1. Accounting(Future Plan for Accounting Standards Currently under Development)
In the “Future Plan for Accounting Standards Currently under Development” which was released in May 2018 by the ASBJ, the following themes are taken up as items which are not fixed in its development in the future.
(1)Accounting standards for financial instruments
(Main contents) As one of efforts to ensure the consistency of Japanese accounting standards within international rules, we will consider whether to start developing accounting standards for the classification and measurement of financial assets and liabilities, impairment accounting for financial assets and general hedge accounting of IFRS9 “Financial Instruments”.
(Future plans) We have been considering how to proceed with the project since January, 2018, and we will invite opinions about issues in the application before determining whether we start the development of accounting standards. This document for inviting opinions will be targeted for publication during the first half of 2018 (before June).
(2) Accounting standard for lease
(Main contents) As one of efforts to ensure the consistency of Japanese accounting standards within international rules, we will consider whether to start developing accounting standards for IFRS 16 “Leases”.
(Future plans) We plan to start considering in the future.
2. Tax(FY2018 Japan tax reform outline (6))
The following domestic legislation was developed by the FY2018 Japan tax reform for the implementation of the “Multilateral convention to implement tax treaty related measures to prevent base erosion and profit shifting” which Japan signed in Paris last June.
With the development of related provisions, the definition of real estate-related corporations will be changed with respect to the taxation on capital gains on shares, etc. of real estate-related corporations earned by non-residents or foreign corporations. Specifically, with regard to the requirement that “50% or more of the value of the total assets is composed of domestic real estate etc.”, which is the applicable standard of real estate-related corporations, it was decided to review the timing to judge whether the value of the real estate accounts for 50% or more of the value of the total assets of the corporation to any time during the 365 days preceding the alienation of the shares etc. Previously, there was no provision on this point especially.
Further, this reform is applied to the individual income tax for the 2019 calendar year or later and the corporate tax for the fiscal year starting on or after April 1, 2018.
3. Labor Management (Telework Days Campaign 2018)
Last year, the Japanese government decided that July 24th, which is the opening ceremony of Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, should be a Telework Day. They are going to implement a nation-wide remote working campaign in which about 950 organizations and 63,000 people are expected to participate.
This campaign is to learn from the London Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012, where many of the companies encouraged remote working to avoid traffic congestion during the event.
As a result, many of the participants found that remote working contributed not only to a reduction in traffic congestion, but also to improved business continuity management, productivity, employee satisfaction and work-life balance, etc.
This year the government plans to implement Telework Days from July 23 to 27. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government opened the Tokyo Telework Promotion Center in Iidabashi to promote remote working.(Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications website)
4. This Month’s Words of Wisdom
The dignity of the movement of an iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it being above water.
(Hemingway)
I want to be like this.
For more details, please refer to Nagamine & Mishima JC Accounting K.K.
