Are you faced with the question: what is accounts receivable? In this article we will try to describe this concept as simply and completely as possible. Any organization sooner or later faces accounts receivable.

Accounts receivable- this is the amount of debts (debt) owed to the organization by buyers or other debtors, which the organization expects to receive within certain (established or agreed upon) periods.

The debtor, in turn, is the debtor of the organization. The debtor can act as legal entities, and physical.

Accounts receivable is a type of asset of an organization; to the extent that these funds are not directly at the disposal of the enterprise, accounts receivable negatively affects the financial position of the organization. Therefore, it is very important to control its size and demand repayment of debts from unscrupulous partners. But at the same time, if accounts receivable are managed correctly, then by providing deferred payments and trade credits, an organization can expand the market for its products or services.

Accounts receivable can arise for various reasons, both dependent on the organization (for example, providing trade credit or deferred payment to customers) and independent. The most common reason for the appearance of receivables that do not depend on the organization is unscrupulous partners.

We found out what accounts receivable means. Now let's talk about what is included in accounts receivable:

• Debt of buyers and customers for goods shipped or services performed.
• Advances paid to suppliers and contractors.
• Accountable amounts issued to accountable persons for various needs (for example, the purchase of materials).
• Debts on loans and advances issued, for example, to employees of an organization.

Of course, the most common type of receivables are the debts of buyers and customers for goods shipped to them, raw materials and services provided.

Types of accounts receivable

• Accounts receivable from customers and buyers whose payment is not yet due.
• Overdue receivables are debts that are not paid on time, that is, within the period stipulated by the contract. In turn, it comes in the following types:

• Expected, the terms for repayment of debts are agreed upon with the buyer, a letter of guarantee or other types of guarantees may be provided.
• Doubtful, the probability of debt repayment is low, the debt is not secured by collateral or surety.
• Hopeless, debt repayment is not possible.

According to the terms of repayment of receivables in financial statements is divided into the following categories:

• Long-term, debt repayment is expected within more than 12 months after the reporting date.
• Short-term, debt repayment will be made within 1 year after the reporting date.

When analyzing accounts receivable, it is very important indicator is the turnover of household items; the higher this indicator, the better for the organization. This coefficient shows how much revenue falls on each ruble of accounts receivable, and is calculated using the formula:

• RTR = TR/ Average remote sensing, where:
  • RTR – accounts receivable turnover ratio (RTR)
  • TR is revenue; in addition, it is appropriate to take not total revenue, but sales on credit.

Another useful indicator is the debt turnover in days; it shows how long it takes on average for the money to be returned, and the lower it is, the faster the receivables are returned. It can be found using the formula:

• DSO = T/ RTR, where:
  • T – period of time for which the analysis is carried out, in days.

It is very important to monitor these indicators and reduce the receivables turnover period.

One of the options for repaying receivables: through accounts payable, or more simply put, offset. This is possible if the organization also owes its debtor a certain amount of money for the services provided to it. In this case, for the organization it will be accounts payable, that is, debt to suppliers or contractors for services rendered or goods shipped. By mutual agreement, debt amounts can be offset.

Now you know what accounts receivable and payable are; you will learn how to write off overdue accounts receivable from another article on our website - “

Debtors are debtors, whose roles can be both individuals and legal entities or economic entities with debt. The activities of any enterprise cannot proceed without interaction with debtors and creditors. Debt arising from debtors is called receivables.

Types of debtors

Depending on the type of debt, debtors are distinguished by:

• bills received;
• contributions to equity capital;
• advances issued;
• payment wages, taxes and payments to other creditors.

Every person in his life was in the role of a debtor: loans from banks or other individuals, debts for public utilities– all this leads to debt.

Considering the status of the debtor in market economy, we can say with confidence that the main debtors of the enterprise are buyers. Some of the debt is also owed to employees. Turning the situation around, we find that the organization itself becomes a debtor if it has debts to the state, individuals and legal entities.

What is the difference between debtors and creditors?

When characterizing accounts receivable or the concept of debtors, the question of the essence of creditors certainly arises. These are two tightly interconnected phenomena that have opposite meanings. If the debtor is the debtor, then the creditor is the party who demands the fulfillment of the debt obligation. For example, when shipping unpaid goods, the buyer is the debtor, and the seller is the creditor.

