This project examines how to recognized subsidiaries and associates in the consolidated financial statement. It reviews how to consolidate according to Danish legislation and International Financial Reporting Standards and uses case companies to illustrate the process.

It explains when a parent company has control over another firm, therefore making it a subsidiary, and when a company has significant influence on another firm, making it an associate, and how to recognize both in the consolidated financial statement through full consolidation and the equity method. Fictive case companies are used to illustrate both methods.

The analytical view is used to examine thesis statement which is based on the assumption that reality is factive. These facts can be objective and subjective and both are view as true. Objective facts in my project are the Danish legislation and International Financial Reporting Standards and subjective facts are KPMG’s and PWC’s books on accounting.

The project concludes that subsidiaries are to be recognized by full consolidation and associates by equity method. The criteria for when a company is a subsidiary differ on whether the parent company follows Danish legislation or IFRS. Danish legislation are rule based where as IFRS are assess based. The way subsidiaries are recognized is by eliminate assets, liabilities, equity, income and expenses relating to transactions between entities in the group. According to Danish legislation the parent company are only allowed to calculate its share of goodwill, while IFRS allow for full goodwill that includes both the parent’s and minorities’ share.

The equity method is used to recognized associates, and here assets and liabilities are not to be eliminated but income relating to transactions between parent and associate are. According to Danish legislation all downstream sale are to be eliminated and upstream only to the extent of the investor’s interest in the associate. According to IFRS both downstream and upstream are eliminated to the extent of the investor’s interest in the associate.