All accounting documents. Primary documents – confirmation of the fact of a business transaction

In current practice, primary documents accounting are understood as papers reflecting the facts of economic life (conclusion of transactions, movement of goods and materials, etc.). They are drawn up at the time of transactions or after their completion, to confirm the facts that happened. Based on them, the accountant makes entries in the enterprise’s accounting program and accepts the amounts for tax accounting.

In what form is the “primary” compiled?

According to the explanations of the Ministry of Finance, the company has the right to independently determine which forms of “primary” to use. Decision is fixed in the accounting policies of the organization. Practice shows that business entities use one of three options:

• Unified forms offered by Goskomstat.
• Samples developed by the company independently and secured by internal regulations.
• Combined options: primary documents in a unified format, supplemented with certain fields.

The right of business entities to independently develop “primary” forms does not apply to the following types of documents:

• cash documents (in particular, consumables and receipts);
• strict reporting forms;
• transport invoices.

For them, the Ministry of Finance introduces unified forms as mandatory.

If the company that entered into the transaction has not determined the form of the “primary” in the contract, the counterparty has the right to submit documents according to own samples. To avoid questions from regulatory authorities, the company should state in its accounting policies that it accepts papers on forms developed by its suppliers and customers.

Important! The presence of a “primary” mediating a particular operation is mandatory requirement for its reflection in accounting and tax accounting.

Mandatory details of the “primary”

According to Art. 9 402-ФЗ, primary accounting documents must contain the following mandatory details:

• the name of the business paper, for example, “Certificate of Accepted Work”;
• number according to the internal numbering rules of the originating company;
• date of document preparation;
• full name of the company issuing the “primary registration”;
• the essence of the business transaction that occurred (for example, shipment of goods to the buyer, depositing cash into the cash register, acceptance of work performed, etc.);
• measurement of an economic fact that has occurred in cash or in kind;
• position and full name of the employee responsible for completing or processing the transaction;
• handwritten signature of an authorized person.

The list of persons entitled to sign primary accounting documents is determined by the head of the organization. It is secured by his order.

Some forms contain additional details in relation to the standard list. For example, waybills must contain information about the car, its owner and driver.

Is it necessary to put the organization’s seal on the “primary” document? This is not a mandatory requisite; you cannot do without it only if its presence is provided for in the sample enshrined in the company’s accounting policy.

Types of primary documents

Current legislation does not establish a closed list of 2018 primary accounting documents. Their diversity is determined by the scope of activity of the economic entity. For one company, you will need a bill of lading, for another - an act of writing off literature from the library.

The most common types of documentation include:

• waybill – mediates transactions for the acceptance and transfer of goods and materials;
• acceptance certificate – drawn up in situations where one party accepts the results of work carried out by the other;
• payroll - prepared when paying wages to staff;
• OS-1 – reflects the receipt or depletion of an item of fixed assets (except for real estate);
• INV-1 – consolidates the results of the inventory;
• advance report – confirms the expenses of an employee arriving from a business trip;
• cash documents (checks, PKO, RKO, etc.);
• payment order;
• accounting certificate, etc.

The given list of primary accounting documents is not complete. Companies different directions activities use the necessary forms to reflect the transactions being carried out.

Depending on the method of implementation, the “primary” can be paper or electronic. The second option is used in companies where electronic document management is set up. It helps to simplify and speed up the processing of business papers and streamline interaction between counterparties.

According to the current legislation, all types of “primary materials” are stored in the company for five years. The countdown starts from the end of the reporting year. For example, papers issued in 2018 must be stored until 2023 inclusive. Violation of this rule will lead to proceedings with the tax service and the imposition of penalties on the organization.

Primary accounting documents are important not only in accounting matters, but also regarding tax legislation, in particular determining the scope of obligations. Therefore, it is extremely important for those responsible for drawing up primary documentation to know all the nuances of accounting, and in addition, understand their classification to simplify the work.

What are primary accounting documents

Primary documents are considered to be those that register certain business actions that have already been carried out. You can leave an entry in accounting and enter it into the register only if you have primary accounting documentation. It is considered an integral part of the enterprise management system. Based on this, we can safely say that primary accounting documents are documentary evidence of completed transactions related to the economic activities of the entity and which brought some economic effect.

