Level of Maqāsid ul-Shari’āh’s in financial reporting standards for Islamic financial institutions

Purpose This study aims to measure levels of Sharīʿah-compliance in Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) financial reporting standards with the objective to investigate the application of Maqāsid ul-Sharīʿah as a compliance measure reflected in the reporting standards. Design/methodology/approach This paper adopts Maqāsid ul-Sharīʿah’s model to measure levels of Sharīʿah-compliance amongst three available financial reporting frameworks and presentation standards; international financial reporting standards (IFRS), accounting and auditing organization for Islamic financial institutions (AAOIFI), Pernyataan Standar Akuntansi Keuangan (PSAK) Syariah. NVivo 10 software is used in this paper to help measure quantitatively the compliance level of each standard. Findings The findings suggest that the use of Maqāsid ul-Sharīʿah leads to a more complete understanding of how the meaning of Sharīʿah and its values can be integrated into the demands of financial reporting, and hence, offering greater convergence between ethics and accounting regulations amongst IFIs. Originality/value It documents different context of content analysis that takes examples of Islamic financial reporting studies and uses both classical and contemporary theoretical bases. The main outputs are designed for standard setters and policymakers with expectation for Sharīʿah objectives (i.e. Maqāsid ul-Sharīʿah), to be embedded in the preparation of financial reporting standards for the IFIs. Hence, they will be able to show their full accountability then gain better trust from the stakeholders.

Taxpayer Non-Compliance with Input Tax Credit Rules: Data and Policy Options for Canada

Input tax credits (ITCs) are a mechanism for businesses to recover the goods and services tax (GST)/harmonized sales tax (HST) paid on expenses related to their commercial activities. While many businesses claim ITCs in accordance with the rules, instances of non-compliance are apparent. Canada uses an invoice credit system that relies on the claimant's retention of documentation that can be checked to detect any overstatement of ITC entitlement. Absent an audit, businesses are generally not required to provide tax authorities with details of their transactions. This article draws on a study of case law relating to section 169 of the Excise Tax Act over the five-year period 2014-2019. Section 169 contains the general principles and rules for claiming ITCs. The study highlights various reasons for non-compliance with the ITC system in Canada, both intentional and unintentional. There are several recurring themes: the prevalence of fraudulent practices in certain industries, burdensome documentation and verification requirements, and taxpayers' misunderstanding of the rules for claiming ITCs, owing to ambiguous or otherwise complicated legal tests. In particular, the substantive rules concerning what constitutes a "commercial activity" for the purposes of claiming ITCs are often misapplied or misunderstood by claimants. Undisclosed agency relationships also cause problems where they result in the wrong name appearing on the documentation supporting an ITC claim. These issues point to certain flaws in the implementation of the rules under the GST/HST regime in Canada. In response to instances of suspected fraud, Canadian tax authorities have been results-driven in implementing increasingly onerous supplier verification requirements that must be met before an ITC is claimed, particularly where the supplier did not remit the applicable tax. This contributes to a high compliance burden for taxpayers. Some proposals have been made for changes that would mitigate the issues associated with undisclosed agency relationships, but there are still problems with the documentation requirements and other substantive rules for claiming ITCs that need to be addressed. The article concludes with a review of reform options proposed or adopted in other jurisdictions with a value-added tax. It also discusses a compliance measure implemented in Quebec (the attestation de Revenu Québec), which could be applied in other provinces. Specific recommendations are made for the adoption of e-invoicing and increased reporting requirements to address some of the reasons for non-compliance in Canada. A number of countries have moved toward implementing periodic or near-real-time reporting requirements. These measures show promise and suggest that Canada could move in that direction as well.

Measuring Within-Session and Between-Session Compliance in Hoarding Disorder: A Preliminary Investigation of the Psychometric Properties of the CBT Compliance Measure (CCM) and Patient Exposure/Response Prevention Adherence Scale for Hoarding (PEAS-H)

Hoarding disorder (HD) is a new psychiatric diagnosis in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders–Fifth edition and preliminary evidence suggests that cognitive-behavioral treatments are effective in treating this condition. However, it has been demonstrated that individuals with HD generally display poor compliance during treatment, which may lead to poor outcomes. Treatment compliance can be conceptualized as either within-session or between-session compliance, but currently there are no validated measures of within-session or between-session compliance specifically for HD. The aim of this study was to provide an initial validation of the CBT Compliance Measure and the Patient Exposure/Response Prevention Adherence Scale for Hoarding in a sample of participants with HD who were undergoing group cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for HD ( N = 70). Both measures, which were administered at each relevant treatment session, demonstrated a unidimensional structure, good reliability, as well as predictive validity, and are thus promising in the measurement of within-session and between-session compliance with CBT for HD.

Commissioning of an Atypical Acoustic Facility for Experimental Testing

Computational modeling (BEM, FEM, and SEA) is often implemented at different stages of the design process to optimize manufacturing and performance parameters. Computational results are typically verified experimentally. Experimental testing standards, particularly those related to vibro-acoustic testing, are defined by various agencies such as ASTM, ANSI, and ISO. An investigation proposing a new computational methodology of analyzing the vibro-acoustic behavior of an aircraft fuselage due to the turbulent boundary layer required verification of the predictions experimentally. In the face of certain limitations, an atypical acoustic facility was constructed challenging conventional standards while complying with the defined criteria of international testing standards. Principal deviations relate to the geometric requirements that recommend large volumes of certain construct, and microphone and acoustic source positioning. The calculated 95% confidence intervals compared exceptionally well against defined criteria (strictest measure is 1 for frequencies greater than 315 Hz) by averaging less than 0.4 for each test product across a frequency range that exceeded is the range specified by ASTM E90. The requirements for qualification of the reverberation chamber according to ANSI S12.51 were also satisfied, with the exception of measurements at 125 Hz and 160 Hz that observed heightened sensitivity due to near field effects and room modes. The calculated permissible ratio of decay variation showed good agreement against ASTM C423 criteria despite the intrinsic challenge of creating a diffuse and reverberant field in a confined, or constricting, volume. The last compliance measure reviewed flanking to ensure acceptable signal-to-noise ratio. It was clearly demonstrated that the silenced sound pressure levels (with the presence of the specimen) were greater than 10 dB above the background sound pressure levels (with the consequences of flanking considered). The investigation confirmed the feasibility of using an atypical acoustic facility to comply with various international testing standards. The noted deviations and shortcomings are not specific to the presented work, but are common challenges that all facilities observe.