The preparing of annual financial reporting is preceded by a check ofthe state of payments of the company with the budget on taxes, fees and other mandatory payments and on deductions for compulsory state social insurance. The basic rules of such inventory are considered in the following.
Common rules
Inventory of settlements with the budget is obligatory. Thus, this is evidenced by para.10 of sec. I of the Regulation of Inventory of Assets and Obligations approved by the Order of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine dated 02.09.2014, No. 879 (hereinafter − Regulation No. 879). According to the general rules, this year, such inventory is carried out two months before the balance sheet date − from 01.11.2017 to 31.12.2017. As stated in the Regulation No. 879, the correctness settlements with controlling authorities should be established during the inventory of settlements with the budget by documentary verification (para. 7.4 of sec. III).
The inventory of settlements with the budget is carried out according to the general rules established for the inventory of receivables and/or accounts payable. This is understandable, because the company debt to the budget is payable, and overpayment or mistaken payment of taxes and fees to the budget are receivables. By the way, these debts are reflected in the Balance Sheet (Statement of Financial Position, Form No. 1) as follows (National Accounting Standards 1 “General requirements for financial statements” and Methodical guidelines on filling in the forms of financial statements, approved by the order of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine dated 28.03.2013, No. 433, hereinafter − Methodical guidelines No. 433):
- in lines 1135 and 1136 of the Balance Sheet − receivables from financial and tax authorities, as well as overpayment of taxes, fees and other payments to the budget, including income tax (para.2.29 of the Methodological guidelines No. 433);
- in lines 1620 and 1621 of the Balance Sheet − the company’s debt for all types of payments to the budget (including taxes of employees of the company), including current accounts payable on the income tax (paragraph 2.63 of the Methodological guidelines No. 433);
- in lines 625 of the Balance Sheet − the amount of arrears for deductions for compulsory state social insurance, insurance of property of the company and individual insurance of its employees (para. 2.64 Method guidelines No. 433).
But before these data fall into the indicated lines of the Balance Sheet, the company must carefully check all the figures. In order to do this, you need to verify the documents and amounts shown in the corresponding subaccounts of account 64 “Settlements for taxes and payments” and on subaccounts of account 65 “Insurance payments”.
Accounting of taxes by the controlling authority
Operational accounting of taxes and fees, customs and other payments to the budgets, the unified social contribution (hereinafter − USC) are conducted by the bodies of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine (hereinafter − SFSU). Moreover, according to the rules established by the Procedure of the conducting by the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine of the Operational Accounting of Taxes and fees, Customs and Other Payments to the Budgets, the Unified Contribution to the Mandatory State Social Insurance, approved by the Order of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine of 07.04.2016, No. 422 (hereinafter − Procedure No. 422).
In order to account of the accrued and paid amounts of taxes, fees, customs and other payments to the budgets, the unified contribution, the SFS authority should open integrated payers’ cards (hereinafter – IPC) for each payer and each type of payment (para.1 of Ch. 1 of sec. II of Procedure No. 422). The company to reconcile the actual state of settlements with the budget should compare its own data accounting of settlements with the budget with the data of the IPC.
Before accepting the accounting data as a basis for preparing the Balance Sheet, the company should make sure that they are substantiated. Let’s say, by means of an act of reconciliation with the SFS authority. Unfortunately, the Procedure No. 422 did not approve the official form of such an act, therefore, according to its logic, it is made in an arbitrary form.
A business entity, for which it is opened the IPC in the controlling authority, can apply to the SFS authorities for settlement reconciliation in writing.
Reconciliation of differences
If during the reconciliation the differences are found between the data of the accounting and the IPC for settlements with the budget, the company should to regulate them, as para.5 of Regulation No. 879 establishes that the inventory should ensure that the completeness of the obligation is verified.
If the taxpayer made mistakes when calculating tax amounts in the accounts, their reflection in tax declarations (calculations) etc., he/she may correct such errors. Let’s say, an “accounting mistake” committed in the current (reporting) year can be fixed by reversing the wrong entries and enter the correct ones. If a last-year “accounting mistake” is discovered, it is corrected in accordance with the requirements of Accounting Standards 6 “Correction of errors and changes in financial statements”. Errors in declarations should be corrected in accordance with the Tax Code of Ukraine and other legislative acts on taxation.
In addition, procedure No. 422 allows the possibility of distortion of indicators - incomplete and/or delayed reflection in the relevant registers of the information system, made by employees of the SFS authorities both deliberately and accidentally due to arithmetic and technical errors. Then these mistakes are subject to correction by the tax authorities according to the procedure No. 422.
Overpayment of taxes: how to return?
The taxpayer may apply for return of overpaid money obligations in any form. He/she must indicate in it where to transfer funds, in particular, to repay the monetary obligation (tax debt) from other payments, the control over which is entrusted to the control authorities, regardless of the type of budget (para. 43.4 of TCU).
The rules for such return are regulated by the Procedure for return the funds erroneously or excessively credited to the state and local budgets, approved by the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine of 03.09.2013, No. 787.
