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Commission Regulation (EC) No 1725/2003 of 29 September 2003 adopting certain international accounting standards in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1606/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council

Content

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Objective

The objective of this Standard is to prescribe the accounting treatment of revenue and costs associated with construction contracts. Because of the nature of the activity undertaken in construction contracts, the date at which the contract activity is entered into and the date when the activity is completed usually fall into different accounting periods. Therefore, the primary issue in accounting for construction contracts is the allocation of contract revenue and contract costs to the accounting periods in which construction work is performed. This Standard uses the recognition criteria established in the framework for the preparation and presentation of financial statements to determine when contract revenue and contract costs should be recognised as revenue and expenses in the income statement. It also provides practical guidance on the application of these criteria.

Scope

1. This Standard should be applied in accounting for construction contracts in the financial statements of contractors.

2. This Standard supersedes IAS 11, accounting for construction contracts, approved in 1978.

Definitions

3. The following terms are used in this Standard with the meanings specified:

A construction contract is a contract specifically negotiated for the construction of an asset or a combination of assets that are closely interrelated or interdependent in terms of their design, technology and function or their ultimate purpose or use.

A fixed price contract is a construction contract in which the contractor agrees to a fixed contract price, or a fixed rate per unit of output, which in some cases is subject to cost escalation clauses.

A cost plus contract is a construction contract in which the contractor is reimbursed for allowable or otherwise defined costs, plus a percentage of these costs or a fixed fee.

4. A construction contract may be negotiated for the construction of a single asset such as a bridge, building, dam, pipeline, road, ship or tunnel. A construction contract may also deal with the construction of a number of assets which are closely interrelated or interdependent in terms of their design, technology and function or their ultimate purpose or use; examples of such contracts include those for the construction of refineries and other complex pieces of plant or equipment.

5. For the purposes of this Standard, construction contracts include:

(a) contracts for the rendering of services which are directly related to the construction of the asset, for example, those for the services of project managers and architects; and

(b) contracts for the destruction or restoration of assets, and the restoration of the environment following the demolition of assets.

6. Construction contracts are formulated in a number of ways which, for the purposes of this Standard, are classified as fixed price contracts and cost plus contracts. Some construction contracts may contain characteristics of both a fixed price contract and a cost plus contract, for example in the case of a cost plus contract with an agreed maximum price. In such circumstances, a contractor needs to consider all the conditions in paragraphs 23 and 24 in order to determine when to recognise contract revenue and expenses.

Combining and segmenting construction contracts

7. The requirements of this Standard are usually applied separately to each construction contract. However, in certain circumstances, it is necessary to apply the Standard to the separately identifiable components of a single contract or to a group of contracts together in order to reflect the substance of a contract or a group of contracts.

8. When a contract covers a number of assets, the construction of each asset should be treated as a separate construction contract when:

(a) separate proposals have been submitted for each asset;

(b) each asset has been subject to separate negotiation and the contractor and customer have been able to accept or reject that part of the contract relating to each asset; and

(c) the costs and revenues of each asset can be identified.

9. A group of contracts, whether with a single customer or with several customers, should be treated as a single construction contract when:

(a) the group of contracts is negotiated as a single package;

(b) the contracts are so closely interrelated that they are, in effect, part of a single project with an overall profit margin; and

(c) the contracts are performed concurrently or in a continuous sequence.

10. A contract may provide for the construction of an additional asset at the option of the customer or may be amended to include the construction of an additional asset. The construction of the additional asset should be treated as a separate construction contract when:

(a) the asset differs significantly in design, technology or function from the asset or assets covered by the original contract; or

(b) the price of the asset is negotiated without regard to the original contract price.

Contract revenue

11. Contract revenue should comprise:

(a) the initial amount of revenue agreed in the contract; and

(b) variations in contract work, claims and incentive payments:

(i) to the extent that it is probable that they will result in revenue; and

(ii) they are capable of being reliably measured.

12. Contract revenue is measured at the fair value of the consideration received or receivable. The measurement of contract revenue is affected by a variety of uncertainties that depend on the outcome of future events. The estimates often need to be revised as events occur and uncertainties are resolved. Therefore, the amount of contract revenue may increase or decrease from one period to the next. For example:

(a) a contractor and a customer may agree variations or claims that increase or decrease contract revenue in a period subsequent to that in which the contract was initially agreed;

(b) the amount of revenue agreed in a fixed price contract may increase as a result of cost escalation clauses;

(c) the amount of contract revenue may decrease as a result of penalties arising from delays caused by the contractor in the completion of the contract; or

(d) when a fixed price contract involves a fixed price per unit of output, contract revenue increases as the number of units is increased.

13. A variation is an instruction by the customer for a change in the scope of the work to be performed under the contract. A variation may lead to an increase or a decrease in contract revenue. Examples of variations are changes in the specifications or design of the asset and changes in the duration of the contract. A variation is included in contract revenue when:

(a) it is probable that the customer will approve the variation and the amount of revenue arising from the variation; and

(b) the amount of revenue can be reliably measured.

14. A claim is an amount that the contractor seeks to collect from the customer or another party as reimbursement for costs not included in the contract price. A claim may arise from, for example, customer caused delays, errors in specifications or design, and disputed variations in contract work. The measurement of the amounts of revenue arising from claims is subject to a high level of uncertainty and often depends on the outcome of negotiations. Therefore, claims are only included in contract revenue when:

(a) negotiations have reached an advanced stage such that it is probable that the customer will accept the claim; and

(b) the amount that it is probable will be accepted by the customer can be measured reliably.

15. Incentive payments are additional amounts paid to the contractor if specified performance standards are met or exceeded. For example, a contract may allow for an incentive payment to the contractor for early completion of the contract. Incentive payments are included in contract revenue when:

(a) the contract is sufficiently advanced that it is probable that the specified performance standards will be met or exceeded; and

(b) the amount of the incentive payment can be measured reliably.

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