4.2 Noncurrent Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations

Though IFRS Accounting Standards and U.S. GAAP have similar guidance on the accounting for noncurrent assets held for sale and for discontinued operations, there is a special treatment for assets held for distribution under IFRS Accounting Standards, as shown in the table below.

Topic	IFRS Accounting Standards (IFRS 5)	U.S. GAAP (ASC 360-10, ASC 205-20)
Assets held for distribution to owners	A long-lived asset to be distributed to owners is measured at fair value less costs to sell in a manner similar to assets held for sale.	ASC 360-10-45-15 states that a long-lived asset to be distributed to owners “shall continue to be classified as held and used until it is disposed of.” Therefore, it is measured at cost less accumulated depreciation and impairment. Accordingly, a disposal group to be spun off to shareholders would be classified as a discontinued operation earlier under IFRS Accounting Standards than under U.S. GAAP.