Limits of responsibility of the chief accountant of the organization in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Law of December 6, 2011 No. 402 - FZ (as amended on November 4, 2014) "On Accounting"

In terms of the scope of powers and responsibilities, the chief accountant is deservedly considered the second person in the organization after the head. This position implies a wide range of responsibilities. In the Federal Law of November 21, 1996 No. 129-FZ “On Accounting”, a separate article was devoted to the responsibility of the chief accountant, which stated that the chief accountant is responsible for the formation of accounting policies, accounting, timely submission of complete and reliable financial statements (Art. 7 FZ No. 129 - FZ). In addition to the above, the chief accountant ensured the compliance of business operations with the legislation of the Russian Federation and controlled the movement of property. The current Federal Law of December 6, 2011 No. 402 - FZ (as amended on November 4, 2014) “On Accounting” establishes the obligation only to maintain accounting records. Regarding liability, the new Law does not contain any provisions, which is strange in itself. The question rightly arises, what is the chief accountant responsible for?

There are three aspects to this issue.

Some experts believe that accounting is regulated not only by Federal Law No. 402-FZ, but also by a system of rules, standards and instructions, and the adoption of a new Federal Law is not a basis for refusing to comply with their norms and provisions.

Conclusion: the entry into force of the new Federal Law does not affect the scope of mandatory functions and responsibilities of the chief accountant. The exceptions are cases when the organization itself redistributes duties and responsibilities between individual positions. In this case, everyone will be responsible within their powers.

Other experts believe that the lack of provisions on liability in the Federal Law “On Accounting” is quite justified, because. for government agencies, the main thing is to obtain high-quality and timely financial information according to certain rules, and who exactly in the organization prepares financial statements is the business of the organization.

Thus, it seems that relations with the chief accountant do not fall within the scope of the Federal Law “On Accounting” and are regulated by the provisions of labor legislation. Accordingly, the scope of duties and responsibilities should be fixed in the employment contract and job description (the latter must be familiarized with the employee).

The third option for resolving the issue of the limits of responsibility of the chief accountant is as follows. Federal Law No. 402-FZ stipulates that the head of the organization is solely responsible for the data reflected in accounting documents and reports when the chief accountant acts on a written order of the head of the company and does not agree with him.

It is logical that in other cases, at least, both bear subsidiary responsibility for the maintenance and reliability of accounting and reporting.

All three points of view are correct in their own way and have the right to exist. However, in order to avoid litigation about the limits of responsibility of the chief accountant, it is advisable to describe in detail in the employment contract what the chief accountant is responsible for and in what cases, as well as detail the limits of responsibility and prepare a competent job description.

The responsibility of the chief accountant for the correctness of accounting can be divided into disciplinary, material, administrative and criminal liability.

Disciplinary responsibility

The chief accountant, on a common basis with the rest of the employees, is responsible for being late for work, violating the rules of internal labor regulations, etc. Consequently, the chief accountant can be brought to disciplinary liability for guilty failure to perform or improper performance of the duties assigned to him by the employment contract.

In accordance with labor legislation (Article 192 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), disciplinary sanctions are divided into: remark, reprimand, dismissal.

Obviously, the most serious penalty is dismissal. There is no special procedure for the dismissal of the chief accountant. The dismissal procedure is carried out in accordance with the general requirements of the labor legislation of the Russian Federation. Thus, the chief accountant can be removed from his position on his own initiative or on the initiative of the employer.

It is important to note that the chief accountant can be dismissed under paragraph 9 of part 1 of Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation for unprofessionalism: "an employment contract may be terminated at the initiative of the employer in connection with the adoption of an unreasonable decision by the chief accountant, which entailed a violation of the safety of property, its misuse or other damage to the property of the organization."

Consider a case study: Definition of the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Courtdated January 19, 2010 in case No. 33-254.

From the case file: V. filed a lawsuit against the Consumer Market Support Center for reinstatement in the position of chief accountant, payment for forced absenteeism and compensation for moral damage.

In support of his claims, the plaintiff indicates that she was dismissed under Art. 81 p. 9 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation for making an unreasonable decision that entailed a violation of the safety of the organization's property. She does not agree with the wording of the dismissal, as she has never made decisions regarding the property of the organization on her own. All decisions could be executed after mandatory approval by the head of the organization.

The claims were satisfied by the decision of the court of first instance.

Having checked the case materials, the judicial board finds no grounds for canceling the judgment.

It follows from the job description of the chief accountant that the chief accountant is appointed to the position, dismissed by the director and reports directly to the director.