Classification

All points affecting the issue regarding the primary subject are subject to the provisions and norms of 402-FZ. The regulation states that these certificates are needed when interacting with tax authorities as confirmation of the correctness of the calculations. This means that tax officials will not have any complaints regarding the process of determining the tax base.

In accordance with current regulations, primary documentation is subject to mandatory storage for 4 years. During this period, tax authorities can request documents for study and verification at any time. In addition, primary documentation often acts as evidence in litigation.

It is worth noting that specific forms of primary documentation are not fixed at the legislative level. By this issue An economic entity has the opportunity to choose the option that will satisfy its needs and serve good help in further work.

Primary accounting documents: list

Usually, full list certificates performing fundamental functions remain unchanged and are approved at the highest level. Currently this category includes:

1. Agreement. They stipulate the specific terms of the transaction, the responsibilities of the parties and financial questions. In general, all the conditions that are in one way or another related to the transaction are indicated here. Please note that for some transactions a written contract is not required. So, from the moment the buyer receives sales receipt, the deal is considered concluded.
2. Accounts. Using documents of this type the buyer confirms his willingness to pay for the goods (services) of the seller. In addition, invoices may contain additional terms of the transaction and record specific prices that the seller sets for its products and services. If for some reason the buyer is not satisfied with the product (service) presented to him, he has the right to demand a refund of his funds based on the invoice.
3. Packing list. It displays a complete list of all goods or materials that are transferred. The invoice must be drawn up in several versions depending on the number of participants in the transaction.
4. The act of acceptance and transfer. It is compiled based on the results of the provision of the service as confirmation that the result of the work meets the previously stated criteria and is fully approved by the receiving party.
5. Payslips. They display all issues related to payroll settlements with hired personnel. Moreover, all information regarding bonuses, additional payments and other mechanisms for financial incentives for employees should be displayed here.
6. Acceptance and transfer certificates No. OS-1. This type of documentation is used to record any activities related to the input or output of fixed assets.
7. Cash documents, which include incoming and outgoing cash orders, and in addition, cash book. They contain information regarding financial transactions carried out as part of the sale.

Classification

The types of primary documents in accounting are quite diverse and primarily depend on the specific purpose of using the document in the foreseeable future. However, the most popular classification feature is the division of primary documentation into internal and external.

An internal document is the property of the company and is issued by it to resolve certain issues. It is compiled by the company’s specialists and applies exclusively within the jurisdiction of this company. Thus, this category consists of those documents that are necessary for effective management economic activity within one company. At the same time, if a document is received by a company from outside or is compiled by company specialists and subsequently transferred to other legal entities (tax authorities, clients, etc.), then it will be recognized as external.

In turn, internal documents also have their own classification characteristics, which make it possible to group them into three categories:

1. Administrative (organizational). They indicate information that must be communicated to the employees of the company, structural divisions and branches and their managers. With their help, the company issues certain orders that must be carefully followed. This group includes a variety of orders, instructions and much more.
2. Executory (exculpatory), which initially display facts confirming the conduct of certain business operations and their completion.
3. Accounting documents. This category is generalizing and is needed to systematize information contained in other papers and their further collection into a single document.

Under certain circumstances, documentation may also be combined. IN this group we can include those papers that can simultaneously contain key features of organizational and supporting documentation. The most striking examples here are various cash orders, requirements, advance reporting and much more.

Accounting registers and their classification

When making any transaction, primary documentation is prepared. As soon as it is fully completed, all information specified in it must be duplicated in the appropriate accounting register. And it is a kind of carrier that accumulates basic information on the transaction. Based on the essence of the register, several classification criteria can be identified. For example, in appearance, registers appear to users in the form of books, simple sheets and index cards.

Based on the mechanisms for maintaining the register, three more groups can be distinguished:

1. Chronological, in which all events that occurred are indicated in strict compliance with the time frame. That is, you first need to indicate those operations that occurred earlier and so on. Such registers are the most complex, since they contain a huge amount of information, and quite often some action can be left out.
2. Systematic, in which initially all transactions are entered in the form of economic indicators. Thus, registers of this type reflect the economic effect of completed business transactions and analyze indicators of expenses and income. The most a shining example The systematic register is the cash book.
3. Combined, which have the fundamental features of both systematic and chronological registers.

