Study Zone

Standard overhaul 20 years in the making

The International Accounting Standards Board has now issued its overhauled IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts.

Hit the rollover jackpot

Juliet Smith explains all you need to know about rollover relief, a subject that is frequently tested

Can cheats prosper?

Accountancy bodies have no plans to beef up their exam invigilation following reports of a surge in hi-tech cheating at universities.

Don’t go to pieces over leases

Claire Oglesby explains all you need to know about leases in the form of some top tips

Colour me VAT

HMRC sets out the VAT treatment for colouring and dot-to-dot books – is it simply child’s play?

Check in at Boots for a VAT refund

Who should pocket airport VAT refunds? Graham Hambly asks the question

National insurance and the level playing field

John Colville outlines how NI works and why some consider it controversial

FRC wants the right to sanction all directors

The UK’s biggest public companies have been put on notice – the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) wants to be able to take disciplinary action against all individuals for breaching financial reporting rules.

ACCA CBEs: Be a session player

Judith Bennett explores the practical ways that you can tackle ACCA’s F5–F9 exams

CTA exams: capital advice

Human Capital Taxes, also known as Human Capital Services (BDO), Global Employer Services (Deloitte), People Advisory Services (EY), Global Mobility Services (KPMG and Mazars), Employer Solutions and Expatriate Tax (Grant Thornton and RSM), Employer Consulting Tax (Moore Stephens) or even Human Resources Tax Services (PwC), is a growing area of taxation. As global employment mobility continues to increase, so does the need for advice for employers with internationally mobile employees, covering tax issues w

Human capital is a taxing issue

The Chartered Institute of Taxation is introducing a new exam in Human Capital Taxes for the May examination.

Proformas hold the key to exam pass

Kamran Ali explains how to pass Inheritance Tax, Trusts and Estates module of the CTA exams

IFRS: a model answer

Martin Jones sets a question on equity and debt – and provides a specimen answer

Exam preparation: 24 hours to go

Stuart Pedley-Smith outlines what you should be doing with your time on the final day before that big exam

‘Awareness’ is key to exam success

Sheridan Matthew Gray gives some tips on passing the corporation tax module of the CTA Awareness Paper

A quick look at… Treatment of payments for corportion tax purposes

A company may make different payments, but are you clear as to how each is treated for corporation tax purposes?

Rising to the challenge

Accountants working in the public sector face a unique set of challenges. So how are they dealing with them?

Don’t get too close

EY has agreed to pay a whopping $9.3m to the US Securities and Exchange Commission to settle charges that two of its audit partners “got too close to their clients on a personal level and violated rules that ensure firms maintain their objectivity and impartiality during audits”.

A quick look at… Ebrahimi v Westbourne Galleries Ltd. [1973] AC 360

This case remains the leading authority on the provision currently found in s122(1) (g) of the Insolvency Act 1986, which provides that a petition to wind up a company can be granted if it is “just and equitable” to wind up the company.

Pass the CTA OMB Advisory exam

Nitin Rabheru offers advice on how to pass the Taxation of Owner-Managed Businesses paper

Sustainability and the UNGC: it’s the real thing

Keeping the planet clean for our children is laudable, but regulation could get in the way, says Martin Jones

Meet a top performer

Lewis Richardson achieved the best performance by an apprentice in the November 2015 ATT exams. So we asked him how he did it

Five tips on passing a CTA advisory exam

Nitin Rabheru has a five-step plan to get you through the CTA advisory exams. So read, digest – and put them into action!

Intangible assets: change is needed

It’s time for a revolution in the reporting of intangible assets, says David Haigh

New tax pathway launched by ATT

The Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) and Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) have launched a new flexible route to obtaining both the ATT and CIOT qualifications.

A quick look at… IFRS 11 – Joint Arrangements

Accounting for joint arrangements is an example of a topic where the accounting standard (IFRS 11) is relatively straightforward to apply.

A quick look at… accounting for value – defining value

Most people will know something about Value Based Management (VBM). It is a management philosophy that, basically, focuses on the creation of value rather than just profits.

Classic way to succeed

One way of beating those stress blues while you are revising is to play a little bit of classical music.

IASB amends IFRS 15 revenue standard

The International accounting Standards Board (IASB) has issued amendments to IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers, to help clarify some requirements and provide more transitional relief.