For the presentation of the profit and loss account, the Member States shall prescribe one or more of the layouts provided for in Articles 23 to 26. If a Member State prescribes more than one layout, it may allow companies to choose from among them.
By way of derogation from Article 2(1), Member States may permit or require all companies, or any classes of company, to present a statement of their performance instead of the presentation of profit and loss items in accordance with Articles 23 to 26, provided that the information given is at least equivalent to that otherwise required by those Articles.