Correct completion of primary accounting documents. How to manage document flow in accounting

Every day, a company undergoes many operations. Accountants issue invoices to counterparties and send them money, calculate salaries, penalties, calculate depreciation, prepare reports, etc. Dozens of documents of various types are drawn up every day: administrative, executive, primary. Last group is of great importance for the activities of the enterprise.

What are "primary documents"?

Every event in the economic life of an organization must be confirmed by paper. It is formed at the time of the transaction or immediately after its completion. Preparation of transactions and reporting is carried out on the basis of the information specified in the primary accounting documents accounting. The list of them is large. In this article we will look at the main, most commonly used documents.

Why is a primary needed?

Primary documentation is an integral element of accounting. As mentioned above, it is formed at the time of completion or immediately after the completion of the operation and is proof of the reality of one or another fact of the economic life of the enterprise.

The list of primary accounting documents for one transaction may include:

1. Agreement.
2. Check.
3. Cashier's check or other payment document.
4. Consignment note.
5. Certificate of completed work.

Required details

Currently, there are unified forms of primary accounting documents. They are used to reflect information about different operations; accordingly, the list of columns in them is different. Meanwhile, all primary documents contain uniform mandatory details. Among them:

1. Name of the enterprise.
2. Title of the document (to
3. Formation date.
4. Contents of the operation for which the document was drawn up. For example, when filling out an invoice, the corresponding column may indicate “Transfer of materials for processing.”
5. Monetary and natural indicators. The former are used to reflect cost, the latter - quantity, weight, etc.
6. Positions of responsible employees ("chief accountant", "storekeeper", etc.).
7. Signatures of the persons involved in the transaction.

Important point

The primary document containing all the required details has legal force.

Please note that properly executed papers can be used in legal proceedings as evidence of the validity (or otherwise) of claims. Many documents are drawn up by counterparties. It is necessary to carefully check the correctness of the registration and under no circumstances sign for suppliers (contractors, etc.) if they have not done so.

It is necessary to carefully store primary documentation.

Do you need a seal on the primary?

In practice, many counterparties make complaints about its absence on the TTN form and some other documents. Let us remind you that since 2015, most organizations have been exempted from the obligation to have a seal. Such businesses may use it at their own discretion. If it exists, then information about its presence must be specified in the accounting policy.

In the case where the counterparty insists on using a seal when registering the primary document, and the enterprise has the right not to put it on legal grounds, the counterparty must be sent an appropriate written notice with links to regulations governing this question.

Agreement

If the counterparty is a long-time partner, then it is quite possible to conclude an agreement for several transactions. In this case, it is important to clearly state the deadlines for fulfilling obligations, the sequence and procedure of calculation, and other nuances. An agreement can be drawn up for the sale of goods, provision of services or performance of work. It is worth saying that civil law also allows for the oral conclusion of an agreement. However, in business activities, as a rule, written forms of contracts are used.

Check

In this document, the supplier indicates the amount to be transferred to the counterparty for the product, service or work. When making a payment, it is assumed by default that the subject consents to the transaction.

The invoice must include:

1. Document name.
2. Name of services (goods, works) for which payment is made.
3. Price.
4. Total amount.
5. Details for payment.

Currently, the entire list of accounting documents is contained in the 1C program, so they are processed automatically.

Please note that the account has no particular value for regulatory authorities. In it, the seller fixes a set price. From the position of an accountant, an account is the most important primary document on the basis of which accounting entries are formed.

An invoice is a type of invoice. This paper contains a special line for indicating VAT amounts.

Payment documentation

You can confirm the fact of payment with a cash receipt or other similar document. The payment confirms the fact of payment for the delivery of products, services, or work. The specific type of document is selected depending on the payment method: cash or by bank transfer.

One of the most popular payment documents is a payment order. It represents an order from the account owner for the bank to transfer funds to the specified account. The document can be used when paying for services, goods, for advance payment, loan repayment, etc.

If contributions are made to the budget, field 22 “Code” is filled in. In the payment order, the UIN (unique identifier) ​​is indicated in this column. Thanks to it, the fiscal authority recognizes the payer.

The "Code" field in a payment order can be filled in differently. This depends on how exactly the entity fulfills its obligation to the budget: voluntarily or at the request of the regulatory authority.

