What is ‘Handelsgesetzbuch – HGB’
A law that governs the primary commercial code for companies in Germany. Included in the law is regulation related to the preparation of financial statements. This law is similar to GAAP, which is followed in the United States.
Explaining ‘Handelsgesetzbuch – HGB’
The commercial code of Germany was first established on May 10, 1897. In 1998, the code was adapted to conform with new laws within the European community. The HGB has also been used in Austria since 1938. However, on January 1, 2007, the HGB will be replaced by a new unified commercial code called the Unternehmensgesetzbuch (UGB). This will be a modernized version of the HGB.
Further Reading
- Financial statement effects of adopting international accounting standards: the case of Germany – link.springer.com [PDF]
- The political economy of international accounting standards – www.tandfonline.com [PDF]
- The role of accounting in the German financial system – papers.ssrn.com [PDF]
- Accounting treatments for goodwill and other intangible assets in Germany – search.proquest.com [PDF]
- 2 Accounting and the Business Economics Tradition in Germany – books.google.com [PDF]
- The Accounting Model Choice for Insurance Contracts and its International Convergence [J] – en.cnki.com.cn [PDF]
- Determination of the Internal Financing Power of Corporate Growth via the Self-Financeable Growth Rate – link.springer.com [PDF]
- Incentives or standards: What determines accounting quality changes around IFRS adoption? – www.tandfonline.com [PDF]
- The influence of tax on IFRS consolidated statements: the convergence of Germany and the UK – www.tandfonline.com [PDF]
- Continental European accounting model and accounting modernization in Germany – www.sciencedirect.com [PDF]