V. was dismissed for making an unreasonable decision to pay for polycarbonate according to the estimated calculation to the contractor on the basis of an acceptance certificate for the construction of a retail outlet in the city market, while she made a decision to write off polycarbonate, as well as for unreasonable write-off of the specified polycarbonate without proper grounds .

However, the employer did not present evidence to the court that testifies to the occurrence of adverse consequences for the organization as a result of V.'s actions, such as: violation of the safety of property, its misuse or other damage to the property of the organization.

As follows from the case file, according to the act of verification of material assets, drawn up with the participation of the administration of the organization, polycarbonate in the amount of 20 square meters was found in the defendant's warehouse. m, which was purchased for the equipment of trading places. This circumstance calls into question the fact of violation of the safety of property, its misuse or other damage to the property of the organization in this case on the part of the plaintiff.

The argument of the cassation complaint about the absence of grounds for writing off the polycarbonate, therefore, about the unreasonable actions of V. in this part also cannot be considered justified.

As follows from the materials of the case, by the decision of the commission consisting of K., B., V., P., materials were written off due to production needs, including “polycarbonate with the designation “Hangar equipment for trading places”. The act for the write-off of material assets is approved by the director.

After evaluating the evidence presented, the panel of judges comes to the conclusion: leave the decision of the court of first instance unchanged, and the cassation appeal - without satisfaction.

This decision is justified and adopted in accordance with paragraph 48 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated March 17, 2004 No. 2. RWhen deciding whether the decision was unreasonable, it is necessary to take into account whether the named adverse consequences occurred precisely as a result of making this decision and whether they could have been avoided if another decision was made. At the same time, if the defendant does not provide evidence confirming the onset of adverse consequences referred to in paragraph 9 of Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, dismissal on this basis cannot be recognized as legal.

Quite often, in practice, there are disputable situations related to the obligation of the chief accountant to sign financial documents, because. the new Federal Law No. 402-FZ does not address this issue. In accordance with the current Accounting Rules 4/99 "Accounting Statements of the Organization", the accounting statements must be signed by the chief accountant. However, this does not mean that he is automatically responsible for the correctness of its compilation and the reliability of the content. Responsibility arises if, under an employment contract, he is the person responsible for its preparation.

It is important to note that the chief accountant cannot be fired due to loss of confidence (clause 7, article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). An exception is cases when the employment contract provides for functional obligations for the acceptance, storage, transportation, distribution, expenditure of monetary or commodity values.

Consider a case study: Appeal Determinationdated June 19, 2012 in case No. 33-1799.

From the case file: Pchelinova E.N. worked in Dibrovsky MK LLC as a chief accountant. On December 15, 2011, she filed a voluntary resignation letter, but was dismissed from her position under paragraph 7 Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation due to loss of trust.

Pchelinova E.N. asked to declare illegal the order of Dibrovsky MK LLC on her dismissal under paragraph 7 Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation due to loss of trust.

The Court of First Instance granted the claims.

After checking the case file, the judicial board finds it not subject to satisfaction.

According to the explanations contained in paragraph 45 of the Decree of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of March 17, 2004 No. 2 “On the application by the courts of the Russian Federation of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation” (as amended on December 28, 2006), the courts need to keep in mind that the termination of an employment contract with an employee under paragraph 7 Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation in connection with the loss of confidence, it is possible only in relation to employees directly servicing monetary or commodity values ​​(reception, storage, transportation, distribution, etc.).

Resolving the dispute, the court proceeded from the fact that the position of the chief accountant held by the plaintiff is not included in the List of positions and works replaced or performed by employees with whom the employer can conclude written agreements on full individual liability for the shortage of entrusted property, approved by the Decree of the Ministry of Labor and Social Development of the Russian Federation No. 85 dated December 31, 2002. The employer did not provide evidence to confirm that the duties of E. N. Pchelinova included the direct servicing of monetary or commodity values. The job description of the chief accountant was not presented by the defendant, and according to the employment contract, the plaintiff's functional duties for the acceptance, storage, transportation, distribution, expenditure of monetary or commodity values ​​\u200b\u200bare not provided.

The defendant's arguments that the employment contract with the plaintiff was terminated on the basis of paragraph 7 Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation lawful in connection with the violations committed by her in the field of accounting and the procedure for conducting cash transactions, are unconvincing and not supported by evidence. In addition, the indicated grounds for dismissal of the plaintiff do not indicate damage to the employer, loss of property, shortage or excess of monetary or inventory items. Comprehensively and fully examining the circumstances of the case, the panel of judges determined the appeal of the founder of Dibrovsky MK LLC Meikshan N.T. leave unsatisfied.

