AccountingQA Latest Questions

Simerpreet
SimerpreetHelpful
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  2. AbhishekBatabyal Helpful Pursuing CA, BCOM (HONS)
    This answer was edited.

    A balance sheet is a financial statement that reports the position or value of assets, liabilities and equity at a particular date, which is usually the closing date of a financial year. Formats of balance sheet A balance sheet may be presented in two formats: T-form or Horizontal format This formatRead more

    A balance sheet is a financial statement that reports the position or value of assets, liabilities and equity at a particular date, which is usually the closing date of a financial year.

    Formats of balance sheet

    A balance sheet may be presented in two formats:

    T-form or Horizontal format

    This format is the same as the format of ledger accounts. There are two columns with the headings ‘Liabilities’ for the left column and ‘Assets’ for the right column and columns adjacent to both columns for amounts. The liabilities and equity (capital) are shown on the liabilities side because they both have credit balance and assets are shown on the asset side. Most of the non-corporates prepare their balance as per this format. The T-form balance sheet looks as given below:

    Vertical format

    The vertical format of the balance sheet is mostly prepared by corporate entities. Here, the liabilities and assets are shown in the same column as compared to two separate columns in the horizontal format. This results in having a longer shape. Hence, it is called a ‘vertical’ balance sheet. Generally, companies prepare their balance sheet as per this format.

    Also, many times, there are two columns for the amount in this format presenting the amount of both the current year and the previous year. This format looks like as given below:

    Grouping and marshalling

    Beside the structure of the balance sheet i.e. horizontal and vertical, the grouping and marshalling of the items inside the balance sheet are also very important.

    Grouping refers to the presenting of similar items under a heading or group. This is done in order to present the balance sheet in a concise manner. This is very important to do. For example, a business can have numerous creditors, but they are all presented under one ‘Creditors’ heading or two or more heading specifying different types of creditors.

    The assets of a business are grouped under the heading such as Plant, Property and equipment, Current assets, Non-current investments etc.

    Marshalling means the arranging of items as per a particular order. We know that a balance sheet consists of many items and to make the statement more useful and easy to comprehend, the items are arranged in one of the following orders:

    • Order of Liquidity: The items which are more liquid i.e which can be easily converted into cash are kept at the top. Like in assets, cash is the most liquid asset and requires no conversion. Then items like current investment, inventories (in case of fast-moving goods) are placed under and so on. At the near bottom, items that require a long time of conversion into cash are placed such as land, plant and machinery.

    In case of liabilities, the items which are due for repayment soon are kept at the top, like bank overdraft etc. The items which are due for repayment after a long time or at the time of winding capital are kept at the bottom, like long term loans and capital funds. Given below is a format of horizontal balance sheet in which the items are marshalled in order of liquidity:

    • Order of permanence: This type of arrangement is just the opposite of the order of liquidity. Here the items which are least liquid are placed at the top and the more liquid items are placed at the bottom. Like in the case of assets, cash appears at the bottom and non-current assets at the top. On the liabilities side, equity and non-current liabilities are at the top while current liabilities are at the bottom. Mostly all balance sheets are marshalled in order of permanence.
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Bonnie
BonnieCurious
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Debited to P&L A/C Credited to P&L A/C Debited to Capital A/C None

  2. GautamSaxena Curious .
    This answer was edited.

    Interest on Drawings  Interest on drawings is debited to the capital account. As Interest on drawings is charged on the drawings made by partners/proprietors from their respective capital accounts in a partnership firm or proprietary concern. Drawings refer to the amount withdrawn by an owner or parRead more

    Interest on Drawings 

    Interest on drawings is debited to the capital account.

    As Interest on drawings is charged on the drawings made by partners/proprietors from their respective capital accounts in a partnership firm or proprietary concern.

    Drawings refer to the amount withdrawn by an owner or partner for his personal use. Thereby, interest on drawings is an income of a firm payable by the owner hence, it’s deducted/debited.

    The Profit and Loss Account, on the other hand, shows the income and expenses of a business incurred over an accounting period. Accounts like interest on drawings and capital are not shown in the P&L a/c because they are internal transactions and P&L a/c focuses only on the financial statement that summarizes the revenues, costs, and expenses incurred during a specified period.