Consignment note

The TTN form is issued by the shipper. is the basis for transferring the cargo to the recipient. The document is drawn up in 4 copies. According to the TTN, the seller accounts for the sale, and the buyer accounts for the delivery of the goods.

Please note that the TTN is drawn up when transporting cargo using the company’s own resources. If transportation is carried out third party company, form 1-T is issued.

Another important point: the information in the TTN must match the information in the invoice.

Certificate of completed work

This document is drawn up between the customer and the supplier. The act is confirmation of the completion of work and provision of services at the agreed cost within the time frame established by the agreement. Simply put, this is the performer’s report to the customer.

At present, the unified form of the act has not been approved. An enterprise has the right to develop a form independently and consolidate it in its accounting policies.

The main details of the act are:

1. Number and date of registration in accounting documentation.
2. Date of compilation.
3. Details of the agreement in accordance with which the act is drawn up.
4. Duration, volume, cost of work.
5. Details of the account through which payment will be made.
6. Name of the customer and contractor.
7. Signatures of the parties to the transaction.

The act is always drawn up in two copies.

Form M-15

This abbreviation is used to denote an invoice for the release of materials to the side. It should be noted that this document is not mandatory, but is often used by enterprises.

An invoice for the release of materials to a third party is issued when it is necessary to transfer valuables from the main (head) office to remote divisions or other companies (subject to a special agreement).

Rules for registration f. M-15

The first part of the paper contains a number in accordance with the document flow of the enterprise. Here you should also indicate the full name of the company and OKPO.

The first table reflects the date the document was compiled, the transaction code (if the appropriate system is used), the name of the structural unit, and the field of activity of the enterprise issuing the invoice.

Similarly, information about the recipient and the person responsible for the delivery is indicated. The following is a link to the document in accordance with which the invoice is issued. This could be an agreement, order, etc.

In the main table, columns 1 and 2 indicate the accounting subaccount and the analytical accounting code for all materials to be written off.

• name of materials indicating individual characteristics, brand, size, grade;
• item number (if it is not there, the cell is not filled in);
• unit code;
• name of the unit of measurement;
• quantity of goods transferred;
• information about actual objects released from the warehouse (filled in by the storekeeper);
• total cost of materials;
• price without VAT;
• amount of allocated VAT;
• total cost including VAT;
• inventory number of materials;
• passport number (if available);
• record number in accordance with the registration card.

The invoice is signed by the accountant, the employee responsible for releasing valuables from the warehouse, and the recipient.

Advance reports in "1C"

Generating reporting documents is one of the most common activities of an accountant. Many payments made in cash are documented in advance documents. These include travel expenses, business purchases, etc.

Often, company employees receive funds from the cash register for business expenses. After purchase the necessary values(for example, stationery), employees report and provide accounting documents with supporting documents.

The accountant, in turn, must record all expenses in the accounting system. You can open “Advance reports” in “1C” in the “Bank and cash desk” section, “Cash desk” subsection. A new document is entered using the "Create" button.

At the top of the form indicate:

1. Name of the enterprise.
2. The warehouse to which newly received valuables will be capitalized.
3. An employee reporting for funds received under the report.

The document contains 5 bookmarks. In the "Advances" section you should select the document for which the funds were issued:

1. Money document.
2. Expense cash order.
3. Debiting from the account.

If goods were purchased with the funds issued, they are reflected on the tab of the same name. In the "Container" section, indicate information about returnable containers (for example, water bottles). The “Payment” tab reflects information about cash paid to suppliers for the purchase of an object or issued against an upcoming delivery.

In the “Other” section, data on travel expenses is indicated: daily allowance, fuel costs, tickets, etc.

"Universal" form

In the list of primary accounting documents there is one paper that can be used in a variety of situations. It is used in the formation of both accounting and tax reporting. We are talking about an accounting document. The form is required if it is necessary to correct a mistake. In addition, the document is necessary when performing transactions that require explanations, reflection of calculations, confirmation of transactions, if other papers are missing.

Nuance

It is worth saying that an enterprise has the right to confirm the completion of transactions that do not require the execution of standard (standard, unified) forms, not with the help of a certificate, but through independently developed primary accounting documents. The list of them, however, must be enshrined in the company’s financial policy.