So, to summarize the above: in order not to face such problems after the dismissal of the chief accountant as a lack of financial and business documentation, distortion of the company's tax base, violation of the deadlines for submitting financial statements to the tax office and funds, etc., the head of the company needs to prepare in advance for the dismissal of the chief accountant.

Namely:

1. to carry out control activities of the activities of the chief accountant. This is necessary so that in case of violations by the chief accountant in a timely manner to bring him to justice. To do this, it is necessary to determine the time frame within which the chief accountant is responsible for his actions, respectively, this must be documented, against signature. It is also advisable to periodically check the activities of the chief accountant;

2. take care of the successor in advance. It is advisable to introduce the position of deputy chief accountant in the staffing table.

3. pay attention to the moment of transferring cases from one chief accountant to another. Ideally, a commission should be appointed to check the financial and economic activities.

4. Be ready to check the financial and economic activities of the organization and transfer cases to a new chief accountant, selected from among the persons temporarily admitted to the duties of the chief accountant.

Material liability

Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of November 14, 2002 No. 823 “On the procedure for approving the lists of positions and works replaced or performed by employees with whom the employer can conclude written agreements on full individual or collective (team) liability, as well as standard forms of agreements on full liability » does not include the position of chief accountant, therefore it is impossible to conclude an agreement on full liability with him.

However, if the employment contract contains provisions on full liability, then the chief accountant is responsible in full, i.e. is obliged to compensate the direct actual damage caused by him to the employer.

Consider a practical example:Determination of the Moscow City Court dated March 26, 2012 in case No. 33-6435.

From the case file: LLC filed a lawsuit against P.T. for damages caused by the employee. In support of their claims, the plaintiff indicated that P.T. hired as chief accountant. P.T. Received funds on account cash orders to transfer them to the bank for crediting to the LLC account. However, the defendant did not hand over the money to the bank or handed it over partially. As a result of these actions, P.T. deliberately withheld funds belonging to LLC, in connection with which the plaintiff suffered damage.

The court of first instance satisfied the claims.

After reviewing the case file, the panel of judges concludes that there are no grounds for canceling the appealed decision.

The evidence presented confirms that the defendant illegally withheld funds belonging to the LLC.

P.T. did not dispute the authenticity of her signatures on the account cash warrants, and also confirmed the receipt of cash from the cash desk of the LLC. At the same time, she claimed that she transferred the received funds to the general director of the LLC.

However, this fact was not confirmed by the defendant during the consideration of the case. The defendant's representative also did not provide any evidence to support the transfer of P.T. money to the CEO.

The statement of the defendant's representative that P.T. cannot bear full liability, since the agreement on full liability with her was not concluded, the court rejected with reference to Art. 232 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, which establishes that the party to the employment contract that caused damage to the other party compensates for this damage in accordance with the Code and other federal laws. In accordance with Art. 233 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the material liability of a party to an employment contract occurs for damage caused by it to the other party to this contract as a result of its guilty unlawful behavior (action or inaction), unless otherwise provided by this Code or other federal laws. P. 3 h. 1 art. 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation establishes bringing to full liability for intentional infliction of damage, regardless of the conclusion of an agreement with the employee on full liability.

Resolving the dispute, the judicial board decided to leave the cassation appeal without satisfaction.

It should be noted that the damage caused by the chief accountant of the organization can be recovered through the court even after the dismissal of the perpetrator within 1 year from the date of discovery of the damage.

Administrative responsibility

For failure to perform or improper performance of their duties, an official of the company may be held administratively liable.

It is important to note that in accordance with the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, a fine is imposed not only on the organization as a whole, but also on the official guilty of the violation.

Consider an example from practice: Resolution of the Volgograd Regional Court in case No. 7a-458/11.

From the case file: Ltd. filed a lawsuit against Klimenko Oh.The. on prosecution under Art. 15.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation for violation of the rules of accounting and reporting.

Resolution of the Court of First Instance Director Ltd. Klimenko Oh.The. found guilty and punished with an administrative fine.

By decision of the court of second instance, the decision was left unchanged.

After reviewing the arguments of the complaint, having studied the materials of the case, the court finds the complaint subject to satisfaction on the following grounds.

The reason for bringing the director of the LLC to administrative responsibility was a violation of the rules for maintaining accounting records and presenting financial statements, which was expressed in the distortion of the amount of taxes and fees by at least 10%.

