# ASC 320-958-15: Investments—Debt Securities — Not-for-Profit Entities — 15 Scope and Scope Exceptions Source: FASB Accounting Standards Codification, Basic View [Read online](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#15-scope-and-scope-exceptions) Study and research edition. Verify current requirements with the official source. Summaries, enrichment, and tags are machine-generated study aids. Paragraph html preserves source markup; snippet is abbreviated. Pending content is not necessarily effective. Tables and mathematical or amendment markup are retained as HTML where Markdown would lose structure. Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:6a52fcceec1b69e0c6ccbfd58e8e50319cb4772a4667a2cd38a384539652132c Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. ## ASC 320-958-15: 15 Scope and Scope Exceptions [Read section](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#15-scope-and-scope-exceptions) SEC content: no #### Overall Guidance ##### [320-958-15-1](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-1) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:806c43b5777f52d963ee707dd3cdf0f133fa2cd96802180c54313d68ca9ac5b7 Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. This Subtopic follows the same Scope and Scope Exceptions as outlined in the Overall Subtopic, see Section 958-10-15, with specific exceptions noted below. #### Health Care Entities ##### [320-958-15-1A](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-1A) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:8e18da18702d9518f42090a90dc10f4ecf5fbbf86d0f7878d7ec4b57b53b3391 Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. The application of this Subtopic by not-for-profit, business-oriented health care entities, as described in paragraph [954-10-05-2(b)](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/954/10/#954-10-05-2), is subject to additional guidance in Subtopic 954-220. #### Instruments ##### [320-958-15-2](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-2) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:6fa9cf84102042ccb45e163ce5d40401f0a0a37dbfeb4908aa464e021232d7ed Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. The measurement standards in Section 958-320-35 apply to all investments in debt securities, including mortgage-backed securities. 1. a [Subparagraph superseded by Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-01](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/updates/asu-2016-01/). 2. b [Subparagraph superseded by Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-01](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/updates/asu-2016-01/). ##### [320-958-15-3](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-3) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:2f614653c17be6511af7e23d146137ccaceb0f85de0ccc1c0a40b95aab71e5ce Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. The reporting standards in paragraphs [958-220-45-22 through 45-30](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/220/958/#220-958-45-22) and Section 958-320-50 apply to all investments held by [not-for-profit entities](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/glossary/n/#not-for-profit-entity "An entity that possesses the following characteristics, in varying degrees, that distinguish it from a business entity: Contributions of significant amounts of resources from resource providers who do not expect commensurate or proportionate pecuniary return Operating purposes other than to provide goods or services at a profit Absence of ownership interests like those of business entities. Entities that clearly fall outside this definition include the following: All investor-owned entities Entities that provide dividends, lower costs, or other economic benefits directly and proportionately to their owners, members, or participants, such as mutual insurance entities, credit unions, farm and rural electric cooperatives, and employee benefit plans.") (NFPs), except those described in the following paragraph. ##### [320-958-15-4](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-4) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:43904005fb6d1e643bceebd39d0263b132b7d144e9f9112e2570d4e18cce74e4 Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. The guidance in this Subtopic does not apply to any of the following: 1. a An investment in equity securities that is accounted for under the equity method in accordance with paragraph [958-810-15-4](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/810/958/#810-958-15-4) or in accordance with Subtopic 958-321. 2. b An investment in a subsidiary that is consolidated in accordance with paragraph [958-810-15-4](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/810/958/#810-958-15-4) or [958-810-25-2 through 25-4](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/810/958/#810-958-25-2) . 3. c An investment in a derivative instrument that is subject to the requirements of Topic 815. That is, an investment in an option on securities shall be accounted for under the requirements of Subtopic 815-10 if the option meets the definition of a derivative instrument, including the criteria for net settlement in paragraph [815-10-15-99](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/815/10/#815-10-15-99). 4. d Short sales of securities (sales of securities that the seller does not own at the time of sale), because they are obligations to deliver securities, not investments. Short sale obligations are addressed in the guidance for certain industries (see paragraph [940-320-35-1](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/940/#320-940-35-1) with respect to broker-dealers and paragraph [942-405-35-1](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/405/942/#405-942-35-1) with respect to depository institutions). For guidance on evaluating whether a short sale transaction involves a derivative instrument, see paragraph [815-10-55-57](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/815/10/#815-10-55-57). 5. e Investments held by a [financially interrelated entity](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/glossary/f/#financially-interrelated-entities "A recipient entity and a specified beneficiary are financially interrelated entities if the relationship between them has both of the following characteristics: One of the entities has the ability to influence the operating and financial decisions of the other. One of the entities has an ongoing economic interest in the net assets of the other."). See Subtopic 958-20 for reporting interests in the [net assets](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/glossary/n/#net-assets "The excess or deficiency of assets over liabilities of a not-for-profit entity, which is divided into two mutually exclusive classes according to the existence or absence of donor-imposed restrictions. See Net Assets with Donor Restrictions and Net Assets without Donor Restrictions.") of a financially interrelated entity. ##### [320-958-15-5](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-5) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:4d2942f6c78738d167aed9264b9dc6e7cc9d282d85280f27bfdc86335afedaf1 Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. If an investment would otherwise be in the scope of this Subtopic and it has within it an embedded derivative that is subject to the requirements of Topic 815, the host contract (as described in paragraph [815-15-05-1](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/815/15/#815-15-05-1)) remains within the scope of this Subtopic. ##### [320-958-15-6](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-6) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:f1dd44578dcdf79407e8ae9c4bc6380dcdcd545e268b143759f6b75401ed639d Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. When determining whether an instrument is within the scope of this Subtopic, an entity shall not look through the form of its investment to the nature of the securities held by an investee. For example, an entity invests in a limited partnership interest (or a venture capital entity) that meets the definition of an equity security. However, substantially all of the partnership's assets consist of investments in debt securities. In the specific situation described, the investment would be considered an equity security. #### Other Considerations ##### [320-958-15-7](https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/320/958/#320-958-15-7) Pending content: no Source downloaded (UTC): 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z to 2026-09-09T23:37:50.575Z Record version: sha256:1630c858be296b87c10e659c0223e4204cbff81dd8b4c0cd6dbb1069d6bf99fb Snapshot version: sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f Effective as of: not established by retrieval timestamps. This Subtopic does not specify methods to be used for measuring the amount of interest income.