Contents of primary documentation

Many users have questions about what constitutes primary accounting documents and what requirements apply to them. At the legislative level, several provisions are enshrined that establish that certain information must be present in the documents of the primary couple. In particular, in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 9 of Federal Law-402, the primary documentation must contain the following information:

• Title of the document;
• Date of preparation;
• information about the person who made the specified document(full name of the enterprise);
• the essence of the economic activity related to this document;
• financial calculations regarding the transaction;
• signatures of the officials responsible for the transaction and their initials.

Sample primary accounting document

Rules for document preparation

The legislator establishes certain rules for the preparation of primary accounting documents. Yes, one of key requirements accuracy and the absence of any grammatical and punctuation errors and typos are considered. If the tax service discovers certain shortcomings, the violator will have to redo the document, and if the violation is repeated, you may be subject to penalties. In general, this issue should be addressed close attention to the following recommendations:

1. The use of ballpoint and ink pens, special computing equipment and computers is allowed.
2. Compilation can begin when it is planned to carry out certain business transactions that need to be displayed. At the same time, in exceptional situations, it is entirely possible to draw up a document after the completion of the transaction.
3. All calculation data must be shown in both numerical and written form. Thus, there should be a caption next to each number.
4. It is extremely important to fill out all the details indicated on the form. If for some reason there is no information, you cannot leave a blank line. A dash should appear in it.

If you do not follow these recommendations, you may encounter significant difficulties. Thus, if the tax service finds the document incorrect during an audit, doubts will arise about the correctness of the calculations made and the determination of the tax base.

If for some reason it is necessary to make certain adjustments, under no circumstances should you use correctors and shading, as they are unacceptable. Corrections can be made in the following ways:

1. Contour correction. If incorrect information is provided, it must be crossed out with a thin line and the correct information indicated next to it. In this case, there must be a footnote in place of each such correction. "Corrected Believe" indicating the date of correction and the signature of the official who made the correction. However, we note that in the case of documents showing receipts and expenditures Money, this method will be inappropriate.
2. Additional entry. This method is used in situations where the total values ​​of transactions are executed with significantly reduced indicators. In order not to draw up the document in a new way, you can make additional entries for the missing amounts in the current period or the next one.
3. Reversal. An incorrect entry is corrected using negative values. All incorrect information is repeated in red ink, and the correct entries are indicated next to it.

The primary report can be compiled both in written and electronic form. IN Lately many companies duplicate information and create both paper and electronic versions. The former are subsequently used for internal interests, but electronic copies are submitted for verification to the Federal Tax Service upon request.

Several conclusions can be drawn. The state does not approve any mandatory forms for primary documentation, which gives business entities the right to independently determine the form of the document that will be used in practice in the future. Immediately after registration of the document, all data from it must be transferred to the accounting register.

Primary accounting documents or primary records, as accountants call them, are the basis of accounting, both accounting and tax. Without correct design, maintaining and primary documents, it is impossible to conduct legal business activities.

The Law “On Accounting” dated December 6, 2011 No. 402-FZ indicates that “every fact of economic life is subject to registration as a primary accounting document.”

To make sure everyone is available necessary documents, it is worth regularly checking your accounting, and for those who do not have time for this, we recommend a free accounting audit service.

The primary document proves in writing the fact of a business transaction, confirms the commission of business expenses when calculating the tax base, and establishes the responsibility of performers for the performance of business transactions. Primary documents are requested by tax inspectors when checking declarations and reports, and they are necessary when passing audits.

Considering that not only accountants, but also managers, individual entrepreneurs, sales managers and other employees fill out and prepare primary documents, we invite you to familiarize yourself with the requirements for these documents.

Who develops the forms of primary documents?

Primary accounting documents are unified(the form of which was developed by Rosstat (formerly Goskomstat of the Russian Federation) or the Central Bank) and independently developed by taxpayers.

Article 9 of Law No. 402-FZ contains the following list of mandatory details of primary documents (unified or independently developed):

• Title of the document;
• date of document preparation;
• name of the economic entity that compiled the document;
• content of the fact of economic life;
• the value of the natural and (or) monetary measurement of a fact of economic life, indicating the units of measurement;
• the name of the position of the person who completed the transaction, operation and the person responsible for its execution;
• signatures of these persons.