Rules for drawing up a certificate

A single unified form has not been approved for this document. Accordingly, specialists can compose it in free form or use templates developed at the enterprise. Among the mandatory information that the certificate must contain, the following should be noted:

1. Information about the enterprise.
2. Date and reasons for compilation.
3. Primary accounting documents and accounting registers, to which a certificate is attached.
4. Signature of the responsible employee.

You can write it on a regular white A4 sheet or on company letterhead.

When compiling, you must be very careful to avoid mistakes. The more detailed the certificate, the fewer additional questions the inspectors will have.

The document must, of course, contain only reliable information. If errors are identified during writing, it is advisable to draw up the certificate again.

Storage Features

Everything related to primary accounting documents must be stored at the enterprise for at least 5 years. The calculation of this period begins from the end date of the reporting period in which the papers were issued.

Additionally

The primary form can be issued in paper or electronic form. IN lately Increasingly, enterprises are giving preference to electronic document management. This is understandable: it takes much less time to complete and send papers.

Electronic documents must be certified with a digital signature (enhanced or regular - as agreed between the counterparties).

Responsibility

Primary documentation is the most important element of the economic life of an enterprise. In its absence, the company will face serious sanctions from regulatory authorities. Fines will also be imposed if errors are identified in primary documentation, false information.

Violation of regulations entails punishment not only under the Tax Code, but also under the Code of Administrative Offenses. If there are grounds, the perpetrators may also be brought to criminal liability.

Conclusion

A variety of documents can be used in the work of an enterprise. Moreover, some of them may have a unified form, and some may be developed independently by the company. Regardless of this, however, all required details must be present in the documents.

Some enterprises practice using combined documents. We are talking about unified forms, supplemented in accordance with the specifics of the organization’s activities.

It is important to reflect the selected types of primary documentation in the accounting policies of the enterprise. During the course of the company's activities, the need for new documents may arise. If they are developed by the enterprise, then they should be mentioned in the accounting policy.

Please note that the counterparty can also independently develop certain forms of papers. The financial policy must indicate that the company accepts such documents from counterparties.

To record many transactions, organizations may not use unified forms of primary documentation. However, if we are talking about cash transactions, then they are executed exclusively by approved orders and other payment documents.

Accounting financial activities begins with the adoption of properly designed primary documents. This is due to current legislation and is necessary for the business entity itself, its partners and inspection authorities. Facts of economic life, confirmed by primary documents, are easy to prove. In conflict situations, such assistance as well-executed accounting documentation will help resolve the matter in favor of the company.

What is primary documentation in accounting?

Business entities report to the state on the results of financial activities using accounting registers, which reflect all the features of the organization’s work.

Accounting begins with the acceptance and processing of primary documents.

Primary documents (checks, delivery notes, acts, invoices, etc.) represent irrefutable evidence of the occurrence of financial events that affect the outcome of financial activities. They establish and confirm responsibility for completed business transactions.

Rules for registration of “primary”

Primary documents contain mandatory information (details):

1. name of the document;
2. date of document preparation;
3. name of the economic entity that compiled the document;
4. content of the fact of economic life;
5. the value of the natural and (or) monetary measurement of a fact of economic life, indicating the units of measurement;
6. the name of the position of the person (persons) who completed the transaction, operation and the person(s) responsible for its execution, or the name of the position of the person(s) responsible for the execution of the accomplished event;
7. signatures of the persons provided for in paragraph 6 of this part, indicating their surnames and initials.

The authenticity of the information in these documents is ensured by those who signed them.

What are the requirements for filling out and processing accounting documents?

The primary accounting document is drawn up on paper and (or) in the form electronic document signed with an electronic signature.

paragraph 5 of article 9

They fill out primary documents manually - with fountain pens and with the help of technical means that allow them to save records during long-term storage in the archive. You cannot fill out the “primary” with a simple pencil. All unfilled positions are crossed out.

The manager, with the approval of the chief accountant, appoints persons who certify with their signatures the reality and legality of these primary documents.

When admitted to the accounting department, they check the availability of mandatory information, the accuracy of calculations and make a note to prevent their re-acceptance.

List of payment documents

Each fact of economic life is subject to registration with a primary accounting document. It is not allowed to accept for accounting documents documents that document facts of economic life that did not take place, including those underlying imaginary and sham transactions.

Federal Law dated December 6, 2011 No. 402-FZ (as amended on May 23, 2016) “On accounting»

paragraph of article 9

Each financial event is confirmed by the appropriate types of primary documents.

