WHAT SHOULD THE ACCOUNTING UNIT NEED TO DO IF ACCOUNTING DOCUMENTS ARE LOST OR DESTROYED?

Legal basis

• Accounting Law 2015
• Decree 174/2016/ND-CP
• Decree 41/2018/ND-CP

In accounting activities, accounting documents are important assets that help record, reflect and store all financial and economic transactions of the unit. However, in some force majeure cases such as natural disasters, fires, or negligence, accounting documents may be lost or destroyed. This poses an urgent requirement for accounting units to have appropriate handling measures, ensuring compliance with legal regulations and not affecting business operations as well as the interests of related parties. mandarin.

1. Define

According to Clause 18, Article 3 of the Accounting Law 2015, “accounting documents” are accounting documents, accounting books, financial reports, management accounting reports, audit reports, accounting inspection reports and other documents related to accounting. 

Accounting documents are the legal and practical basis for checking, auditing and comparing the unit’s financial information. Loss or destruction of accounting documents can lead to serious consequences if not handled promptly and properly.

2. If accounting documents are lost or destroyed, what should the accounting unit do?

The Accounting Law 2015 stipulates the responsibilities of the accounting unit in case accounting documents are lost or destroyed, the accounting unit must immediately perform the following tasks:

Check and make records:

• Determine the quantity and status of lost or damaged documents.
• Determine the cause of the incident (for example, natural disaster, fire, or other reasons).
• Notify relevant parties (transaction units and individuals) and competent state agencies.

Recover damaged documents:

• If documents are damaged but can still be recovered, measures need to be taken to restore damaged accounting documents.

Contact to copy documents:

• Contact relevant transaction organizations and individuals to request copies of lost or destroyed documents.
• Confirm documents if possible from relevant parties, ensuring copied documents have full signatures and confirmation stamps.

Inventory assets and re-create accounting documents (For accounting documents related to assets but cannot be recovered by measures (2) and (3):

• Recreate lost or destroyed accounting documents by synthesizing and re-inventorying documents from other relevant sources.
• Ensure that new accounting documents are completed completely and accurately, complying with legal regulations.

In addition to the above tasks, the accounting unit must have accountability and responsibility for providing timely, complete, honest and transparent accounting information and documents to tax authorities and relevant state agencies. authority according to the provisions of law. 

3. How long should accounting documents be preserved and stored?

According to regulations, accounting documents must be fully and safely preserved by the accounting unit during use and storage. The accounting unit must develop regulations on management, use, and preservation of accounting documents that clearly define the responsibilities and rights of each department and each accountant. In case the accounting unit is a micro-enterprise according to the provisions of law on support for small and medium-sized enterprises, it is not required to develop regulations on management, use and preservation of accounting documents but must still Responsible for fully and safely preserving accounting documents according to regulations. The accounting unit must ensure adequate facilities and means to manage and preserve accounting documents. Accountants are responsible for preserving their accounting documents during use.

Accordingly, accounting documents stored must be complete and systematic, and must be classified and arranged into separate sets of records according to the chronological order of arising and according to the annual accounting period. Accounting documents must be archived within 12 months from the end of the annual accounting period or the end of accounting work.

Regarding storage period, accounting documents must be stored according to the following period:

• At least 5 years: For documents used for management and administration, including accounting documents not directly used to record accounting books and prepare financial reports.
• At least 10 years: For accounting documents used directly to record accounting books, prepare financial statements, accounting books and annual financial reports.
• Permanent storage: For documents that are historical and important in economics, security, and national defense.

4. How will businesses be punished if their accounting documents are damaged or lost?

When an enterprise violates regulations on preservation and storage of accounting documents, depending on the nature and extent of the violation, the responsible individual or organization may be subject to administrative sanctions according to the Decree. 41/2018/ND-CP as follows

Warnings will be imposed for the following acts:

• Documents are archived slowly for 12 months or more.
• Do not arrange documents in chronological order and annual accounting period.

Fines from 5,000,000 to 10,000,000 VND for the following acts:

• Incomplete document storage.
• Storing documents unsafely, leading to damage and loss.
• Using documents within the prescribed storage period.
• Do not inventory, classify, or restore lost or destroyed documents.

Fines from 10,000,000 to 20,000,000 VND for the following acts:

• Destroy accounting documents before the expiration date without incurring criminal liability.
• Not establishing a Destruction Council, not destroying properly and not making destruction records according to regulations.

Note: The above fine applies to individuals. If organizations violate, the fine will be twice the fine for individuals.

5. Conclude

Accounting documents are not only a means of financial management but also an important legal basis for businesses. The loss or destruction of accounting documents requires the unit to quickly apply handling measures in accordance with the law, to ensure transparency, honesty and minimize legal risks. Seriously and strictly implementing the above processes not only helps protect business interests but also maintains the trust of authorities and partners.

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