     

    Partners’ Capital A/c

     

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Bonnie
BonnieCurious
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  2. GautamSaxena Curious .

    Capitalize in Accounting The term 'capitalized' in accounting means to record an expenditure as an asset on the balance sheet. Capitalization takes place when a business buys an asset that has a useful life. The cost of the relevant asset is then allocated to expense over its useful life i.e charginRead more

    Capitalize in Accounting

    The term ‘capitalized’ in accounting means to record an expenditure as an asset on the balance sheet. Capitalization takes place when a business buys an asset that has a useful life. The cost of the relevant asset is then allocated to expense over its useful life i.e charging depreciation, etc. This means that the relevant expenditure will appear on the balance sheet instead of the income statement. The capitalizing of the expenses is a benefit for the company as the assets bought by them for the long-term are subjected to depreciation and capitalizing expenses can amortize or depreciate the costs. This process is called capitalization.

    In order to capitalize any expense, we’ll have to make sure it meets the criteria stated below.

    The assets exceeding the capitalization limit

    The companies set a capitalization limit, below which the expenses are considered too immaterial to be capitalized. Therefore, the limit is supposed to be followed and considered as it controls the capitalization of the expenses. Generally, the capitalization limit is $1,000.

    The assets have a useful life 

    The companies also seek to generate revenues for a long period of time. Thus, the asset should have a long and useful life at least a year or more. Thereby, the business can record it as an asset and depreciate it over its valuable life.

    Most of the important principles of capitalization in accounting are from the matching principle.

     

    Matching Principle

    The matching principle states that the expenses in the accounting should be recorded when they are incurred and not when the payment is made. This helps the business identify the amounts spent to generate revenue.

    For e.g, the company bought machinery for manufacturing goods with more efficiency. It is supposed to have a useful life for a period of over 10 years. Instead of expensing the entire cost of the machinery, the company will write off (depreciated) the cost of the asset over its useful life i.e 10 years. Therefore, the asset will be written off as it is used and these types of assets are automatically used as capitalized assets.

     

    Benefits of Capitalization

    Capitalization is of course recording expenses as an asset but this indeed has benefits.

    • This reduces the fluctuation of income over time as the fixed assets (long-term) are costly. For the small business owners or the small firms, it’s even greater.
    • The capitalization of expenditures increases the company’s asset balance, without changing the company’s liability balance. This improves the financial ratios like the current ratio.
    •  Small businesses have a provision for tax benefits related to the depreciation of capitalized assets. Section 179 of depreciation allows those business owners to depreciate certain assets quicker than others are allowed.

     

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A_Team
A_Team
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Goodwill Patents Preliminary Expense A/c Claims Receivable

  2. Karishma
    This answer was edited.

    Fictitious assets are expenses or losses not written off entirely in the profit and loss account during the accounting year in which they occur. Fictitious assets have no realizable value or physical existence. In the above, (C) preliminary expense is a fictitious asset. Preliminary expenses are theRead more

    Fictitious assets are expenses or losses not written off entirely in the profit and loss account during the accounting year in which they occur. Fictitious assets have no realizable value or physical existence.

    In the above, (C) preliminary expense is a fictitious asset. Preliminary expenses are the expenses incurred before the incorporation of a business. The word ‘fictitious’ means fake, these are not actually the assets of a company even though they are represented in the assets of the balance sheet.

    Since the benefit of a fictitious asset is received over a period of time, the whole amount is not charged to the profit and loss account. The amount is amortized over several years. These expenses are non-recurring in nature. These expenses are shown as assets under the head miscellaneous expenditure. Also known as deferred revenue expenditure.

     

    For example: A company incurred $50,000 as promotion costs before the formation of the business. This promotion cost will be deferred over 5 years. In the first year, $10,000 will be charged to the profit and loss account and the remaining $40,000 will be shown as an asset under the heading miscellaneous expenditure. Subsequently, $10000 will be charged to profit and loss for the next 4 years. The amount of $50,000 will be deferred over a span of 5 years.

