IFRS vs HGB Comparison

Anyone dealing with consolidated financial statements, auditing or international reporting in Germany knows the problem: HGB and IFRS often value the same facts fundamentally differently. The delta sheet makes these differences tangible. You pick a topic, say goodwill or leases, and see directly side by side what HGB says, what IFRS requires and what impact that has on the numbers.

Around 30 topics are organised into five categories: balance sheet, income statement, notes and disclosure, consolidation and industry-specific cases. From the measurement basis through provisions, pensions, inventories and financial instruments to revenue recognition, the whole spectrum that matters in the daily work of auditors and controllers is covered.

Each topic names the concrete references: which HGB section and which IFRS or IAS standard apply. Instead of "something about leases" you read that IFRS 16 forces nearly all leases onto the balance sheet, while HGB follows economic ownership under the tax leasing decrees. An impact field explains in plain terms why this raises total assets for retail and airlines by double-digit percentages.

A dedicated note on each topic shows what the 2009 BilMoG reform changed. This modernisation of German accounting law moved the HGB closer to international standards in some places, for example on discounting long-term provisions or the capitalisation option for development costs. Knowing the history helps you understand today's differences better.

Beyond the pure comparison there are further areas: a conversion view for the transition from HGB to IFRS, a quiz with questions at three difficulty levels for self-testing, and a ratios view that shows how the different accounting feeds into typical balance sheet ratios. Each topic is also marked with a severity from low to high, so you quickly find the truly profit-relevant differences.

The delta sheet is a learning and reference tool, not a substitute for the authoritative standards or a review by an auditor. It summarises the state of things compactly and bilingually and runs entirely in the browser, without any company data being uploaded anywhere. For binding application in an individual case, the legal text, the standard and professional advice remain decisive.