What does it cost?
The annual subscription costs $2500 per year for unlimited simultaneous users, unlimited usage. Subscription includes upfront training and ongoing technical support, access to a LinkedIn group with other subscribers and XBRL US Members, discounted event registration, and two hours of support related to using the XBRL Consistency Checks to prepare data for filing. The XBRL Consistency Suite can also be accessed through other instance creation and validation tools such as CoreFiling's Magnify, and the EDGAR Assurance Suite from XBRL Cloud.
Why is XBRL US uniquely qualified to offer XBRL Consistency checks?
XBRL US developed the first release of the US GAAP Taxonomy in 2008 and subsequently developed the 2009 release as well. We now work closely with the FASB as they have taken on the role of support and maintenance. Our members are the accounting firms, and XBRL tool and service providers that work with public companies in their XBRL financial data preparation. We established a committee called the XBRL US Best Practice group, which is made up of these same organizations plus data users to ensure that we reach a consensus in the guidance we provide to public companies.
How do XBRL Consistency Checks differ from SEC validation or XBRL validation?
The Consistency Checks are data quality validation rules that focus on the individual fact values (i.e., data) reported in the company's instance. These checks are designed to assess if the inputs are correct and whether the elements used and attributes assigned to report the data is in accordance with agreed-upon best practices and with the the intention and design of the base taxonomy.
SEC validation assesses compliance with the requirements of the EDGAR Filing Manual, as well as inclusion of the handful of required document entity information elements.
XBRL validation assesses compliance with the global XBRL specification, which means that the instance document will able to be used with XBRL formatted software programs.
I use a service provider. Do I still need XBRL Consistency Checks?
Yes. The Consistency Checks are as rudimentary as footing and proofing your financial information before release to the public. Regardless of the process employed by your outside service provider, the Consistency Checks provide a comprehensive automated means to strengthen your XBRL financial reporting process.
If I run the XBRL Consistency Checks, do I still have to run SEC and XBRL validation?
Yes. The three core validation sets are incremental and together create a robust review process.
Is this the same error checking as XBRL Cloud?
No. XBRL Cloud performs SEC validation, XBRL validation and runs a set of checks on the conformance of an XBRL document to the US GAAP taxonomy architecture for extensions.
How often is the Company Filings information updated?
Within minutes of posting to the SEC web site.
How often are the Consistency Check rules updated?
Quarterly.
What are the minimum computer requirements for using the XBRL Consistency Suite?
In order to use the XBRL Consistency Suite, you must have:
- An Internet-connected computer that can send and receive https:// data - some companies block this type of traffic on their networks. If you’re unable to run XBRL Consistency Checks, you may need to request access in your network to our domain (https://*xbrl.us) through your IT Department - contact CSuiteHelp@xbrl.us to get details or additional help with this request.
- Current web browsing software - Internet Explorer 8, FireFox 10, Safari 3, Chrome 4, Opera 10
- Adobe Flash player version 10
Alternatively, subscribers who are also users of CoreFiling's Magnify can use that tool to download the Consistency checks each time the application is initiated, allowing the user to locally run the Consistency checks.
How are files processed by the XBRL Consistency Checks?
The XBRL Consistency Checks is a secure web-based service that reviews company XBRL documents against a growing set of checks designed to indicate inconsistencies or errors.
Registered company representatives and/or designated service providers - as determined by the subscriber - sign in with email address and password to connect to the Consistency Checks service and set a session-based cookie on their local machine. Download this PDF to learn more about the XBRL Consistency Checks infrastructure.