    Some other examples of fictitious assets :

    • Promotional expenses: Expenses incurred for the promotion of business before the formation of the company such as advertising expenditures are amortized over many years.
    • Loss on the issue of shares or debentures: When a company issues shares or debentures at a discount, the discount is classified as a fictitious asset and is not treated as an expense or loss. It is amortized over several years.
    • Incorporation costs: Costs incurred during the formation of a business are incorporation costs. These include registration costs, licensing fees, legal fees and other costs incurred in setting up the business. These are fictitious assets and are amortized over several years.
    • Loss on Sale of Machinery: When a loss is incurred on the sale of machinery or equipment, that loss is also treated as a fictitious asset and is amortized over several years.

     

    Goodwill

    Goodwill is not a fictitious asset because goodwill has a realizable value and can be sold in the market. Goodwill is an intangible asset which does not have a physical existence but can be traded for monetary value. Goodwill has an indefinite life and is sold when the business is sold. Goodwill can be self-generated or purchased. Goodwill is shown as an intangible asset under the heading fixed asset in the financial statements.

     

    Patents

    Patents are intangible assets which do not have a physical existence but have realizable value and can be sold in the market. So, patents do not come under the category of fictitious assets. Patents are basically intellectual property. The purchase price of the patent is the initial purchase cost which is amortized over the useful life of the asset. Patents are shown as intangible assets under the heading fixed asset in the balance sheet of the company.

     

    Claim receivable

    Claim receivable is an asset if the claim has been authorized by the insurance company. Claim receivable has a monetary value, so does not come under the category of a fictitious asset. If the claim is not yet authorized by an insurance company, it will be shown as a footnote in the financial statements. Authorized claim receivable is shown as a current asset in the financial statement.

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Simerpreet
SimerpreetHelpful
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AmortizationDifference BetweenImpairment
  2. Astha Leader Pursuing CA, BCom (Hons.)
    This answer was edited.

    Let us first understand the concepts of Amortization and Impairment. Amortization refers to the expense recorded on the decline of the value of intangible assets of a company. Intangible assets include goodwill, patents, copyrights, etc. It reflects the reduction in the value of Intangible assets ovRead more

    Let us first understand the concepts of Amortization and Impairment.

    Amortization refers to the expense recorded on the decline of the value of intangible assets of a company. Intangible assets include goodwill, patents, copyrights, etc. It reflects the reduction in the value of Intangible assets over its life span.

    Amortization is similar to Depreciation, however, while depreciation is over tangible assets amortization is over Intangible assets of the company.

    For example, Cipla Ltd. acquired a patent over a new drug for a period of 10 years. The cost of creating the new drug was 80,000 and the company must record its patent at 80,000. However, the company must amortize this cost by dividing the cost over the patent’s life, i.e., the amortization cost would be 8,000 (80,000/10) p.a. for the next 10 years.

    Impairment means a decline in the value of fixed assets due to unforeseen circumstances. Assets are impaired when the carrying value of assets increases its market value or “realizable value” and such increase is recorded as an impairment loss.

    Now suppose, Cipla Ltd. had existing machinery which suffered physical damage and is recorded at 50,000 in the books but the realizable value of the asset would only be 20,000. Hence, the asset would be written down to 20,000 and an impairment loss of 30,000 will be recorded.

    Impairment Vs Amortization

    Differences between the two can be shown as follows:

    Amortization Impairment
    Amortization is a reduction in the value of Intangible Assets over their useful life. Impairment is a reduction in the value of assets due to unforeseen circumstances.
    Amortization is a continuous process and the value of an asset reduces over time. Value of asset reduces drastically, creating a need to write down the value to its fair market value.
    Amortization is charged annually. Impairment is not an annual charge.
    Amortization is shown as an amortization expense. Impairment is shown as an impairment loss.
    Reasons for amortization includes consumption, obsolescence, etc. Reasons for impairment include damage to the asset, change in preferences, etc.
    Amortization is charged on Intangible assets Impairment is charged on fixed assets whether tangible or intangible.

    Suppose Unilever Ltd. has a patent over one of its products for a period of 5 years. The cost of the patent was 1,00,000. Then after 2 years one of its rivals, say ITC Ltd., launches a new product which is more preferred by the consumers over the one produced by Unilever Ltd. and the fair market value of the patent of Unilever Ltd. changes to 10,000.