Debtors and creditors are connected by one whole - the amount of the debt obligation. One party provides funds under certain conditions (or without a contract at all), and the second undertakes to fulfill them. In this case, the debt for the debtor will be a payable, and for the creditor - a receivable. It turns out that debtors are debtors, and the debt, the amount of which is due to the creditor, is receivable.

Normal and overdue debts of debtors

When obligations arise to a legal entity (for example, a trading enterprise), the fact of receivables is recorded. It can have a short-term (less than one year) and long-term (more than one year) repayment period. Normal receivables include those obligations that have not yet matured. For example, goods were shipped to the buyer, payment for which, according to the contract, will be received after partial sale.

When debtors violate this obligation, i.e., do not meet the deadline for repayment, an overdue debt arises. There are two types of overdue debtor obligations - doubtful and hopeless.

Doubtful and bad debt of the debtor

In cases where the receivables for the delivered goods have not been repaid on time and do not have a guarantee, pledge or other guarantee of debt payment, they are considered doubtful. Overdue obligations can be satisfied by using a deferment or paying using bills, shares or equivalent barter.

If it is no longer possible to go to court, the doubtful debt becomes hopeless. This means that such a debt can no longer be repaid. The situation arises in the following cases:

• liquidation of a legal entity;
• bankruptcy of the debtor;
• the deadline for filing a claim has passed, if the debt has not been confirmed.

The amount of debt that is unrealistic to be collected is written off as a financial result.

Accounts receivable in the financial management system

The amount of debt of debtors is characterized as a component of the current assets of the enterprise. Work related to the control of debtors' debts, important point organization of the enterprise management system.

1. Plan the total amount of the maximum possible debt of debtors.
2. Install credit limit for buyers.
3. Control the formation of accounts receivable.
4. Involve employees in the active participation in developing new scenarios and solving problems related to accounts receivable.

Regardless of what control policy is developed and adopted at the enterprise, it is necessary to carefully monitor the results financial analysis debtors' debts.

Debt turnover indicator. debt

To analyze the amount of debt to debtors, use the turnover ratio, which is calculated using the formula: K rev = B ÷ Dz av, where:

B – revenue from the sales process;

Dz av - the average value of the debtors' debt for the period under review.

The average value is determined as the amount of debt at the beginning and end of the period, divided by 2. To calculate the turnover period of debtors' debt, use the formula: T ob.d.z. = T p ÷ K rev, where:

T p – the period under consideration in days.

The value of the debt turnover period characterizes average value the time of deferred payments that the company provides to them.

The obtained data on accounts receivable indicators may be distorted due to the fact that it also includes obligations for advances issued and debt of owners for contributions to the authorized capital.

Accounting for accounts receivable

Accounts receivable are a property right of an organization, therefore its amount is included in assets. Several accounts are used to record such amounts. accounting, the main ones being:

• 62 – to reflect accounts receivable from customers;
• 70, 71, 73 – for accounting for employee debt on accountable amounts and other transactions;
• 75 – to reflect the amounts of debt of the founders;
• 76 – reflects settlements with debtors for other transactions;
• 60 – in case of issuance of an advance against the supplied products;
• 68, 69 – in case of overpayment of the amount of payments to the budget.

The amount indicated in the debit of the listed accounts indicates the obligations of the debtor. As soon as the debt is paid, the accountant makes a posting indicating the amount paid in the credit of the accounts receivable accounts.

If payments on debtors' obligations are overdue and cannot be recovered from them, the amount is debited to account 91.2. In cases where the debtor, after the trial, has paid all the imposed sanctions, the result is included in the other income of the enterprise (account 91.1).

Creation of a reserve for doubtful debts

Accounting for receivables that have become doubtful or hopeless requires the creation of a reserve doubtful debts. It is worth remembering that the performance of this action is primarily regulated accounting policy. Only accounts receivable from customers can be written off to the reserve. The transaction is reflected by the posting: D 63 Kt 62.

The amount is included in operating expenses, thereby reducing the enterprise’s profit in advance. At the same time, the debt itself does not disappear, but is listed on the off-balance sheet account 007 for 5 years. How does an enterprise leave a chance to collect debt if financial situation debtor will change.

When the debtor repays the debt, the amount will be written off from the reserve account to the enterprise’s income: Dt 91.1 Kt 63 (Dt 91.1 Kt 007).

Debtors are one of the counterparties in the system market relations buyers and customers. Paying due attention credit policy enterprise, you can avoid the formation of bad debt, which slows down economic development companies.

