Written by edgaragentsdb on March 30, 2017

The SEC has recently passed an amendment requiring exhibits listed in the exhibit index of specific filings to be hyperlinked directly to the exhibit. This allows for easy access from the list. And, although companies are not required to comply with this rule until September, the SEC has encouraged companies to begin working with their filing agents now to discuss placement of the URLs.

SEC filing forms to be affected by this new rule are:

  • Forms S-1, S-3, S-4, S-8, S-11, SF-1, SF-3, F-1, F-3 and F-4 under the Securities Act of 1933 (Securities Act)
  • Forms 10, 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K and 10-D under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act)
  • Forms F-10 and 20-F must also include hyperlinks for their exhibit indexes.

Although the amendment will not go into effect until September 1, 2017, the SEC is encouraging companies to comply with the new rule now. The SEC has also announced that it will be updating its EDGAR Filer Manual to include instructions on how to hyperlink an exhibit previously filed and the procedures necessary to create a link to an exhibit that is being filed at the same time as a registration statement or report.

There are several new features of the new rule such as timing and format based on how your financials are normally converted. Nevertheless, there are also a few exceptions to this new rule. For instance, the interactive exhibits filed in XBRL and those filed with Form ABS-EE are excluded from this requirement. To learn more about the amendment’s specific features, please review the SEC public statement on the SEC website.

Our agents are ready to discuss placement of the hyperlinks should you have any questions. Please do not hesitate to contact our office at (732) 780-5036 or visit our site at www.edgaragents.com. We are always happy to discuss any industry trend on any of our social networks as well.