As for the seal, although it is not listed among the required details, if there is a field “M.P.” (space for printing) its imprint is required.

If the taxpayer is satisfied with the unified forms from Goskomstat (fortunately, the list of them is huge), then it is not necessary to develop your own forms. There is also the concept of “modernized primary”, i.e. unified primary documents to which the taxpayer has made his own additions.

Note, You cannot independently develop and approve forms of the following primary documents:

• cash documents;
• payment order and other bank settlement documents;
• unified forms for payments using a cash register;
• waybill;
• payroll and payroll.

Such primary documents can only be unified.

Where can I find samples of unified primary documents?

The development and approval of forms for primary documents is the responsibility of Goskomstat (now Rosstat). Today, unified forms developed in the 90s of the last century continue to be used. Only settlement (payment) documents developed by the Bank of Russia have a relatively new edition - from 2012.

Such documents are called differently: acts, journals, invoices, statements, orders, books, instructions, calculations, powers of attorney, orders, etc. Using this table, you will find in which Resolution of the State Statistics Committee the unified forms of primary documents you need are published.

On our website you can download forms of unified primary documents and by .

A strict reporting form (SRF) is also a primary document, but there are special requirements for it. The list of mandatory BSO details is wider than the list of ordinary primary documents, in particular, the TIN and the presence of a seal are required.

In the article “” you can find out in which cases it is necessary to use the unified form of this document, and when you can develop it yourself.

Errors in primary documents

First of all, the source documents must contain correctly specified mandatory details. According to the Ministry of Finance, a taxpayer can take into account expenses on the primary tax return if it contains only minor errors.

Such errors should not interfere with the accurate identification of the seller and buyer, the name of the goods and their value, and other circumstances of the documented fact of economic life (from the letter of the Ministry of Finance dated February 4, 2015 No. 03-03-10/4547).

Unfortunately, the typical streamlined formulation of officials’ explanations often does not make it possible to clearly understand which inaccuracies or errors in the primary documents will be considered insignificant.

For example, is it a minor error if a taxpayer's name is in lowercase letters instead of uppercase letters? In another letter - dated 05/02/2012 No. 03-07-11/130, the Ministry of Finance indicated that errors such as replacing capital letters with lowercase ones and vice versa; reversing letters; incorrect indication of the organizational and legal form is not an obstacle to identifying the taxpayer (if the TIN and other details are correctly indicated).

But the following errors can be considered significant for primary documents:

• arithmetic errors (the price/quantity of the product or the tax amount is indicated incorrectly);
• different names of the same product (for example, in the specification for the supply contract the candies are called “Waffle candies in chocolate”, and in the invoice - “Bear in the North”);
• inaccurate job titles of those who sign the primary documents (for example, the power of attorney states “Deputy General Director”, and the acceptance certificate states “Deputy Director”);
• the amounts in figures do not coincide with the same amounts indicated in words (instead of 155,000 rubles (one hundred and fifty-five thousand rubles), 155,000 rubles (fifty-five thousand rubles) are written).

The tax office may not accept expenses for such primary documents; the counterparty may also have problems when deducting VAT.

You can correct primary documents only in a corrective way(incorrect text is crossed out with one thin line, and the correct text is written on top). Corrections are accompanied by the inscription “Corrected”, the date and signatures of the responsible persons. Corrections of incoming and outgoing orders, bank documents and BSO are unacceptable. They need to be compiled anew.

Pay attention to the fact that the primary documents are signed during the validity period of the power of attorney issued for their signing, otherwise the inspectors will consider that the documents were signed by an unauthorized employee. The same thing needs to be monitored regarding the signatures on your primary document of representatives of counterparties: the powers of attorney issued to them must be current.

When preparing primary documents, you need to be careful not only about filling them out, but also about the correspondence of their dates and other details with other documents, for example, contracts and invoices. Thus, the deduction of VAT on an invoice drawn up earlier than the delivery note will be controversial.

Questions for tax authorities will cause invoices or acts signed before the contract, the execution of which is confirmed by primary documents. There is a way out of this situation, provided for in paragraph 2 of Art. 425 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation: indicate in the text of the agreement the following clause: “The terms of this agreement also apply to the relations of the parties that arose before its conclusion.”