In accordance with Art. 15.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, administrative responsibility for a gross violation of the rules for maintaining accounting records and submitting financial statements, as well as the procedure and terms for storing accounting documents, is established in relation to officials.

Based on the provisions of Art. 2.4 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, officials are subject to administrative liability if they commit an administrative offense in connection with the failure to perform or improper performance of their official duties.

Bringing the general director of LLC to administrative responsibility under Art. 15.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, the magistrate proceeded from the fact that it is the head of the organization who is the subject of this offense, since in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Law "On Accounting" he is assigned organizational and administrative and administrative and economic functions for the organization of accounting.

It is impossible to agree with this conclusion of the justice of the peace.

In accordance with the provisions of Art. 6, 7 of the Federal Law “On Accounting”, the head, depending on the volume of accounting work, determines the form of organization of accounting at the enterprise. When establishing an accounting service, the chief accountant of the organization is directly responsible for the formation of accounting policies, accounting, timely submission of complete and reliable financial statements.

Based on a systematic interpretation of the provisions of the above articles of the Federal Law, the head of the organization bears full responsibility in the event that there were disagreements between the head of the organization and the chief accountant on the implementation of certain business operations, and the documents on these operations were accepted for execution from a written order of the head of the organization.

As seen from the case file, there was a chief accountant in the LLC. However, these circumstances were ignored by both the justice of the peace and the judge of the district court.

At the same time, specific facts indicating that the distortion in the financial statements of the LLC was caused by the non-performance or improper performance by the director of the LLC of the official duties of the head of the organization are not given in court decisions.

In view of the foregoing, the decisions of the courts of first and second instance cannot be recognized as legal and are subject to cancellation.

After analyzing this decision, we can conclude that the courts of the first two instances did not sufficiently study the case materials. And if, during the new consideration of the case, there is no evidence that there were disagreements between the head of the organization and the chief accountant for conducting business operations, the documents on these operations were accepted for execution with a written order of the head of the organization, then administrative liability for misrepresentation of financial statements and amounts accrued taxes will be borne only by the chief accountant.

It is important to note that the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation does not directly indicate who exactly needs to be held accountable - the head of the organization or the chief accountant. Previously, managers very often managed to avoid responsibility, because. in the old accounting law, the chief accountant was responsible for everything.

Criminal liability

The chief accountant may be held criminally liable if the organization has deliberately not paid large or especially large amounts of taxes to the budget for 3 consecutive years (Article 199.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

It should be noted that under this article it is very difficult to hold the chief accountant accountable, because. it is very difficult to prove that he deliberately acted in order to evade taxation (not due to insufficient qualifications, or corny by mistake, etc.). This is confirmed in the Ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation dated June 21, 2011 No. 852-O-O, which states that the subjects of the crime under Part 1 of Art. 199 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, may include the head of the taxpaying organization, the chief accountant (accountant in the absence of the position of chief accountant in the state), whose duties include signing reporting documentation, ensuring the full and timely payment of taxes and fees, as well as other persons, if they were specifically authorized by the governing body of the organization to perform such actions.

Important: the chief accountant cannot be held liable for the mistakes of his predecessor. It is also impossible to bring the chief accountant to disciplinary responsibility after his dismissal, since the employment relationship with the organization has ceased. The exception is liability for damage caused to the organization.

1. Accounting and storage of accounting documents shall be organized by the head of an economic entity, unless otherwise established by the budgetary legislation of the Russian Federation.

2. In the event that an individual entrepreneur, a person engaged in private practice, keep accounting in accordance with this Federal Law, they themselves organize accounting and storage of accounting documents, and also bear other obligations established by this Federal Law for the head of an economic subject.

3. The head of an economic entity is obliged to entrust accounting to the chief accountant or other official of this entity or to conclude an agreement on the provision of accounting services, unless otherwise provided by this part. The head of a credit organization is obliged to entrust accounting to the chief accountant. The head of an economic entity who, in accordance with this Federal Law, is entitled to apply simplified accounting methods, including simplified accounting (financial) statements, as well as the head of a medium-sized business entity, with the exception of economic entities specified in Part 5 of this Federal Law, may accept accounting for yourself.

3.1. The procedure for the transfer of powers to maintain accounting records and submit accounting (financial) statements to public sector organizations is established by the budgetary legislation of the Russian Federation.

