Changes to the law on Accounting

On July 26, 2019, the Federal Law No. 47-FL of July 26, 2019 entered into force with amendments to the law “On accounting” and other legislative acts related to regulation of accounting.

Changes should promote conditions ensuring the completeness and reliability of financial statement figures, and comprehensiveness of facts of economic activity in accounting.

The amendments mainly relate to regulation of fiscal institutions accounting in terms of creating conditions for state regulation of accounting and document storage, taking into account the provisions of budget legislation. There are also changes for legal entities engaged in commercial activities.

In particular, it is provided for:

application of a unified term “fiscal institution”;

creation of a special body for the examination of draft standards of accounting for public finances;

fixing the ban to clarify already approved statements.

Among the changes relating to all legal entities, including commercial, the one of high importance is clarification of the powers of chief accountants, now vested with the right to demand from all employees the correct execution and presentation of primary accounting documents. This right also extends to other persons responsible for accounting, for example, directors acting as chief accountant, third-party accountants, or organizations that provide accounting services under contracts.