Or, for example, the act states that the work was completed in the period from March 10 to 30, while in the contract the work period is set as from April 10 to April 30. In this case, you can draw up an additional agreement to the contract, which indicates the actual deadline for completing the work or indicates in the act itself that the work was completed ahead of schedule.

Contractors need to be careful when the customer signs work completion certificates. If subcontractors were involved under the contract, the contractor must sign agreements with them before the work is handed over to the customer. If these dates do not correspond, tax authorities may consider the costs of the subcontractor unjustified and not recognize them when calculating the tax base.

Document flow of primary documents

The document flow of primary documents includes the following stages:

• preparation of the primary document;
• transfer of the document to the accounting department, where it is checked and entered into the registers;
• current storage and subsequent transfer of the document to the archive.

It’s not an idle question: when should primary documents be drawn up? The answer to this is in Article 9 of Law No. 402-FZ “The primary accounting document must be drawn up when committing a fact of economic life, and if this is not possible, immediately after its completion.”

It is unacceptable to draw up primary documents several days after a business transaction. All employees who have the right to draw up primary registration must comply with a document flow schedule, in which you can set, for example, the following deadlines for submitting documents to the accounting department:

• incoming and outgoing cash orders - on the day of preparation;
• documents related to registration of sales - no later than the next working day;
• advance reports - no later than three working days after the funds are spent;
• certificates of incapacity for work - no later than the next working day after returning to work, etc.

As for documents signed by counterparties, the obligation to transfer them in a timely manner can be provided for in the text of the contract, for example, as follows: “The Buyer undertakes to transfer to the Supplier the originals of signed delivery notes, acts and invoices no later than two business days from the date of their signing.”

When submitting a signed primary document, the accounting department checks the form of the document; availability of required details; the legality of the business transaction; arithmetic calculations. Data from verified primary documents are entered into accounting registers.

Current storage of primary documents is usually carried out in the accounting department, and at the end of the year, documents are grouped by date, collected into bundles and transferred to the archive. Primary documents must be stored for at least five years.

The activities of the accounting department are an integral part of the functioning of the enterprise; it involves employees performing the most different actions- from calculation to registration and maintenance of primary documentation. The degree of responsibility of the company or its immediate manager for mistakes made also varies greatly: if they concern purely internal problems, there is no need to even talk about a fine; if we are talking about payment documents on the basis of which taxes are subsequently paid, the violator may face not only a monetary penalty, but also imprisonment. That is why well-organized work with the primary priority areas work of a legal entity.

The term “primary documentation”, in contrast to or similar, is used exclusively in accounting, which, if a joint decision is necessary organizational issues causes difficulties for representatives of other departments of the enterprise. Below we will describe what the primary document is as a whole, and also provide an indicative list of the documents included in it.

What is primary documentation in accounting?

Oddly enough, the main regulatory act used in organizing the work of the accounting department is the Federal Law “On accounting» No. 402-FZ, adopted on December 6, 2011 and containing amendments dated July 29, 2018, does not provide an unambiguous definition of this phrase. According to paragraph 1 of Article 9 of this law, primary documentation can include any correctly executed and officially certified papers that reflect one or another episode of the economic life of an enterprise.

Such episodes include the receipt of funds in exchange for products supplied by the company, services offered or work performed, or, conversely, the transfer of money for the purchase of inventory items. At the request of the head of the enterprise (clause 4 of the same article), the list of primary accounting documents may also include information on mutual settlements not related to financial transactions.

Important: The main criterion for primary documentation in accounting is the presence of the fact of transfer of funds from one person (employee, individual entrepreneur, firms) to another. Thus, primary items will not be included in the list under any conditions, but a cash receipt or expenditure order will be fine.

WITHstorage period for primary documents in accounting - at least five years from the year of registration. As practice shows, most often representatives of the Federal tax service they request a primary one in the first year or three; In the future, the papers can be transferred to the archive for storage, and after the specified period have expired, they can be destroyed in accordance with internal regulations enterprises and the requirements of domestic legislation.

However, since in Russian bureaucratic practice it is usually more difficult to dispose of documents than to continue storing them, primary documents that have become unnecessary can be left in the archive as long as there is enough space; No penalties for this are provided either by the specified Federal Law No. 402-FZ or other regulations.

