Accounting standards. Federal Law "On Accounting"

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Work on the creation of accounting standards in Russia began in 2015. Then the Ministry of Finance approved the program for their development by Order No. 64n. By 2016, the work was completed. Currently, the program includes 29 accounting standards. According to the order of the department, they should come into force in stages from January 1, 2018. Implementation into practice should be completed by 2020. At the same time, adjustments will be made to existing laws, Regulations on accounting and reporting, and other regulatory documents.

Public sector organizations

Special accounting standards have been developed for these entities. All of them are united in the "Conceptual Foundations of Accounting and Reporting". This document secures:

• Key ways of keeping records.
• Accounting objects, rules for their recognition, evaluation.
• General procedure for the formation of information reflected in the reporting, qualitative characteristics of information.
• Documentation guidelines.
• Basic requirements for the inventory of liabilities and assets.

Public sector entities are required to apply these accounting standards from 1 Jan. 2018. At the same time, reporting for 2017 is formed according to the previous rules.

What remains the same?

The accounting standards for public sector organizations include separate provisions contained in section 1 of Instruction No. 157n. In particular, the following remained unchanged:

• Circle of accounting subjects.
• Rules for the formation of a chart of accounts.
• Accounting methods (accrual, double entry, recognition of expenses and income).
• Requirements for the compilation and storage of primary documentation and registers.
• Document flow.
• Requirements for the inventory of liabilities and assets.

Correction of wording

Some principles are set out in the new standards and the Federal Law "On Accounting" more clearly than in the existing instructions. It is, in particular, about the assumption of temporal certainty. It means that the recognition of objects is carried out in the period in which the facts of the economic activity of the enterprise took place, as a result of which they arose or changed, regardless of the write-off or receipt of money.

In addition, the definition of material information has received a clearer formulation. Data is recognizedas such, if their omission or distortion may affect the decision of the founders or other interested parties, which is made by them on the basis of information from accounting documents. The materiality of information depends on the level of influence of its absence or misrepresentation. There is no single quantitative criterion for evaluating this indicator. In this regard, the degree of materiality is determined in each case individually.

Reporting classification

The standards for public sector organizations include certain provisions from the first sections of the Instructions approved by orders of the Ministry of Finance No. 33n and 191n. They specify the list of reporting entities, the rules of a desk audit, making adjustments to the information enshrined in the Federal Law "On Accounting".

In addition, the classification of reporting is fixed. According to the accounting standard, it is divided into:

• General and consolidated (according to the degree of data generalization and the order of their formation).
• General and special purpose (by degree of disclosure).

This classification is also defined in current regulations. However, the Standard contains a full description of it.

Accounting objects

The new Accounting Standard for public sector entities discloses the definitions of liabilities, assets (including net), expense, income.

An asset is property (including cash and non-cash funds):

• Owned by or used by an institution.
• Controlled as a result of business transactions.
• Having useful potential and able to bring economic benefits.

New terms are used in asset characteristics. One of these concepts is useful potential. It is considered the suitability of the asset for use in the activities of the organization, for exchange, repayment of obligations. At the same time, the exploitation of property does not always have to be accompanied by the receipt of money. In relation to an asset, it is sufficient that it serves to achieve the organization's objectives and goals. Accordingly, the object has certain consumer qualities.

Future economic benefits are cash or cash equivalents generated from the use of an asset. For example, it could be rent payments.

The presence of control over an asset by an institution indicates the right of the organization to use the object (including temporarily) to extract future economic benefits or useful potential, the ability to regulate or exclude third-party access to it.

International Accounting Standards

To ensure the unity of recognition, evaluation, disclosure of information about financial and economic transactions in the world market, IFRS were developed. International Accounting Standards ensure the comparability of financial records between enterprises and the availability of information to external users.

IFRS can significantly reduce the costs of economic entities in preparing reports. This is especially important for companies with an extensive network of representative offices in different countries. At the same time, enterprises that use international standards significantly reduce the cost of raising capital.

The market value of capital depends on the risks and prospects of return. Some risks are determined by the specifics of the enterprise. However, many of them are associated with a lack of information about the effectiveness of capital investments. The reason for this is the lack of standardized reporting. IFRS solves this problem. That is why many countries are striving to implement international standards in their practice.

Openness of information attracts more investors. They, in turn, are willing to make less profit, realizing that greater data transparency provides a significant reduction in risk.