Must a company amortise its intangible assets?
Legally enforceable accounting standard AASB 1021 ‘Depreciation’ requires all non-current assets (whether tangible or intangible) to be depreciated or amortised in accordance with the pattern of loss or consumption of economic benefits. Some entities claim that they do not need to amortise their intangible assets because the assets have indefinite or infinite lives, or that amortisation would not be material because of the long lives of the assets and the residual values at the end of their lives. ASIC expects entities to make reasonable estimates of the lives of intangible assets. The standard does not permit residual values to be revalued unless the current carrying amount is also revalued and the residual value of an asset intended to be used in the business is unlikely to be significant at the end of its useful life. ASIC is also concerned that the values attributed to many unamortised intangible assets include internally-generated or purchased goodwill. Entities cannot rely on rev
