Circulation of accounting documents - the most important information

The correct and efficient circulation of accounting documents in the company is one of the most important conditions for running a business. It consists in the flow of accounting documents in the company, which allow the collection of information necessary to carry out accounting operations. Therefore, it has a significant impact on the organization of the entire company, thus contributing to the profit or loss of the company.

What is the circulation of accounting documents?

The proper circulation of documents in the company consists of such processes as:

 

• registering documents,

• organize documents,

• document classification,

• archiving of documents.

The above activities are important both for the proper circulation of incoming and outgoing documents.

Each company should develop its own accounting document circulation system, because it will be different in each one. Therefore, it is impossible to create one template that fits all units that conduct business. At the same time, the circulation of accounting documents should be based on simple rules.

Each document that goes to the company or is generated by it should be assessed in terms of its suitability in the company and properly qualified and stored in an appropriate manner.

Classification of accounting documents

Various economic events take place in the company, which is why accounting documents are used that enable their reproduction. Source evidence documents the economic operations that have taken place. In addition, they are the basis for entry in the books. Accounting documents are divided into:

• collective - they are used to register the total records of many homogeneous source vouchers, e.g. a cash report;

• billing - they include previously made entries according to other classification criteria;

• corrective - are used to correct incorrect entries, e.g. corrective VAT invoices (corrections), accounting notes;

• replacement - the company may issue such a document before receiving an external source document, e.g. from a contractor. However, the replacement proof should not document the purchase of non-ferrous metals from natural persons and those subject to VAT.

Instructions for the circulation of accounting documents - what should it contain?

The preparation of instructions for the circulation of accounting documents in the company contributes to a better organization of their flow and improves the operation of the entire company. Therefore, it is worth ensuring that such instructions are created in the company and incorporated into its functioning.

The manual for the circulation of accounting documents does not have a specific template, which means that it is not a formalized document, as it should be adapted to the functioning of a given enterprise. In addition, the manual should be written in a language that is understandable to all, so that after reading it, the employee knows:

• who should accept / issue the document,

• how to correctly mark a document,

• to which department or person and by what date should this document be contacted.

A correctly written instruction should also include persons, usually defined according to their position, who are authorized to accept, sign and prepare, as well as to control individual accounting documents. The manual may also include a provision on the responsibility of employees resulting from their work on the documents.

It is also worth including in the manual for the circulation of accounting documents information about what should be included in individual accounting documents. In addition, it should include comments on the reliability, clarity and completeness of accounting documents, as well as instructions on symbols and abbreviations used in the manual.

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Accounting documents in electronic form

An increasing number of companies keep their accounting by computer. This is because it contributes to the facilitation of the work of many people or departments in the company, and also prevents the loss of documents. In order to reduce the risk of improper handling of documents, companies use electronic document circulation.

Therefore, an entrepreneur who wants to improve the circulation of documents in the company should take into account the purchase of software that will enable the efficient flow of accounting documents in the company.

Protection of accounting documents

Accounting documents should be stored in a way that will protect them against unauthorized changes, unauthorized distribution, damage or destruction.

In a situation where the circulation of documents in the company has a traditional form, then an important element that is to ensure their protection is the compliance of all employees with the rules set out in the manual for the circulation of accounting documents.

On the other hand, when the accounting is kept with the use of a computer, this protection should additionally consist in the use of data carriers that are resistant to threats and the application of appropriate external protection measures. In addition, it is necessary to systematically create and store backups.