4. In open joint stock companies (except for credit organizations), insurance organizations and non-state pension funds, joint-stock investment funds, management companies of mutual investment funds, in other economic entities whose securities are admitted to circulation on organized trading (with the exception of credit organizations) , in public sector organizations compiling consolidated (summary) budget reporting, consolidated reporting of state (municipal) institutions, the chief accountant or other official who is responsible for accounting must meet the following requirements:

1) have higher education;

2) have work experience related to accounting, preparation of accounting (financial) statements or audit activities, at least three years out of the last five calendar years, and in the absence of higher education in the field of accounting and audit - at least five years out of the last seven calendar years;

3) not have an unexpunged or outstanding conviction for crimes in the field of economics.

5. Additional requirements for the chief accountant or other official responsible for accounting may be established by other federal laws.

6. An individual with whom an economic entity enters into an agreement on the provision of accounting services must comply with the requirements established by part 4 of this article. A legal entity with which an economic entity enters into an agreement on the provision of accounting services must have at least one employee who meets the requirements established by paragraph 4 of this article, with whom an employment contract has been concluded.

7. The chief accountant of a credit institution and the chief accountant of a non-credit financial institution must meet the requirements established by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation.

8. In the event of disagreements regarding the maintenance of accounting between the head of an economic entity and the chief accountant or other official who is entrusted with the maintenance of accounting, or a person with whom an agreement on the provision of accounting services has been concluded:

1) the data contained in the primary accounting document are accepted (not accepted) by the chief accountant or other official who is entrusted with accounting, or by the person with whom the contract for the provision of accounting services has been concluded, for registration and accumulation in registers accounting by written order of the head of the economic entity, which is solely responsible for the information created as a result of this;

2) the accounting object is reflected (not reflected) by the chief accountant or other official who is entrusted with accounting, or by the person with whom the contract for the provision of accounting services has been concluded, in the accounting (financial) statements on the basis of a written order of the head an economic entity that is solely responsible for the reliability of the presentation of the financial position of the economic entity as of the reporting date, the financial result of its activities and cash flows for the reporting period.

Often, vacancy announcements for the position of chief accountant are full of a wide variety of requirements, which boil down to a simple Russian proverb: a Swiss, a reaper, and a gambler on the pipe. What are the legal requirements for the position? Is it possible to dismiss the chief accountant due to his lack of higher professional education?

The chief accountant is one of the key figures of the company, so he is subject to increased requirements. When opening a vacancy for the position of chief accountant, the main requirement is the presence of higher professional education.

The requirements for the qualification level of the chief accountant are contained in the following regulatory documents:

In the Federal Law of 06.12.2011 No. 402-FZ "On Accounting" (hereinafter - Law No. 402-FZ);

In the Regulation on chief accountants, approved by the Decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR dated January 24, 1980 No. 59 (hereinafter referred to as the Regulation);

In the Qualification Directory of the positions of managers, specialists and other employees, approved by the Decree of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation of August 21, 1998 No. 37;

In the professional standard "Accountant", approved by order of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation of December 22, 2014 No. 1061n (hereinafter referred to as the Standard).

Accounting Law

Requirements for a person who maintains accounting records are established by Law No. 402-FZ.

Law No. 402-FZ contains a list of organizations whose officials are subject to certain requirements in terms of the level of education (clause 4, article 7 of Law No. 402-FZ):

Open joint stock companies (excluding credit organizations);

Insurance organizations;

Non-state pension funds;

Joint stock investment funds;

Management companies of mutual investment funds;

Other economic entities, whose securities are admitted to trading on stock exchanges, and (or) other organizers of trading on the securities market (with the exception of credit institutions);

Management bodies of state off-budget funds;

Management bodies of state territorial non-budgetary funds.

The chief accountant of the above organizations must meet the following requirements:

Have higher professional education;

Have at least three years of work experience related to accounting, preparation of accounting (financial) statements or audit activities, and in the absence of higher professional education in the specialties of accounting and audit - at least five years from the last seven calendar years;

Not have an unexpunged or outstanding conviction for economic crimes.

The list of requirements for the chief accountant is open, additional requirements may be presented provided that they are established by other federal laws (clause 5, article 7 of Law No. 402-FZ).

So, for example, the chief accountant of a credit institution and the chief accountant of a non-credit financial institution must meet the requirements established by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. In accordance with the criteria set out in Art. 16 of the Federal Law of December 2, 1990 No. 395-1 “On Banks and Banking Activities”, the chief accountant must have a higher legal or economic education, experience in managing a department or other division of a credit institution whose activities are related to banking operations, at least one year, and if the candidate has a different higher education - at least two years.

