Regulations on preparing and signing accounting documents of small and medium-sized enterprises

1. Criteria for determining small and medium-sized enterprises?

Pursuant to Article 5 of Decree 80/2021/ND-CP, regulating criteria for determining small and medium-sized enterprises, specifically as follows:

– Micro enterprises in the fields of agriculture, forestry, and fisheries; The industry and construction sector employs an average of no more than 10 people per year participating in social insurance and the total revenue of the year is not more than 3 billion VND or the total capital of the year is not more than 3 billion VND.

– Micro enterprises in the field of commerce and services employ an average of no more than 10 people participating in social insurance and the total revenue of the year is not more than 10 billion VND or the total capital of the year is not exceeding 3 billion VND.

– Small businesses in the fields of agriculture, forestry, and fisheries; The industry and construction sector employs an average annual workforce of no more than 100 people participating in social insurance and the total revenue of the year is no more than 50 billion VND or the total capital of the year is no more than 20 billion VND, but is not a micro-enterprise as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article.

Small enterprises in the field of commerce and services that employ an average of no more than 50 employees participating in social insurance each year and the total revenue of the year does not exceed 100 billion VND or the total capital of the year does not exceed 50 billion VND, but is not a micro enterprise as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article.

– Medium enterprises in the fields of agriculture, forestry, and fisheries; The industry and construction sector employs an average annual workforce of no more than 200 people participating in social insurance and a year’s total revenue of no more than VND 200 billion or a year’s total capital of no more than VND 100 billion, but are not micro enterprises or small enterprises as prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article.

Medium-sized enterprises in the field of commerce and services that employ workers participating in social insurance with an average of no more than 100 people per year and total revenue of the year not exceeding 300 billion VND or total capital of the year not exceeding 100 billion VND, but are not micro enterprises or small enterprises as prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article.

Thus, depending on each different field of activity to provide criteria for determining small and medium-sized enterprises.

2. How do small and medium-sized enterprises prepare and sign accounting documents?

Pursuant to Article 85 of Circular 133/2016/TT-BTC, regulations on preparing and signing accounting documents of small and medium-sized enterprises are as follows:

– Economic and financial transactions arising related to the enterprise’s operations must prepare accounting documents. Accounting documents can only be prepared once for each economic and financial operation.

– Accounting documents must be prepared clearly, completely, promptly, and accurately according to the content specified on the form. In cases where accounting vouchers do not have a template, the accounting unit may design its own accounting voucher template but must ensure all the contents prescribed by the Accounting Law.

– The content of economic and financial operations on accounting vouchers must not be abbreviated, erased or corrected; When writing, you must use pen and ink, numbers and letters must be written continuously, without interruption, and blank spaces must be crossed out. Documents that are erased or modified have no payment or accounting value. When incorrectly written accounting documents are written, they must be canceled by crossing out the incorrectly written documents.

– Accounting documents must be made in the prescribed number of copies. In case multiple copies of accounting documents must be prepared for an economic or financial operation, the content of the copies must be the same.

– Accounting documents must have enough signatures according to the title specified on the document. Signatures on accounting documents must be signed in indelible ink. Do not sign accounting documents in red ink or stamp with a pre-engraved signature. Signatures on one person’s accounting documents must be consistent. The preparer, approver and other people who sign the accounting documents are responsible for the content of the accounting documents.

– Enterprises that do not have the title of chief accountant must appoint a person in charge of accounting to deal with customers, banks… The chief accountant’s signature is replaced by the signature of the person in charge of accounting of that unit. The person in charge of accounting must properly carry out the responsibilities and rights prescribed for the chief accountant.

– Signatures on accounting documents must be signed by a competent person or an authorized person. It is strictly forbidden for people who have the authority or authorization to sign documents to sign accounting documents without recording or not fully recording the document content according to the responsibility of the signer.

– The decentralization of signing on accounting documents is prescribed by the General Director (Director), the legal representative of the enterprise in accordance with the law, management requirements, ensuring strict control and asset safety.

– Payment accounting documents must be signed by the person with authority to approve the payment and the chief accountant or authorized person before implementation. Signatures on accounting documents used to pay money must be signed on each copy.

– The chief accountant (or authorized person) must not sign “over authorization” of the head of the enterprise. The authorized person may not re-authorize another person.

– Electronic documents must have an electronic signature. Signatures on electronic documents have the same value as signatures on paper documents.

3. Sequence of circulating and checking accounting documents of small and medium-sized enterprises?

Pursuant to Article 86 of Circular 133/2016/TT-BTC, regulations on the sequence of circulating and checking accounting documents, specifically as follows:

– All accounting documents prepared by the enterprise or transferred from outside must be concentrated in the enterprise accounting department career. The accounting department checks those accounting documents and only after checking and verifying the legality of the documents can they be used to record accounting books.

– The order of circulating accounting documents includes the following steps:

+ Prepare, receive, and process accounting documents;

+ Accountants and chief accountants check and sign documents from the accountant or submit to the person signing for approval according to authority;

+ Classify and arrange accounting documents, determine accounts and record accounting books;

+ Store and preserve accounting documents.

– Procedure for checking accounting documents.

+ Check the clarity, honesty, and completeness of indicators and elements recorded on accounting documents;

+ Check the legality of arising economic and financial operations recorded on accounting documents, compare accounting documents with other relevant documents;

+ Check the accuracy of data and information on documents from accounting.

– When checking accounting documents, if you detect violations of the State’s policies, regimes, and regulations on economic and financial management, you must refuse to do so (No release of funds, payment, release of warehouse, etc.) and immediately notify the business executive manager for timely handling according to current law. For accounting documents that are not prepared according to procedures, with unclear content and numbers, the person responsible for checking or recording the books must return them, request additional procedures and adjustments before using them as a basis for recording the books.