Below is a summary of the changes in the new XBRL taxonomy as well as a link to a quick reference guide that lists out all the new, deprecated, and modified elements within the 2016 US GAAP taxonomy.

What’s New in 2016

FASB has continued their Taxonomy Simplification Initiative, which they began in 2014 in an effort to simplify the US GAAP taxonomy, into 2016 with a number of elements being deprecated or changed due to various projects within the initiative. Additionally, the taxonomy addresses the 2015 Accounting Standards Updates (ASUs) and industry-related changes to the Insurance Industry Resource Group and the Financial Services Industry Resource Group.

215 new elements: 215 new elements were added: 115 due to ASUs, 27 due to public comment, and 73 due to the Taxonomy Simplification Initiative.

469 changes to documentation: 469 elements had their documentation label (definition) changed for various reasons. An element’s documentation may have been changed as a result of Accounting Standards Updates (ASUs), to clarify the definition of a concept, to remove unnecessarily restrictive wording, and to correct inconsistencies. Some of the definition changes are also the result of the Taxonomy Simplification Initiative.

119 label changes: 119 elements had their Standard, Period Start, Period End, or Total labels changed to better reflect the intended application of the element.

303 added Taxonomy Implementation Notes: Taxonomy Implementation Notes were included for 303 elements to assist preparers with determining their intended use.

2 change label clarifications: The Taxonomy includes clarification in the change label for 2 elements.

681 deprecated elements: The majority of the deprecated elements in the 2016 taxonomy (526) were deprecated as part of the Taxonomy Simplification Initiative. 374 of these elements were deprecated due to low usage. 17 elements were deprecated to reduce redundant dimensions. Other reasons that elements are deprecated include errors in their creation or because the element was superseded by ASUs or other GAAP changes. If a deprecated element is superceded by another element, preparers can review an element’s Deprecated Label to locate a replacement element. XBRL preparers can also use the definition linkbase to view relationships between deprecated elements and other elements within the taxonomy. Deprecated elements will remain in the taxonomy for two years to aid in transitioning financial reports and viewing legacy documents but should not be used in new SEC filings.

Removal of the 2013 UGT deprecated elements: With EDGAR Release 15.2 last year, the 2013 US-GAAP Taxonomy was no longer accepted by the SEC. The 955 elements that were deprecated in the 2013 UGT will no longer appear in the 2016 UGT.

While there is currently a transition period where the SEC will continue to accept EDGAR filings that use the 2014 taxonomy, we always recommend making the move to the latest taxonomies as soon as possible. The taxonomies change because of ASUs, public comment, analysis of data, and other impetuses. The most valuable data you can provide your investors and the public will be data that is the most up to date with accounting standards and financial reporting standards.

Sources:

2016 US GAAP Financial Reporting Taxonomy (at FASB.org)

SEC XBRL Taxonomy Update, March 7, 2016