And the chief accountant of a non-state pension fund is subject to special requirements established by the Federal Law “On Non-State Pension Funds” No. 75-FZ of May 7, 1998 (hereinafter referred to as Law No. 75-FZ). So, according to Article 6.2 of Law No. 75-FZ, the chief accountant of the fund must meet certain requirements for business reputation. Clause 3, Article 6.2 of Law No. 75-FZ provides a list of such requirements, among which, the absence of a criminal record for committing intentional crimes, termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer under clause 7 and clause 7.1 of Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (i.e. dismissal due to loss of confidence). Candidates for the position of chief accountant of the fund are subject to agreement with the Bank of the Russian Federation (clause 6, article 6.2 of Law No. 75-FZ).

Thus, Law No. 402-FZ establishes a requirement for the qualification level of chief accountants for certain categories of legal entities. At the same time, it should be taken into account that the new qualification requirements do not apply to the chief accountants of the listed organizations, who were hired for this position before the entry into force of Law No. 402-FZ, i.e. until January 1, 2013 (clause 2, article 30 of Law No. 402-FZ).

There are no additional requirements for the level of education or work experience for the chief accountants of other organizations.

Qualification directory of managerial positions

One of the documents that establishes the requirements for the qualification of an accountant is the Qualification Directory for the positions of managers, specialists and other employees, approved by the Decree of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation of August 21, 1998 No. 37.

So, the reference book has an educational qualification depending on the category of accountant:

Job title	Qualification requirements (education, experience)
Chief Accountant	higher professional (economic) education and experience in accounting and financial work, including in managerial positions, for at least five years;
	higher professional (economic) education and work experience as an accountant of category II for at least three years;
	higher professional (economic) education without presenting requirements for work experience or secondary professional (economic) education and work experience as an accountant for at least three years;
accountant	secondary vocational (economic) education without presenting requirements for work experience or special training according to the established program and work experience in accounting and control for at least three years.

However, The Qualification Handbook is not a legal document, and therefore the requirements are advisory(clause 2 of the Decree of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation of August 21, 1998 No. 37).

It should be noted that when considering civil claims related to labor disputes (for example, in the event of a dispute about the preferential right over other employees to remain at work), the qualification of an employee is determined as the level of knowledge, skills, professional skills and work experience of the employee (Art. 195.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). And, accordingly, the qualification of a person who has a higher specialized education is higher than that of a person who does not have such an education, or has, but in a completely different specialty ( Decision No. M-351/2014 2-685/14 dated March 12, 2014 Soviet District Court of Voronezh).

This conclusion follows from the provisions of the Federal Law of December 29, 2012 No. 273-FZ “On Education in the Russian Federation” (hereinafter referred to as the Law No. 273-FZ). Paragraph 1 of Article 68 of Law No. 273-FZ states that secondary vocational education aims to train skilled workers or employees and mid-level specialists, and higher education aims to ensure the training of highly qualified personnel in all major areas of socially useful activity.

Therefore, an accountant with a higher professional education has a preferential right to remain at work (in the event of a staff reduction) as having a higher qualification compared to an accountant who does not have a higher education.

Regulations on chief accountants

Currently, there is still a document adopted in Soviet times - this is the Regulation on Chief Accountants, which outlines the qualification requirements for the chief accountant. So, according to clause 5 of the Regulations, persons with higher specialized education are appointed to the position of chief accountant. And in necessary cases, by decision of a higher body, a person who does not have a higher specialized education may be appointed to the position of chief accountant, if he has at least three years of work experience in his specialty.

Despite the fact that this Regulation does not apply to the level of federal legislation, in practice, employers demanded that the position of chief accountant have a higher specialized education. Put an end to this dispute Supreme Court(Decision of the Supreme Court of October 22, 2014 No. AKPI14-965), which invalidated clause 5 of the Regulations about chief accountants and recalled that special requirements for the education of a chief accountant are established by Law No. 402-FZ and other federal laws. And since the Regulation does not have the status of a Federal Law, the rules established in it, which contradict normative documents of a higher level, are invalid and cannot be applied.

It should be noted that when considering labor disputes relating to the dismissal of the chief accountant (accountant) due to the latter's lack of higher education, judges have previously referred to the requirements set forth in Law No. 402-FZ.

Example #1.

The employee has continuous work experience as an accountant since 1994. In a budgetary institution, she has been working as a chief accountant since the establishment of the institution. Over the years of work as an accountant, she repeatedly improved her qualifications. Awarded with a diploma of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, is a labor veteran.