Accounts receivable are the financial and commodity assets of a company working for the counterparty as a result of a transaction, agreement, etc. The counterparty can be buyers, contractors and others. accountable persons. Accounts receivable relate to the company's property (its assets) and are subject to inventory, regardless of the maturity date.

In simple words, the concept of a company's receivables is the amount of debt that has not yet been returned to the borrower for certain services or goods.

Here is an example of accounts receivable:

The MAX company specializes in the production of building mixtures. He has several debtors (debtors), these are companies that do not have the financial ability to pay for the goods immediately. The two parties enter into an agreement indicating the repayment period of the debt and all the nuances in case of non-fulfillment. Thus, the MAX company, without refusing a loan, will receive economic profit in the future.

2. What is the difference between accounts receivable and accounts payable?

With accounts receivable, your company has debtors, and with accounts payable, you are the debtor. On the one hand, the absence of receivables indicates the company's caution, since not all debtors ultimately have the opportunity to repay the debt. But even in this case, the company deprives itself of potential income from bona fide counterparties.

Regarding accounts payable, the same story, its high level indicates the company’s problems, and its absence demonstrates the success and payback of the business on its own. But since KZ is third-party capital, it would be foolish not to take advantage of the opportunity to develop at the expense of other people’s investments. It follows from this that it is not the presence itself that matters, but the volume and ratio of receivables and payables.

3. Types of receivables

There are many criteria by which types of receivables can be classified, but we will turn to the main ones.

Depending on the repayment period:

Depending on receipt of payment:

To avoid serious consequences of non-payment of debt, firms create reserves for doubtful debts. The volume of reserves is approved individually, it all depends on financial situation debtor and the probability of repayment of obligations. A provision for doubtful debts is established after an inventory has been taken.

4. Enterprise accounts receivable management

There are often situations when an enterprise, in an effort to increase profits, begins to overload itself with debtors, which can ultimately lead to a large amount of unpaid debt and even bankruptcy of the enterprise. Smart managers pay great attention to the volume of debts and maintain strict accounts receivable records using various tools, such as Excel.

Accounts receivable management methods:

• Strengthening work with accounts receivable - collecting debts without resorting to the help of judicial authorities.
• Balance control and analysis of accounts payable and receivable.
• Motivation of sales department employees (regarding taking measures to ensure the fastest possible return of funds from debtors)
• Calculation of the real value of the property, taking into account the possibility of its sale.
• Creation of a sales system in which payments will be made regularly and guaranteed, for example, a system of discounts for punctual customers.
• Calculation of the maximum level of accounts receivable.
• Audit of losses from remote work (what profit the company could have received in case of instant payment and use of this money).

With proper control and management of receivables, an enterprise can protect itself as much as possible from the risks associated with non-payment of debts, decreased solvency and lack of working capital.

5. Inventory of accounts receivable

An inventory of accounts receivable is a reconciliation of documents with counterparties, confirmation of the existence of debt and its size. Conduct an inventory before the annual report, change of chief accountant, during liquidation or reorganization of the enterprise and in the event emergency situations, for example a fire.

The inventory is carried out on a certain date, the company sends data on the debt to its borrowers, and they must confirm or deny in writing the existence and amount of the debt. This is ideal, but in reality not everything is so smooth, firstly, inventory may take a large number of

The next problem is resolving data inconsistencies; in this case, you have to reconcile all transactions performed with a given enterprise; this creates particular difficulty if the enterprise is located in another city or, even better, in another country. When sending a certificate of receivables, you need to take into account the fact that an enterprise can be both a debtor and a creditor at the same time. Even if, according to calculations, you turn out to be a debtor, you need to send a statement, indicating the amount of both receivables and payables.

After reconciliations, the company must draw up an inventory report; some set their own form template, or use a standard one, for example: sample 1 (download).

6. Accounts receivable turnover

Accounts receivable turnover shows how quickly a company receives payment for goods and services sold.

The accounts receivable turnover ratio shows how effective measures the organization is taking to minimize debt. This metric quantifies how many times a firm has received payment during a period equal to the average outstanding balance from its customers.

*Average accounts receivable balance calculated as the amount of receivables from customers according to data balance sheet at the beginning and end of the analyzed period, divided by 2.

