Difference between the old and revised MCA taxonomy
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has mandated XBRL filing since 2011, for companies that meet the following criteria:
- All companies that have a paid up capital of Rs 50 million and above, or a turnover of Rs 1,000 million and above
- All companies that are listed in India, and their subsidiaries, irrespective of its capital or turnover
Taxonomies are changed periodically by the XBRL regulators across the world.  They are changed to adhere to new accounting policies/regulations and  to facilitate better data aggregation and comparison.  The MCA has followed a similar approach and has changed the Commercial & Industrial taxonomy for 2012.  Companies having financial statements that end on or after 31st March 2012 are expected to prepare their financial statements in XBRL format using this new taxonomy.
The primary difference between the two taxonomies is that the new taxonomy is structured to support revised disclosure requirements in Schedule VI financial statements . Â In addition, the following are the structural changes seen in the taxonomies:
Difference between Old 2011 Taxonomy vs the Revised 2012 Taxonomy
| SI. No. |
Old Taxonomy |
Revised Taxonomy |
| 1 | The structure of old taxonomy is as per the below hierarchy:Abstract – Line items. |
The structure of revised taxonomy is as per the below hierarchy:Text Block “ Abstract “ Table “ Axis “ Member – Line Items This would not affect the end user. Â DataTracks ensures that this structure is followed automatically to tag the elements.
|
| 2 | Semi-Detail tagging process: Â Schedules were tagged for detail (i.e., every number that can be matched with the taxonomy was tagged) and notes forming part of balance sheet and P&L were tagged as a block of information.. | As per Revised Schedule VI, there are no schedules to accounts, but there are notes to accounts which include schedule information. Hence, 2012 XBRL statements that are prepared based on new taxonomy include detailed tags of Notes to Accounts information. |
| 3 | There were no Dimensions, instead there were many specific elements. Example: Plant & Machinery gross block was tagged with a matching taxonomy element. Hence, the numbers in fixed asset schedule were tagged item by item. | Dimensions are introduced in the new taxonomy. Dimensions are used to identify facts more precisely. Example: Plant & Machinery Gross Block is tagged now as Tangible assets at the beginning of period element with Plant & Equipment [Member] & Gross Carrying Amount [Member]. |
| 4 | Tuple elements were used to tag related information such as Directors Name, Designation, compensation, etc in an order to create group of facts. Example: Director signing the Board Report was tuple tagged with Director 1 with 1st Directors name and Director 2 with 2nd Directors name. |
No Tuple elements. However, type dimensions are introduced to distinguish and associate facts in a group. Same type dimension can be used to tag multiple associated facts.Example: Director signing the board report can be tagged with multiple directors name using Directors signing board report [Domain].
|
| 5 | Old taxonomy used the IFRS architecture 2006. | New taxonomy used the IFRS architecture 2011. Â This is more of a functional change for the software developers and would not make any difference to the end user. |
| 6 | There were no detailed definition and reference link bases. | Definition and reference link bases have also been added to the revised taxonomy. This helps the user to identify the most relevant element from taxonomy to tag the fact. |
At DataTracks, we adhere to the new MCA taxonomy structure to tag 2012 financial statements for our clients.  All our XBRL service offerings will be in compliance with the new MCA taxonomy rules.
If all this is perplexing, you are not alone. Many CFOs feel the same way. Preparing XBRL documents is a specialist job. You can invest in acquiring the skills for what is essentially a once in a year exercise or use experts such as DataTracks to get the job done for you.
DataTracks XBRL Solutions
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