Accounting standard IFRS 16

The research project “Accounting standard IFRS 16” is financed by the French Accounting Standards Authority (Autorité des Normes Comptables – ANC). The objective of this project is to study the application of the “IFRS 16” Accounting Standard in France.

Research context and goal

Since 1st January 2019, the application of the IFRS 16 “Leases” substantially modified the accounting rules for leases. In addition to the operational and practical implementation challenges, companies expect various effects on their financial statements as well as on their key performance indicators (GAAP * and non-GAAP). The research project has three main objectives:

• to examine the organizational adaptations and the transitioning processes for the application of the IFRS 16,
• to develop case studies which detect factors having potential influence on companies’ choice to implement the IFRS 16, particularly during the first application phase,
• to identify which difficulties financial statements’ preparers, analysts and regulators encounter in their particular interpretation and use of the standard; and to propose potential areas for improvement.

The research will focus on the analysis of qualitative data collected from SBF 120 companies (Société des Bourses françaises). The involved researchers will understand professionals’ interpretation mechanisms of the studied standard and thus propose practical solutions for companies to optimize their accounts. The project starts in September 2019 and will be closed in December 2021.

The project is led by Sami EL OMARI, Associate professor, at Research laboratory of Accounting Management Control & Performance Management, TBS. Two other partners will participate in the project:

• Wafa KHLIF, Professor of Accounting, TBS – Barcelona Campus,
• Mohamed Taieb HAMADI, Associate professor, Toulouse School of Management (TSM) – University Toulouse 1 Capitole.

*GAAP : Generally accepted accounting principles