Turnover formulaaccounts receivable:

Accounts receivable turnover period in days formula:

*TLC in days shows the number of days during which the debt remains unpaid.

As such, there is no norm for the turnover ratio; it will be different for each industry. But in any case, the higher the OPL, the better for the organization, this means that buyers quickly repay the debt.

7. Collection of accounts receivable

Any enterprise faces the problem of non-payment of accounts receivable. Of course, the buyer may have various valid reasons, but who cares? The company wants to recover its money for the goods provided.

Repayment of receivables can be carried out using different methods, for example, hiring the mafia, but if it’s legal, then it’s better to file a claim or contact judiciary. If you decide to resolve the conflict amicably, you should send a complaint to the debtor to clearly explain your position and find out whether he has any reasonable objections.

When applying for collection of receivables, you must indicate the following points:

• Call
• Detailed calculation of the amount of debt incurred
• Interest calculation
• Debt repayment deadline
• Warning about going to court

In addition, the claim must be signed by an authorized person, and copies of all documents related to the debt must be attached. If the debtor received your letter (there must be evidence) and did not respond deadlines, then with a clear conscience you can go to court to demand the return of receivables.

8. Write-off of accounts receivable

By law, a debt is considered overdue if the due date has expired. limitation period debt (3 years) and bad debt if the company is unable to repay the debt. On these grounds, the company has the right to write off the debt. The write-off of hopeless overdue receivables is permitted on the final day of the period in which the statute of limitations has passed.

Write-off of accounts receivable from expired prescription can be accomplished in two ways. The first is to use the reserve for doubtful debts for this purpose; if a reserve was not provided for this debt, then write it off to financial results. Postings for writing off accounts receivable must be carried out exclusively for each obligation separately. The reason for this may be the results of the inventory, written confirmation or an order from the head of the enterprise.

Sample order to write off accounts receivable: sample 2 (download).

Writing off a bad debt is not an actual cancellation of the debt, therefore, for five years after the write-off, receivables are reflected in the balance sheet. And throughout the entire period you need to monitor financial condition debtor, whether he has the opportunity to repay the debt.

9. Accounts receivable report

It is important for a manager to have an idea of ​​how much funds he can use, when the next receipts will be, and, based on the report, to think through his actions regarding finances. Also, according to the report data, it is possible to assess the receivables of each client, who makes payments responsibly, and who does not even understand the importance of timely payment of the debt.

Sample breakdown of receivables and payables sample: sample 3 (download).

10. Sale and purchase of receivables

If you do not have the slightest desire to deal with debtors, but want to return the funds, you can sell the receivables, if there are persons who would be interested in this. Often these are people who themselves have a debt to the debtor. The company has the opportunity to buy receivables at a lower price, so to speak at a discount, and then present documents to the debtor and demand repayment of the debt at full cost. To sell a debt, the debtor’s consent is not required; it will be enough to notify him of the sale of the debt.

Optimization of the enterprise sales system and minimizing risks in working with receivables and payables

Debt monetary obligations- This is an important component of the activities of any company. Moreover, legal entities can be both debtors and creditors.

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If the organization is obliged by other citizens or legal entities, it is customary to talk about the occurrence of receivables. What it includes, the structure of formation and its composition - we will consider these and other questions further.

What it is

Managing your own business involves the need to solve problems of varying degrees of complexity. Organizations often encounter unscrupulous payers.

The service was provided or the goods were delivered, but the corresponding payment was not received. This is how receivables arise.

Receivable is included in the basic concept of “obligation”, the essence of which is disclosed in. Coming from Citizens. Code, under an obligation, one person, called the debtor (debtor), is obliged to perform any action or refrain from performing an action in favor of another person - the creditor.

The action may be the obligation to pay for goods received, services provided, or work performed.

For accounting purposes, debt must be classified into groups and types. General classification of receivables:

• according to the sources of its formation;
• by type of obligation;
• by the nature of the debt;
• in relation to the creditor.

What does it include?

Accounts receivable includes all debt obligations that other counterparties have to the company. Moreover, it is not necessary that the debt is commodity debt. Often, there are overpayments of taxes, fees, excess payments to health and social insurance funds.

In addition, loans issued to employees or advances are also included in accounts receivable and must be reflected in the appropriate accounts as a debit balance.

What does the structure, table look like?

The receivables structure has a fairly wide ramification. General form The structures can be seen in the figure below. We will talk in more detail about each classification separately.