For example, acceptance and disposal of goods are documented with invoices. Arrival and departure cash Documented through the bank with payment orders. The movement of money through the cash register is confirmed by cash orders. Drivers' departure to the line is accompanied by waybills.

Forms payment orders and cash orders are approved by law. They must fully comply with the approved samples. The positions of these documents are drawn up strictly according to the instructions that establish the rules for filling out. It is not allowed to draw up payment orders and cash orders in free form and execution of payment transactions through a bank or cash desk using other documents.

In what form should the “primary” document be drawn up?

Samples of legal forms of payment documents are shown in the photographs below.

Payment orders are filled out with the participation of the bank.

The cash receipt order is signed only by accounting employees. The person who deposited the money is given a receipt, cut off from the specific order. She confirms the fact of depositing money under this order.

The cash receipt order, in addition to the chief accountant and cashier, is signed by the manager and the recipient of the money. If an individual entrepreneur does not have an accountant, he signs the documents himself. This confirms the intended purpose of the amount issued.

How to fill out trade documents

When documenting the fact of sale, a consignment note is usually used. It contains information about the names, addresses, bank details of the parties, assigned number, date of transaction, names of goods, their price, quantity, cost, units of measurement, amount of accrued tax, attached documents. It is signed by persons authorized by the managers of each party to the transaction. Signatures must be deciphered and indicate positions, surnames and initials. Once completed, invoices are stamped on both sides.

The invoice form is shown below.

In the case of transfer of goods through a carrier, a consignment note is usually issued - a document confirming a tripartite transaction between the seller, buyer and carrier. The seller transfers the goods to the carrier. The carrier accepts the goods from the seller, transports them and transfers them to the buyer. The buyer accepts the goods from the carrier. In this way, the fact of transfer of ownership from the buyer to the seller is confirmed.

Taxation of transactions on the common system

Persons who are payers of value added tax issue an invoice for each sale, which is not a primary accounting document. It does not confirm the fact of sale, since it is signed by only one party to the transaction. The tax accrued by the seller in the invoice does not affect the seller's financial result, because the seller does not pay this VAT. The buyer does not accept the invoice for accounting purposes because it is signed by a person who is not responsible to him for the accuracy of the data - a representative of the seller.

An invoice for payment for products issued by the seller is not recognized as a primary document. It does not prove the occurrence of an event that affects the financial result, does not confirm the transaction - the signature of one party does not confirm the payment.

Does the contract relate to primary documents?

Many economic events are accompanied by contracts, which, as a rule, record the intentions of the participants and do not confirm every financial transaction. For example, supply contracts establish the obligations of one party, up to deadline deliver a certain amount of products, and another - accept and pay. Since contracts define events that did not take place, they are not accepted for accounting.

What an accountant should know about primary forms

The forms of primary accounting documents are determined by the head of the economic entity on the recommendation of the official responsible for maintaining accounting records. Forms of primary accounting documents for public sector organizations are established in accordance with budget legislation Russian Federation.

Federal Law of December 6, 2011 No. 402-FZ (as amended on May 23, 2016) “On Accounting”

paragraph 4 of article 9

The list of public sector organizations includes:

• state (municipal) institutions;
• government agencies;
• local government bodies;
• management structures of state extra-budgetary funds;
• management bodies of territorial state extra-budgetary funds.

For these persons, the primary accounting forms were approved by Order of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated March 30, 2015 No. 52n (as amended on November 16, 2016).

Among the forms named in this order there are no invoices or contracts. Acquisition and disposal are documented by invoices and acts.

An example of one of the invoices issued by everyone government organizations, is given below.

How to make corrections in accounting documents

Corrections are allowed in the primary accounting document unless otherwise stated federal laws or regulatory legal acts of state accounting regulatory bodies. A correction in the original scientific document must contain the date of correction, as well as the signatures of the persons who compiled the document in which the correction was made, indicating their surnames and initials or other details necessary to identify these persons.

Federal Law of December 6, 2011 No. 402-FZ (as amended on May 23, 2016) “On Accounting”

paragraph 7 of article 9

To correct an error, cross out the incorrect one and write the correct one.

Correction of an error in the primary document must be indicated by the inscription “corrected”, confirmed by the signature of the persons who signed the document, and the date of correction must be indicated.

