The Ministry of Finance has developed a draft Law of the Republic of Belarus “On Amendments to Laws on Accounting and Reporting Issues”. The document has already been adopted in the first reading by the House of Representatives of the National Assembly. What innovations are expected in the “main law for an accountant” – the Law on Accounting and Reporting?
Reporting
First, the distinction between the concepts of “accounting statements” and “financial statements”.
Accounting statements will be statements drawn up in accordance with national accounting and reporting standards, financial statements – in accordance with IFRS.
Secondly, it is planned to divide organizations into 2 areas: the banking sector and the real sector.
All organizations in the banking sector (the National Bank, banks, including those that are parent organizations of banking groups, parent organizations of bank holdings that are not banks) from 01/01/2025 are required to keep accounting records and prepare reports only in accordance with IFRS, i.e. financial reporting.
The real sector will compile accounting using national accounting and reporting standards. An exception is publicly significant organizations, which are also required to prepare financial statements in accordance with IFRS from 01/01/2025.
Socially significant organizations are:
- banks, NKFO, JSC “Development Bank of the Republic of Belarus”, head organizations of banking holdings that are not banks,
- insurance companies,
- joint-stock investment funds, managing organizations of investment funds,
- organizations with state participation (ROE, OJSC with a state share) included in the list established by the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus (it is planned that this list will be approved before 01.11.2022),
- other organizations whose securities are admitted to trading in the trading system of the organizer of securities trading by including them in the quotation list.
In addition, publicly significant organizations will be required to post annual financial statements prepared in accordance with IFRS, together with an auditor’s report on these statements, on a single information resource of the securities market. They also exclude the right to outsource accounting and preparation of accounting and (or) financial statements of the organization and are granted the right not to draw up consolidated financial statements in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.
Due to the exclusion of the possibility of outsourcing and the introduction of the obligation to use IFRS, the chief accountant of publicly significant organizations from 01/01/2025 must have special training in IFRS.
Preparation of primary accounting documents (PUD)
It is envisaged to expand the ways of signing the DMP – either personally or using means of communication and other technical, computer and information tools and systems, if this method of signing allows you to reliably establish that this document was signed by the person responsible for the operation and the correctness of its execution.
It could be:
- facsimile reproduction of a handwritten signature by means of mechanical or other copying,
- electronic digital signature,
- another analogue of a handwritten signature that provides identification.
However, the Council of Ministers will determine a list of DMPs that do not allow the use of analogues of a handwritten signature (with the exception of an EDS).
The draft provides for the possibility of compiling a PUD for a group of business transactions performed on a specific date.
Recalculation of the value of assets and liabilities (exchange differences)
The concepts of “monetary assets” and “monetary liabilities” are introduced.
Monetary assets are assets that are cash, investments, or receivables for which an entity expects to receive cash from others.
Monetary obligations are obligations for the fulfillment of which the organization intends to provide funds to other persons.
The need for recalculation will apply only to monetary assets and monetary liabilities.
К активам и обязательствам, стоимость которых в иностранной валюте не подлежит пересчету, относятся такие немонетарные активы и немонетарные обязательства как
- financial investments in the authorized capital of other organizations,
- received and paid advances,
- prepayment
- makings,
- letters of credit,
- accounts payable, the repayment of which is carried out in the form of a letter of credit.
To their number will be added accounts payable for goods subject to return, receivables from buyers repaid in non-monetary funds, etc.
Other changes
It is planned to clarify the concept of “organization” and exclude from it branches, representative offices and other separate divisions that have a separate balance sheet.
An organization that has branches and representative offices must include in its accounting policy a method for organizing accounting for their activities: a branch keeps records completely independently, partially independently, or all records are kept in the parent organization.
Compilation by branches of reporting and its submission to the Tax Inspectorate is not provided.
It also establishes the obligation to maintain accounting records, compiling and submitting financial statements by foreign organizations in relation to activities that, according to Article 180 of the Tax Code, are considered as activities on the territory of the Republic of Belarus through a permanent establishment.