Read about the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) project types.
Research
In developing new IFRS Accounting Standards, IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards or major amendments to these Standards, the IASB or the ISSB first carries out a research project to gather evidence about the problem to be solved and assess whether a feasible solution can be found. Each board determines which research projects to undertake by consulting with stakeholders about their priorities.
Standard-setting
After completing the research phase, the IASB or the ISSB might move a research project to standard-setting to develop a new IFRS Accounting Standard or IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standard or to substantially amend a Standard.
Maintenance
Maintenance projects focus on application questions about IFRS Accounting Standards or IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards. For such projects, the IASB or the ISSB develops narrow-scope amendments to these Standards.
Application questions
The IFRS Interpretations Committee considers questions it receives from stakeholders about the use of IFRS Accounting Standards. If standard-setting is required, the Interpretations Committee recommends adding a maintenance project to the work plan. Otherwise, the Interpretations Committee publishes an agenda decision to explain why it does not recommend standard-setting. In many cases, an agenda decision includes explanatory material that explains how the applicable principles and requirements in IFRS Accounting Standards apply to the application question.
SME Q&A
The SMEIG considers implementation and application questions about the IFRS for SMEs Accounting Standard and might develop guidance in the form of questions and answers (Q&As). The SMEIG might also recommend that the IASB amend the IFRS for SMEs Accounting Standard for implementation issues that cannot be addressed by Q&As.
Taxonomy
Projects on the IFRS Accounting Taxonomy or the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Taxonomy are designed to reflect new or amended IFRS Accounting Standards or IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards that affect presentation or disclosure requirements. Projects may also update the IFRS Accounting Taxonomy or the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Taxonomy to reflect disclosures commonly reported in practice or to reflect improvements to their general content or technology.