By timing of occurrence

According to the timing of occurrence, receivables are usually classified into 2 subtypes:

Overdue debt, in turn, is divided into 2 more subgroups:

As part of debt, according to the timing of its occurrence, there is also a separate type - deferred debt. If the creditor provides the counterparty with an installment plan or deferred payment, the debt will be considered deferred.

By timing

By maturity, liabilities are classified into the following types:

Dividing debts by maturity allows for timely monitoring. Thus, for long-term debts, a more careful approach is required, which is associated with an increased risk of non-repayment.

After all, if the repayment period is so long, the statute of limitations may expire and the solvency of the counterparty may decrease.

Short-term liabilities do not require such careful monitoring, however, an analysis of the debtor's liquidity level must be carried out in relation to any debts - both with a long period of repayment and with a short one.

By sources of formation

According to the sources of formation of obligations, the following are classified:

• related to the sale of goods, provision of services or performance of work (commodity);
• not related to the sale of goods, provision of services or performance of work (non-commodity).

Detailed classification:

By degree of security

Liabilities are divided according to their level of security into:

• accompanied by collateral;
• not accompanied by collateral.

According to the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the types of security for the fulfillment of obligations include:

• surety;
• bank guarantee;
• pledge;
• retention of property;
• penalty;
• deposit;
• other forms of security.

Classification according to the degree of security is necessary to analyze the risks of non-payment of debt.

Obviously, the more ways a debt is secured, the lower the risk of non-repayment on time, since the debtor risks losing the collateral or paying a large penalty.

If possible, collection

Debts, according to the possibility of their collection, are divided into three large groups:

• reliable;
• doubtful;
• hopeless.

An obligation that meets two criteria is considered reliable:

• urgent (the repayment period under the contract has not yet expired);
• secured (the guarantee of timely payment is a deposit, surety, pledge, bank guarantee, etc.).

Based on the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, dubious obligations include all those that:

• are not secured;
• not repaid on time or will not be repaid with a high degree of probability.

Doubtful debts can still be collected both pre-trial and in court. But it will no longer be possible to collect a hopeless one. The creditor company will only have:

• compensate part of the funds for the purpose of repaying bad debt from the reserve fund;
• write off bad debts.

A debt can be recognized as unrecoverable if one or more criteria are present:

• the statute of limitations for recovery through court has expired (in general – 3 years);
• the defaulter has been liquidated;
• the state body issued an act on the impossibility of collection;
• it is not possible to establish the whereabouts of the debtor or there is no property that can be seized to satisfy the creditor's claims.

By repayment method

Depending on the methods by which debt can be repaid, they are classified into:

• monetary;
• non-monetary.

Cash methods involve calculations:

• spot;
• non-cash.

Non-monetary methods are much less common and can be represented by:

• offset of counterclaims;
• commodity exchange transactions;
• settlements through bills of exchange.

Its composition

Receivables are reflected in accounting records as part of the company's assets, since they represent a certain part of the company's property that rightfully belongs to it, but is located in other economic entities.

The following forms should be included in the annual accounting reports:

• balance sheet;

• Profits and Losses Report;

• statement of changes in equity;

• cash flow report;

• application to the balance sheet.

What is included in accounts receivable on the balance sheet?

Accounts receivable includes the following components:

Name of business transaction	On what debit of the account is it reflected?
Settlement transactions with suppliers and contractors (if the company issues an advance payment for the supply of goods)	60
Settlement transactions with buyers and service customers (the organization supplies goods or provides services first, payment from the counterparty is received later)	62
Settlement transactions for taxes (if overpayment of taxes and fees to the treasury is identified)	68
Payment transactions via social networks insurance and security (if, as a result of the inventory, the accounting department revealed the fact of overpayment to social, pension and health insurance funds)	69
Settlement transactions with employees for payment labor activity(if the employee is deducted cash in favor of the company)	70
Settlement transactions with accountable employees (in the event that a company employee has not returned the money given to him on account)	71
Settlement transactions with personnel for other transactions (unrepaid loans issued to employees, material damage, etc.)	73
Settlement transactions with founders	75
Settlements with various counterparties (if there are arrears in compensation due to insured events, settlements on claims in favor of the company, settlements on dividends due, etc.)	76

In accounting, uncollectible debt is recognized as other expenses. To account for these amounts, account 91, subaccount 91-2 “Other expenses” is intended.