Regulations on documents and document flow in accounting (approved by the USSR Ministry of Finance on July 29, 1983 No. 105)

Each correction is confirmed by:

• date of correction;
• signatures of the persons who compiled the document in which the correction was made;
• indication of the surnames and initials of the persons who compiled the document or other details necessary to identify these persons.

The absence of any of the details from the list makes the correction illegal.

An example of a correction in the invoice is shown in the photo.

So that the correction has an indisputable legal force, it is formatted as follows. On the free margins of the document, make the inscription: “Corrected from” and write down what turned out to be incorrect. Continue: “on” and write down what they think is correct. Then they write: “believe”, indicate the date, put the signatures of the responsible persons, their surnames and initials. With this type of correction, amendments not agreed upon by the signatories are excluded.

Corrections to cash and bank documents are not permitted.

1. Each fact of economic life is subject to registration with a primary accounting document. It is not allowed to accept for accounting documents documents that document facts of economic life that have not taken place, including those underlying imaginary and sham transactions.

2. Mandatory details of the primary accounting document are:

1) name of the document;

2) date of preparation of the document;

3) the name of the economic entity that compiled the document;

5) the value of the natural and (or) monetary measurement of a fact of economic life, indicating the units of measurement;

6) the name of the position of the person (persons) who completed the transaction, operation and the person(s) responsible for its execution, or the name of the position of the person(s) responsible for the execution of the event;

(see text in the previous edition)

7) signatures of the persons provided for in paragraph 6 of this part, indicating their surnames and initials or other details necessary to identify these persons.

3. The primary accounting document must be drawn up when a fact of economic life is committed, and if this is not possible, immediately after its completion. The person responsible for registration of the fact of economic life ensures the timely transfer of primary accounting documents for registration of the data contained in them in the accounting registers, as well as the reliability of this data. The person entrusted with maintaining accounting records and the person with whom an agreement has been concluded for the provision of accounting services are not responsible for the compliance of primary accounting documents compiled by other persons with accomplished facts of economic life.

(see text in the previous edition)

4. The forms of primary accounting documents are determined by the head of the economic entity on the recommendation of the official responsible for maintaining accounting records. The forms of primary accounting documents for public sector organizations are established in accordance with the budget legislation of the Russian Federation.

(see text in the previous edition)

5. The primary accounting document is drawn up on paper and (or) in the form of an electronic document signed with an electronic signature.

6. If the legislation of the Russian Federation or an agreement provides for the submission of a primary accounting document to another person or to a government body on paper, the economic entity is obliged, at the request of another person or government agency at your own expense, make hard copies of the primary accounting document compiled in the form of an electronic document.

7. Corrections are allowed in the primary accounting document, unless otherwise established by federal laws or regulatory legal acts of state accounting regulatory bodies. The correction in the primary accounting document must contain the date of the correction, as well as the signatures of the persons who compiled the document in which the correction was made, indicating their surnames and initials or other details necessary to identify these persons.

8. If, in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, primary accounting documents, including in the form of an electronic document, are seized, copies of the seized documents, made in the manner established by the legislation of the Russian Federation, are included in the accounting documents.

Accounting is a complexly organized system. On its basis, information is collected in primary documents, registrations and their further analysis. Those. accounting is the expression of all financial and economic transactions in monetary terms. You will learn how primary accounting is carried out in the article.

Everything has its price

Accounting allows you to bring all transactions into monetary terms. For example, labor relations, relations between buyers and suppliers, keeping records of working hours, relations with the state - paying taxes. It reflects not only the conduct of such operations, but also their analysis. This then allows us to draw a conclusion about the solvency and creditworthiness of the organization as a whole. And based on this eliminate weaknesses financial policy and choose the direction further development.

Important: the basis for the direction of further development of the organization is the maintenance of primary accounting.

This is the foundation that allows you to collect all the necessary information.

Primary documents

Above, we called primary documentation the foundation of accounting at an enterprise. It can also be compared to the roots of a tree, from which a trunk and branches – registers – later grow. Leaves are synthetic accounting for accounts, which allows you to correctly and in full evaluate the company's performance.

Let's give a definition. Primary documentation is a specific document of a clearly established form by law, filled out in accordance with all the rules of accounting, recommendations of tax, banking, statics and a number of other authorities interested in this.