As well as, maintaining primary documentation can be assigned to either one or several employees of the enterprise, depending on their qualifications and the number of staff. If the case concerns an individual entrepreneur who does not have relevant specialists subordinate to him, he has the right, at his own choice, to either draw up documents independently or involve third party companies providing such services.

List of primary accounting documents

IN latest edition Federal Law No. 402-FZ (more precisely, in paragraph 4 of Article 9 of the document) the right to determine which documentation is primary is transferred to the head (general director, director) of the enterprise. In accordance with established practice, he signs the list already prepared by the chief accountant, although he can take on the work (from analyzing activities to summing up results) entirely on himself.

Consequently, there is no need to talk about a single list of primary documents; We can only name the papers most often included in this list:

1. Agreement. The most controversial point in terms of document ownership: quite often contracts are stored not in the accounting department, but in the legal department or even in the personnel department. On the other hand, it is the signing of a contract that becomes the first step towards a new fact of the economic life of the enterprise, therefore many managers, by their orders, classify contracts of purchase and sale, provision of services, performance of work, lease and others directly related to the movement of cash flows as primary. In essence, an adequately drawn up contract contains all the features of a primary document listed in paragraph 2 of Article 9 of Federal Law No. 402-FZ - which means there is no obvious violation in this case.
2. Check. Based on the proposed invoice, the buyer (consumer), before or after receiving the goods or services, transfers funds to the seller (supplier). Acceptance of an invoice may be regarded as actual agreement to pay it. In addition, this primary document may contain (or duplicate in accordance with the contract) the conditions for the provision of inventory or work, as well as methods of settlement with the seller and even the procedure for returning funds in the event of failure of one or both parties to the transaction to fulfill their obligations. .
3. Packing list. This document, invariably included in the primary document, contains a complete list of released or transferred inventory items: how finished products, as well as individual elements or raw materials. The number of copies of the consignment note is not regulated: it must correspond to the number of parties to the transaction. And, of course, each copy must be certified by the signatures of all counterparties; impressions of seals or stamps in in this case optional.
4. Acceptance certificate. A primary document drawn up based on the results of the provision of services, work or delivery of inventory items. Signed by representatives of both counterparties; if one of them (usually the receiving party) refuses to sign, the paper can be certified unilaterally (certainly in the presence of observers). The acceptance certificate may also contain additional comments, clarifications or clarifications entered by the parties into the corresponding table. The use of seals or stamps of organizations for certification is optional. A variation of this document, also included in the primary document, is the act of acceptance and transfer of fixed assets (OS-1), reflecting the movement of the main assets of the enterprise.
5. Payslip. It provides data on the wages of all hired workers of the company, including incentives and compensation payments: bonuses, additional payments, and so on. This primary document is certified by the signatures of the chief accountant and the head of the enterprise; also, unlike the two points listed above, to confirm legal force the statement is affixed with a “live” imprint of the seal or stamp of the organization.
6. Cash documents. These include incoming and outgoing orders and a cash book. It is from their content that one can obtain the most complete picture of the movement of financial flows. KO-1, KO-2 and KO-4 contain information regarding each fact of economic life - therefore, authorized persons will primarily focus on them when checking. Additional cash documents used with slightly less intensity (cash order register KO-3 and cash flow accounting book KO-5) also belong to the primary documentation and are drawn up and stored in accordance with the general rules.

Most often, the primary document is organized on a chronological basis - from the first transaction document to the last; Other options are also possible - by accessory, combined, etc.

How is primary documentation prepared in accounting?

The necessary components of any primary document are:

• title in accordance with the established unified form;
• date of signing (the paper can be drawn up and printed at any convenient time);
• full official name of the organization or enterprise (you can add an abbreviated one);
• description and explanation of the episode of movement of funds, or the fact of economic activity;
• the cost of the transaction in physical (on the one hand) and monetary (on the other) terms with an indispensable indication of units of measurement;
• names in accordance with the internal regulations of the enterprise or state standards of positions of persons responsible for concluding an agreement and completing a transaction;
• signatures with transcripts of representatives of the parties to the transaction who participated in the conclusion of the agreement.

As follows from paragraph 5 of the same article, primary documentation in accounting can currently be drawn up both in paper and electronic form; V the latter case it is certified using qualified electronic digital signatures of the parties and transmitted to counterparties on any suitable medium or sent by email.

