Definition of Special Purpose Framework (Ref: Para 6)
- Examples of special purpose frameworks are:
- A tax basis of accounting for a financial report that accompanies an entity’s tax return;
- The cash receipts and disbursements basis of accounting for cash flow information that an entity may be requested to prepare for creditors;
- The financial reporting provisions established by a regulator to meet the requirements of that regulator; or
- The financial reporting provisions of a contract, such as a bond indenture, a loan agreement, or a project grant.
Aus A1.1 The Corporations Act 2001,[*] other applicable law or regulation, or certain parties, may determine whether a financial report is required to be prepared and whether compliance with Australian Accounting Standards is required. Australian Accounting Standards set out requirements for General Purpose Financial Statements. In some circumstances, entities are permitted to prepare Special Purpose Financial Statements as defined in AASB 1054 Australian Additional Disclosures. Such circumstances include for-profit private sector entities required only by their constituting document or another document (e.g., a loan agreement) to prepare financial statements that comply with Australian Accounting Standards, provided that the relevant document was created or last amended before 1 July 2021, as well as not-for-profit entities that assess themselves to be non-reporting entities.
- There may be circumstances where a special purpose framework is based on a financial reporting framework established by an authorised or recognised standards setting organisation or by law or regulation, but does not comply with all the requirements of that framework. An example is a contract that requires a financial report to be prepared in accordance with most, but not all, of the Financial Reporting Standards of Jurisdiction X. When this is acceptable in the circumstances of the engagement, it is inappropriate for the description of the applicable financial reporting framework in the special purpose financial report to imply full compliance with the financial reporting framework established by the authorised or recognised standards setting organisation or by law or regulation. In the above example of the contract, the description of the applicable financial reporting framework may refer to the financial reporting provisions of the contract, rather than make any reference to the Financial Reporting Standards of Jurisdiction X.
- In the circumstances described in paragraph A2, the special purpose framework may not be a fair presentation framework even if the financial reporting framework on which it is based is a fair presentation framework. This is because the special purpose framework may not comply with all the requirements of the financial reporting framework established by the authorised or recognised standards setting organisation or by law or regulation that are necessary to achieve fair presentation of the financial report.
- A financial report prepared in accordance with a special purpose framework may be the only financial report an entity prepares. In such circumstances, that financial report may be used by users other than those for whom the financial reporting framework is designed. Despite the broad distribution of the financial report in those circumstances, the financial report is still considered to be a special purpose financial report for purposes of the Australian Auditing Standards. The requirements in paragraphs 13–14 are designed to avoid misunderstandings about the purpose for which the financial report is prepared. Disclosures comprise explanatory or descriptive information, set out as required, expressly permitted or otherwise allowed by the applicable financial reporting framework, on the face of a financial report, or in the notes, or incorporated therein by cross‑reference.[9]