RSS feedsRegulators in the US are proposing to cut the deadline to 90 days from six months.
Advisers have suggested the move could be difficult for some companies. Ian Parker, a partner in KPMG’s US accounting and reporting group, said the proposal took into account technological developments, which have speeded up the production of accounts, but failed to recognise the additional work in the form of SEC documentation which still had to be completed.
‘The SEC’s 20-F form is a fairly long legal document which takes additional time to prepare,’ he said. ‘The tighter deadline will be problematic for some companies outside the UK who are still preparing the GAAP reconciliation statement.’
The deadline has not been changed for 29 years, so a shorter time frame had long been expected.
PwC’s global capital markets partner Tom Quinn said the proposal recognised that the vast majority of companies already had this information available by the end of April.
‘Most FTSE 100 companies already release annual information and earnings by the end of February to early March. I don’t think there’s any good reason why companies need to take an extra three months to file an annual report,’ said Quinn.