However, by order of the head of the budgetary institution, she was dismissed from work under Art. 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation due to the lack of a document confirming qualifications (education).

Plaintiff's arguments:

The employer did not substantiate his decision, the requirement for higher education for the chief accountant is not fixed anywhere.

Respondent's arguments:

In the objection to the statement of claim, the defendant pointed out that the plaintiff did not attach documents on education to the claim. The reinstatement of the plaintiff in the position of chief accountant will lead to negative legal consequences, namely: to a violation of the Federal Law “On Accounting”, to a negative reaction during audits.

Court verdict (Decision No. 2-270/2013 of October 14, 2014, Yustinsky District Court (Republic of Kalmykia)):

An employment contract is terminated due to a violation of the rules for its conclusion established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation or other federal law (clause 11, part 1, article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), if a violation of these rules excludes the possibility of continuing work, in the following cases: the absence of an appropriate document on education and (or ) on qualifications, if the performance of work requires special knowledge in accordance with federal law or other regulatory legal act (part 1 of article 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

In accordance with paragraph 1 h. 4 Article. 7 of Law No. 402-FZ, a chief accountant in open joint-stock companies (with the exception of credit institutions), insurance organizations and non-state pension funds, joint-stock investment funds, management companies of mutual investment funds, in other economic entities whose securities are admitted to circulation at organized auctions (with the exception of credit institutions), in the management bodies of state extra-budgetary funds, and in the management bodies of state territorial extra-budgetary funds. The budgetary institution does not belong to the above organizations.

Based on the above arguments, the employee was reinstated in the position of chief accountant of a budgetary institution.

It should be noted that similar decisions were made earlier ( Decision No. M-1207/2013 dated November 1, 2013 Mirninsky District Court (Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)).

In addition, the head does not have the right to terminate the chief accountant due to the lack of higher education only on the basis that this requirement is provided for in the job description.

Example #2.

The chief accountant of Lyutik LLC does not have a higher education, he has been working in a transport company since 2010. At the same time, the job description of the chief accountant contains a special clause “A person with a higher professional education is appointed to the position of chief accountant.”

Is it legal to dismiss the chief accountant on the basis of non-compliance with the requirements of the job description?

One of the grounds for termination of an employment contract is the absence of an appropriate document on education, if the performance of work requires special knowledge in accordance with federal law or other regulatory legal act (part 1 of article 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Under the terms of the example, the requirement for an employee to have a higher education is established only by his job description, therefore, the dismissal of the chief accountant on the grounds provided for in Part 1 of Art. 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, illegally.

However, termination of the employment contract is possible on another basis - the employee's inconsistency with the position held (work performed) due to insufficient qualifications, confirmed by the results of certification (clause 3, part 1, article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The certification procedure is established by local regulations.

Professional standard "Accountant"

On January 23, 2015, the professional standard "Accountant" was registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation. The Standard was developed by the Institute of Professional Accountants and Auditors of the Russian Federation. The Standard describes in detail the labor functions of an accountant and the level (sublevel) of qualification corresponding to these functions. So, an ordinary accountant corresponds to the qualification level "5", while the chief accountant - "6". The Standard establishes requirements for education and training, practical experience of the chief accountant:

Higher or secondary vocational education;

Additional professional programs - advanced training programs, professional retraining programs;

At least five years out of the last seven calendar years of work related to accounting, preparation of accounting (financial) statements or auditing activities in the presence of higher education - at least three years out of the last five calendar years.

At the same time, special conditions for admission to work are prescribed: in individual economic entities, additional requirements may be established for the chief accountant or other official who is responsible for accounting.

Among the practical skills, the Standard highlights such as the distribution of the scope of work among employees, the preparation of an accounting policy, the monitoring of legislation on taxes and fees.

Note that today the Standard does not have the status of a mandatory document. But soon it is planned to make changes to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in particular, a new article 195.2 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation will appear, which will spell out the status of professional standards (not only for accountants) approved by the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation. Thus, the employer will hire those specialists whose education and work experience meets the requirements of the Standard.

Now let's move on to one of the important aspects of the activity of the chief accountant - this is the signing of payment documents.

Signature of the chief accountant in the bank card

Instruction of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation dated May 30, 2014 No. 153-I “On opening and closing bank accounts, deposits (deposits), deposit accounts” entered into force on July 1, 2014 (hereinafter referred to as the Instruction) and replaced the previous one instruction of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation dated September 14, 2006 No. 28-I.