Most primary documents are issued on the basis of unified forms that are not subject to modification; exceptions include contracts, acts of acceptance and transfer and a number of other papers, the development of the form and structure of which is directly carried out by the business entity.

Some tips for preparing primary documentation:

1. It is allowed to make entries on the form by hand using ballpoint pens and gel pens with blue or black paste; To make corrections, red ink is used. To fill out primary documentation in electronic form, it is permissible to use any electronic computer that is suitable from a technological point of view.
2. Each of the primary documents included in the list must be completed on time. Filling out and signing papers retroactively with the mutual consent of the parties is quite possible, but informing the regulatory authorities about this is highly not recommended.
3. If the procedure for entering data into the form involves duplicating numerical information (for example, the payment amount) in writing, neither one nor the other component can be neglected, otherwise the document may be declared invalid.
4. When preparing a primary reporting document, you cannot leave empty fields. If there is nothing to enter into them, you should use a dash, or better yet, a universal sign, which is a double crossed out Latin letter Z.

Important: It is not allowed to use correction strips, liquid, razors to correct errors, or simply cross out incorrectly entered data until it is impossible to read it in the primary documentation in the accounting department. Depending on the situation, you can use contour corrections that complement the main text of the entry and reversal. In the first case, the erroneous information is crossed out with a thin line, a record is made on top of it, reflecting the real state of affairs, and on the side of the page there is the inscription “The corrected (can be) trusted”, accompanied by the signature of the responsible person and the seal or stamp of the organization. In the second, existing information is supplemented with new information necessary to obtain a comprehensive picture of the transaction. In the third, especially often used when exaggerated information is found in the primary source, data that does not correspond to reality is duplicated in red paste, and the correct ones are given next to them, which is already normal. A verification signature is also required in this case.

The primary document, like other documents, must be drawn up clearly, legibly and beautifully. This will help in the future, if controversial situations arise, to quickly establish the truth, prove your case in court proceedings, or monitor the work of authorized persons. And an additional incentive for the conscientious and timely release of documentation will be paragraph 3 of Article 327 of the Criminal Code of Russia, according to which the use of forged papers is punishable by a fine of up to 80 thousand rubles or up to six months of the perpetrator’s earnings, arrest for up to six months, compulsory or correctional labor for up to 480 hours and 24 months respectively.

Proving your innocence or the absence of a crime is difficult and takes much more time and nerves than high-quality preparation of primary documentation.

Let's sum it up

Primary documents include documents reflecting episodes of the economic activity of an enterprise or organization. Their registration is carried out by employees of the accounting department, and if there is none, by the entrepreneur himself or companies providing similar services. Full list The primary documentation used in the company's activities is approved by its director, and is usually compiled by the chief accountant.

Typically, primary assets include contracts, accounts, acts of acceptance and transfer, including fixed assets, cash documents and other papers. They must include the blocks listed in paragraph 2 of Article 9 of Federal Law No. 402-FZ. Corrections in documents are allowed in strictly defined ways: reversal, outline or supplementary inscriptions.

But almost any entrepreneurial activity accompanied by a considerable amount various documentation. A reasonable question becomes, what are the primary documents?

Basic information

Primary accounting means First stage generalizations of individual business operations that characterize the main processes of the organization.

The following are recognized as accounting objects:

• procurement of raw materials for the production process;
• purchase of material resources and their subsequent expenditure;
• expenses for production activities;
• movement of manufactured products and unfinished production;
• volume of finished products;
• shipment and sale of products;
• settlement transactions with suppliers, customers and buyers;
• reporting to banks, founders and financial institutions;
• other.

All these operations are accompanied documentation. Information about business processes and related nuances is displayed in the primary documentation.

Basic Concepts

The definition of a primary document is a document that covers the initial information about the results of an activity.

The primary document is written evidence of the implementation of a business transaction. This document is drawn up at the time of the transaction or immediately upon its completion.

That is, accounting documents that confirm the fact of a business transaction are considered primary. Any information present in primary documents is required for display in accounting.

Accounting registers are used to accumulate and systematize it. They contain data on all business transactions carried out in the organization.

After a certain period, information from the accounting registers in a grouped form is moved to the financial statements.

The main types of primary documents are:

• money orders;
• / etc.

