1 January 2019, the lessee is required to recognise almost all lease contracts on the balance sheet. The distinction between operating lease and finance lease has almost vanished.  The only optional exemptions are for certain short-term leases and leases of low-value assets.  Does a contract include a lease IFRS 16 defines a lease as a contract, or part of a contract, that conveys the right to use an asset (the underlying asset) for a period of time in exchange for consideration. This walk through decision model may assist … Read more

Accounting policies

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Accounting policies: The specific principles, bases, conventions, rules, and practices applied by an entity in preparing and presenting financial statements.

Protective rights

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Protective rights relate to fundamental changes to the activities of an investee or apply in exceptional circumstances. However, not all rights that apply in exceptional circumstances or are contingent on events are protective. Because protective rights are designed to protect the interests of their holder without giving that party power over the investee to which those rights relate, an investor that holds only protective rights cannot have power or prevent another party from having power over an investee.

IFRS 16 Right to use

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Throughout the period of use the lessee has to meet the following two rights:

1. the right to obtain substantially all of the economic benefits from the use of the identified asset, and
2. the right to direct the use of the identified asset.