ABSTRACT
The chapter discusses three areas of accounting interest where International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS Standards) have an influence but other needs compete. Differential reporting means recognising different degrees of accounting complexity may be applied to different types of business, depending on size and public accountability. For the smallest micro-entities, various jurisdictions have recognised the burden that full IFRS Standards, and even a reduced requirement for small and medium-sized entities (the IFRS for SMEs Standard), could impose. Convergence with IFRS Standards has taken longer in some countries. India, together with other countries in South Asia, has limited resources for aligning standards, while business and political pressures have slowed the process. Vietnam and Russia are very different countries but have similar characteristics in the dominance of a socialist political regime, meaning that convergence with IFRS Standards is affected by political considerations. In the public sector, governments in many countries have struggled in converting from cash accounting to accruals accounting, in their own accounts. The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) has taken on that development, having regard to the principles of IFRS Standards.