    Now in this scenario, Unilever Ltd. would have amortized the patent (costing 1,00,000) at 20,000 (1,00,000/5) p.a. for 2 years and the book value at the end of the 2nd year is 60,000 (1,00,000 – 40,000). Now due to the new launch by ITC Ltd. the drastic change in the value of the asset from the book value of 60,000 to the realizable value of 10,000 will be recorded as an Impairment loss. Hence Impairment loss would be recorded at 50,000 (60,000 – 10,000).

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Astha
AsthaLeader
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Capital ExpenditureRevenue Expenditure
  2. GautamSaxena Curious .
    This answer was edited.

    Capital Expenditure Capital expenditure refers to the money a business spends to buy, maintain, or improve the quality of its assets. Capital expenditures are the expenses incurred by an organization for long-term benefits, i.e on the long-term assets which help in improving the efficiency or capaciRead more

    Capital Expenditure

    Capital expenditure refers to the money a business spends to buy, maintain, or improve the quality of its assets. Capital expenditures are the expenses incurred by an organization for long-term benefits, i.e on the long-term assets which help in improving the efficiency or capacity of the company. These expenses are borne by the company to boost its earning capacity.

    The investment done by the companies on assets is capital in nature and through capital expenditure, the company may use it for acquiring new assets or may use it in the maintenance of previous ones. These expenditures are added to the asset side of the balance sheet.

    Example: Purchase of machinery, patents, copyrights, installation of equipment, etc.

    Revenue Expenditure

    Revenue expenditure refers to the routine expenditures incurred by the business to manage day-to-day expenses. They are incurred for a shorter duration and are mostly limited to an accounting year. These expenses are borne by a company to sustain its profitability. These expenditures are shown in the income statement.

    These expenditures do not increase the revenue but stay maintained. These expenses are not capitalized.

    They are divided into two sub-categories:

    1. Expenditures for generating revenue for a business- Those expenditures essential for meeting the operational cost of the business are further classified as operating expenses.
    2. Expenditures for maintaining revenue-generating assets- Those expenses incurred by the business for repairing and maintenance of the assets of an organization to keep them in a working state.

     

    Example: Wages, salary, insurance, rent, electricity, taxes, etc.

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Simerpreet
SimerpreetHelpful
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  2. Radha M.Com, NET
    This answer was edited.

    The journal entry for the closing stock is passed at the year-end as closing stock is the inventory held by a business at the end of its accounting period. However, the entry for recording closing stock depends on how it is treated in the books of accounts. The two types of the accounting treatmentRead more

    The journal entry for the closing stock is passed at the year-end as closing stock is the inventory held by a business at the end of its accounting period. However, the entry for recording closing stock depends on how it is treated in the books of accounts.

    The two types of the accounting treatment of closing stock are as follows:

    • Closing stock is not shown in the Trial Balance.
    • Closing stock is shown in the Trial Balance.

     

    Closing stock is not shown in the Trial Balance:

    As per this treatment, the closing stock is not shown in the Trial Balance because it is already a part of the purchases of the business. Showing it in the Trial Balance would lead to a double effect. This will not give us accurate profit/loss at the end of the year.

    The closing stock is transferred to Trading A/c by passing a closing entry.

    Closing stock is an asset. It is debited because there is an increase in the assets. Trading A/c is credited because of the Matching concept as the value of the closing stock is adjusted against the cost of goods sold.

    At the end of the year, it is shown on the Asset side of the Balance Sheet, under the head Current Assets and sub-head Inventory.

    For example,

    ABC Ltd. at the beginning of the year had an opening inventory of 20,000. During the year, purchases worth 5,000 were made and goods worth 10,000 were sold. At the end of the year, the value of the closing stock will be 15,000 (20,000 + 5,000 – 10,000).

    Now the closing stock worth 15,000 will be recorded through this journal entry:

    Closing Stock A/c  15,000
       To Trading A/c  15,000
    (Being closing stock worth 15,000 transferred to Trading A/c)

    Closing stock is shown in the Trial Balance:

    This scenario is possible only when the closing stock is adjusted against purchases. By adjusting against purchases, the double effect of showing both purchases and closing stock in Trial Balance is eliminated.