Recall that until 07/01/2014, a bank card provided that the right of the first signature in the general case belongs to the head of the organization, and the second - to the chief accountant and (or) persons authorized to maintain accounting records (clauses 7.5-7.7 of the Instruction of the Central Bank RF dated September 14, 2006 No. 28-I). For these purposes, two fields were provided in the bank card.

Updated The instruction canceled the division of samples signatures on a bank card for the first and second signature.

According to paragraph 7.5 of the Instruction, the card submitted by the client - a legal entity, indicates the person (s) endowed with the right to sign.

The sole executive body of the managing organization may act as the person entitled to sign.

The card submitted by the client - legal entity shall indicate at least two handwritten signatures required for signing documents containing the client's order, unless a different number of signatures is determined by agreement between the bank and the client - legal entity.

Possible combinations of handwritten signatures of persons entitled to sign, necessary for signing documents containing the client's order, are determined by an agreement between the bank and the client.

That is nowhere in the Instructions is the obligation to give the second signature to the chief accountant.

However, the head of the organization can grant this right to any employee of the organization, including the chief accountant, by issuing:

Order on granting the right to sign banking documents;

The right to sign bank documents.

At the same time, it is not necessary to reissue bank cards that were handed over to the bank before 07/01/2014 (clause 12.2 of Instruction No. 153-I).

At first glance, it seems that the abolition of the mandatory second signature in a bank card removes all the problems associated with payments from the chief accountant. But at the same time, one should not forget that the chief accountant still bears administrative, criminal and disciplinary responsibility.

Cancellation of the mandatory second signature of the chief accountant can become the basis for creating uncontrolled situations, when the chief accountant only learns about the business transactions that have taken place. And, as a result, there is no way to correct the situation.

conclusions

At the end of the article, I would like to note the following. Of course, the accounting profession implies the presence of high professional qualities. And it is unlikely that a specialist who does not have a higher education will be able to understand the intricacies of tax legislation and be well versed in legal matters. In the realities of today, the chief accountant has to solve a wide variety of tasks online, not only related to accounting and tax accounting. And higher education is only the basis that allows you to improve your professional skills.

But high-quality higher education is necessary in large organizations with a variety of operations, not to mention companies with foreign capital, where you need to be able to draw up corporate reporting in accordance with IFRS, and speak a foreign language professionally.

But the accountant of a small company with the same type of operations can quite cope with accounting without having a higher professional education, which does not prevent him from being a “jack of all trades”.

Comments:

The new law 402-FZ introduced fundamentally new provisions on the regulation of accounting (Chapter 3).

The provisions of chapter 3 of law 402-FZ do not directly affect the work of an accountant, this chapter defines the principles, documents, and also highlights the subjects in the field of accounting regulation.

According to Art. twentyLaw N 402-FZ regulation of accounting is carried out according to the principles: compliance of federal and industry standards with the needs of users of accounting (financial) statements; uniform requirements for accounting; use of International Standards as a basis for the development of federal and industry standards.

ATArt. 3 Law N 402-FZ defines an international standard as an accounting standard, the application of which is a custom in international business, regardless of the specific name of such a standard. An accounting standard is a document that establishes the minimum required accounting requirements and acceptable methods of accounting.

Now federal and industry standards will have to be developed that regulate accounting and are mandatory for use. In essence, these are the current RAS, which have undergone significant improvements, amendments and are as close as possible to IFRS.

Federal standards, regardless of the type of economic activity, establish, in particular, the procedure for classifying accounting objects, the conditions for their acceptance and write-off, the composition, content and procedure for the formation of information disclosed in the accounting (financial) statements (paragraph 3 of Art. 21 Law N 402-FZ). Industry standards determine the features of the application of federal standards in certain types of economic activity (paragraph 5 of Art. 21 Law N 402-FZ).

The development of standards will be carried out by the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and, which is extremely important, for the first time - subjects of non-state regulation of accounting: self-regulatory organizations, including self-regulatory organizations of entrepreneurs, other users of accounting (financial) statements, auditors interested in participating in accounting regulation, as well as their associations and unions and other non-profit organizations pursuing the goals of accounting development. This is mentioned inArt. Art. 22 – 24 Law N 402-FZ.

Of great importance is the publication of the developed draft federal standards in the print media and the Internet and their public discussion by interested parties. As a result, these projects will have to be finalized by the developers and adopted by the authorized federal body, taking into account the comments received in writing from interested parties. This procedure is set out inArt. Art. 26 , 27 Law N 402-FZ.