Approval of primary documentation takes place in the statistical authorities. More specialized and narrowly focused documents - by departments for certain species activities.

Such documentation allows you to record and track financial and economic transactions at the enterprise. Those. This is the basis of used equipment in individual companies.

Filling rules

In addition to the fact that the statistical authorities are in charge of approving documents, they have developed a number of requirements for filling them out.

Required filling:

• Full name of the document (abbreviations are not allowed);
• Date the document was issued;
• Full information about the organization that draws up the document and to whom it is intended;
• Full bank details of the counterparty, if required;
• Complete information about the business operation, expressed quantitatively and monetaryly;
• Information about the employee who has the right to certify the document (position, signature, transcript);
• Stamp or seal (wet).

Despite the fact that the above requirements are mandatory, in some cases, due to inattention or other reasons, one or more points may be missed. This violation does not entail the invalidity of primary accounting.

Types of primary documentation

Each individual financial business transaction a specific document is issued. Let's list the main ones.

• Invoice – for buyers, which indicates the name of the product or service, bank details of the supplier;
• Payment order - for the supplier from the buyer, confirming the fact of payment, non-cash form;
• Receipt - for the buyer, according to which he paid the supplier in cash;
• Bank statement – ​​allows you to see the cash flow on current account enterprises for a certain period;
• Cash order – allows you to see the movement of funds in the organization’s cash register;
• Waybill or universal transfer documents, invoice – confirms the shipment of material or provision of services after payment. It indicates the name of the product, volume and cost.
• Bill of lading - for transporting materials from the supplier to the buyer. It indicates the full name of the supplier and buyer, tax identification number, legal address, place from where the cargo is being transported, and information about the carrier.
• A sales receipt, like a delivery note, confirms the shipment of goods from the supplier to the buyer. Must have a date, number and be registered with the tax office.
• Advance report is a reporting document confirming how the accountable funds issued to the employee were spent. Additionally, they are attached to it on an A4 sheet cash receipt, receipts, application agreements confirming expenses.
• Time sheet - it records the number of hours that the employee worked in the organization per month;
• Payroll, payroll or payroll - on the basis of the first, wages are calculated, and on the basis of the second, payroll is issued.

Important: The above documents are standard and strictly unified by law. They cannot but be carried out at the request of the leader or be changed in some way.

It is allowed to enter additional documentation based on the specifics of the work.

Corrections in primary documentation

It is not always possible to fill out the form correctly. Some allow corrections, others need to be rewritten. How the correction occurs is given below.

Corrections in primary documentation:

• Corrections are not allowed in a non-strict reporting document - it must be completely rewritten;
• In a strict reporting document: cross out the error with a red line diagonally in one cell and mark “cancelled”; if the form is incorrect, be sure to save it;
• Any correction: cross it out, write the correct version on top and make the inscription “believe the corrected person”, the seal and signature of the correcting employee;
• Never shade or make a thick strikeout line; the incorrect entry must be visible.

Shelf life

The shelf life of different forms varies. They must be stored for a minimum of 5 years. For example, all documents related to employees (wages, taxes, personal files) must be kept for at least 75 years. This is due to frequent requests former employees for calculating pensions.

If you decide to empty the shelves of old documents, after the expiration of the storage period, draw up a special act and assemble a commission for the disposal of primary documentation.

Results

So, we looked at how primary documentation is maintained. It is the basis for the entire accounting department of the enterprise. Therefore, primary accounting should be handled with all responsibility and care.

Primary accounting documents are unified. They are developed by statistical authorities. The organization does not have the right to make its own changes to them. The title of the document, the date of execution, the full name of the buyer's and supplier's counterparty, the name of the product in value and quantity terms, and the signature of an authorized person must be filled in.

Corrections in primary documentation are permitted. To do this, the incorrect entry should be crossed out and the correct version should be written on top, attributing “corrected believe”, the date, signature and seal of the organization.

The storage period for primary documentation is 5 years or more.

Primary accounting documents or primary records, as accountants call them, are the basis of accounting, both accounting and tax. Without correct design, maintenance and primary documents to maintain legal entrepreneurial activity impossible.

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 undergoing 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):

• name 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.

Please 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 uses 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 goods or the amount of tax is incorrectly indicated);
• 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 in the acceptance certificate - “Deputy Director”);
• the amounts in numbers 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 sales registration - 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 going 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.