These documents contain information about the business transaction carried out. In some cases, forms of primary documents are classified as strict reporting forms.

Based on the type of transactions, the primary documentation is divided into papers accounting for fixed assets, wages, cash transactions, cash, etc.

It deserves special attention. In fact, this document is hardly primary, since it does not outline a specific business transaction, being an appendix to the primary document.

The need for an invoice arises during the VAT collection process. However, at the same time you will need to present an invoice or act.

At the same time, the Tax Code mentions an invoice in direct connection with primary documents.

What are their functions

The fundamental purpose of the primary document is to confirm the legal validity of the completed business transaction.

At the same time, for carrying out operations, responsibility is established for some performers for the completed operations.

The primary document stores all the necessary information about a specific business transaction, and the fact of the existence of the document confirms the execution of the action.

That is, primary documents store data on all business activities of the organization. Primary documentation is stored to meet the personal needs of the enterprise, as well as for provision to regulatory authorities.

It is on the basis of primary documents that accounting is carried out. Based on the data available in the documents, financial and tax reporting is created.

Current regulatory framework

The basic rules on primary accounting documents are defined in Federal Law No. 402 of December 6, 2011 “On Accounting”.

But although the use of some unified forms is not considered mandatory, nothing prevents their use.

The decision on this matter is made by the head of the economic entity. It is he who approves the forms for primary documents upon the proposal of the person responsible for accounting.

On the form, the code is located in the upper right corner. If a business operation is completed using not a standard form, but using an independently developed form, then it is not necessary to register the “code”.

In accordance with clause 19 of this provision, the presence of corrections, blots and erasures or the use of corrective means in banking documentation, cash receipts/expenditure orders, attached receipts and documents replacing them is not permitted.

If an error is detected, bank and cash documents cannot be accepted for execution. They need to be re-drafted taking into account the basic requirements.

It is important that incorrectly executed or damaged cash documents cannot be destroyed. They must be crossed out and then attached to the cash report (register) for the day they were issued.

Emerging nuances

In the process of drawing up and processing primary documents, many different nuances arise. Among the main ones the following can be noted:

What is a two-sided document

In some cases, when preparing primary documentation, it is allowed to use a two-sided primary document. This is the form of a universal transfer document (UDD).

Video: primary documents

The UPD form is a functioning form of an invoice, which is supplemented with essential indicators of the primary documentation.

The “1” status of the UPD allows this document to replace not only an invoice, but also a document or invoice.

At the same time, the UTD is simultaneously used in calculations for and in the recognition of expenses in the process of taxation of profits. UPD with status “2” replaces only the act or invoice.

The UPD combines elements of an invoice and a primary document confirming the completion of a business transaction. The legislation does not prohibit the issuance of invoices or delivery notes on both sides of one paper medium.

Do I need to stamp it?

Seals are not among the mandatory details of primary documents. There is no mention of it in Article 9 Part 2 of Federal Law No. 402.

Therefore, it is necessary to put a stamp if the organization uses its own document that requires a seal.

But at the same time, it is imperative to certify with a seal those documents for which the presence of a seal is provided for by law. For example, these include invoices and.

Also, the need for a seal may be determined by the accounting policy of the organization or by agreement of the parties.

Who is responsible for their safety?

Article 17 of the Federal Law “On Accounting” obliges organizations to maintain primary documentation, accounting registers and financial statements for a specified period.

According to standards government organization for archival matters, this period cannot be less than five years. During storage, protection against unauthorized edits must be ensured.

Any corrections must be justified and properly certified. The contents of accounting registers and financial statements are a commercial secret.

For its disclosure, persons who have access to information are responsible in accordance with the norms of the legislation of the Russian Federation. Initially, primary accounting documents are stored in closed cabinets under the supervision of the organization's chief accountant.

Properly processed documents are transferred to the archive for storage. The owner of the enterprise is directly responsible for their safety.

The presence of primary accounting documents is an integral part of the activities of any organization.

Without them, the normal existence of an enterprise is practically impossible. Therefore, it is so important to know and follow the procedure for drawing up and processing primary documents.

Every company should use standard forms to reflect the facts of business transactions. Let's consider which unified forms of primary accounting documents are approved by the government. ContentsImportant aspects What forms of primary accounting documents are used (list)? What is their shelf life...