Updated guide to accounting for business combinations

An updated edition of A guide to accounting for business combinations is now available. Our comprehensive guide is designed to assist practitioners and reporting entities in their application of the guidance in Topic 805, Business Combinations, of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's (FASB) Accounting Standards Codification. The guide explains the accounting for a business combination in plain English and illustrates many aspects of the accounting with detailed examples and illustrations.

The December 2025 edition of the guide has been updated to incorporate the issuance of recent FASB guidance and the effectiveness of certain FASB accounting standard updates. The guide has also been updated to address various issues encountered in practice.

A summary of all the significant changes made in this edition can be found in Appendix F of the guide.