    The following entry is recorded to adjust closing stock against purchases.

    Closing Stock is debited as there is an increase in the asset. Purchase A/c is credited because of the Matching concept.

    After recording the adjustment entry, the closing stock is shown on the debit column of the Trial Balance. It is not shown in the Trading A/c as it is already adjusted against purchases. In the Balance Sheet, it is shown as a Current Asset.

     

     

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A_Team
A_Team
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  2. AbhishekBatabyal Helpful Pursuing CA, BCOM (HONS)
    This answer was edited.

    Fictitious assets are the expenses and losses which are yet to be written off, so they appear in the Asset side of the balance sheet of the relevant financial year because expenses and losses have a debit balance. They are not assets in substance. Examples: Business loss ( debit balance of Profit anRead more

    Fictitious assets are the expenses and losses which are yet to be written off, so they appear in the Asset side of the balance sheet of the relevant financial year because expenses and losses have a debit balance. They are not assets in substance.

    Examples:

    1. Business loss ( debit balance of Profit and loss A/c )*
    2. Prepaid expenses
    3. Discount on the issue of debentures.
    4. Huge promotional expenditure.

    *business loss is shown as a negative figure under the head Reserve and Surplus, when the balance sheet is prepared as per Schedule III of The Companies Act, 2013.

    Deferred revenue expenditures are the expenses incurred for which the benefits are expected to flow to the enterprise beyond the current year. Such expenses are huge and are not written off completely in a financial year. The part of the expenditure which is not written off is shown on the assets side of the balance sheet.

    Examples:

    1. Huge advertisement expense.

    As you can see, there is some similarity between the two. Deferred revenue expenditure can be called a type of fictitious asset as it is shown in the asset side of the balance sheet but it isn’t an asset.

     

    The term ‘fictitious asset’ has a broader meaning than deferred revenue expenditure and also includes the losses such as discounts on the issue of debenture and business loss.

    The difference between fictitious assets and deferred revenue expenditure are as follows:

    Fictitious Assets Deferred Revenue Expenditure
    1 These are no real assets but expenses and losses that are not completely written off in an F.Y. These are expenses incurred from which benefits are expected to flow for more than one accounting period.
    2 It has a broader meaning. It has a narrower meaning.
    3 Examples:- business loss, discount on issue of debentures, prepaid expenses etc. Examples:- huge promotional expenditure etc.
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Radha
Radha
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Sacrificing Ratio
  2. Rahul_Jose Aspiring CA currently doing Bcom
    This answer was edited.

    When a partnership firm consisting of some partners, decide to admit a new partner into their firm, they have to forego a part of their share for the new partner. Therefore, sacrificing Ratio is the proportion in which the existing partners of a company give up a part of their share to give to the nRead more

    When a partnership firm consisting of some partners, decide to admit a new partner into their firm, they have to forego a part of their share for the new partner. Therefore, sacrificing Ratio is the proportion in which the existing partners of a company give up a part of their share to give to the new partner. The partners can choose to forego their shares equally or in an agreed proportion.

    Before admission of the new partner, the existing partners would be sharing their profits in the old ratio. Upon admission, the profit-sharing ratio would change to accommodate the new partner. This would give rise to the new ratio. Hence Sacrificing ratio can be calculated as:

    Sacrificing Ratio = Old Ratio – New Ratio

    For example, Tony and Steve are partners in a firm, sharing profits in the ratio of 3:2. They decide to admit Bruce into the partnership such that the new profit-sharing ratio is 2:1:2. Now, to calculate the sacrificing ratio of Tony and Steve, we subtract their new share from their old share.

    Tony’s Sacrifice = 3/5 – 2/5 = 1/5

    Steve’s Sacrifice = 2/5 – 1/5 = 1/5

    Therefore, the Sacrificing ratio of Tony and Steve is 1:1. This shows that Tony gave up 1/5th of his share while Steve also sacrificed 1/5th of his share.

    Calculation of sacrificing ratio is important in a partnership as it helps in measuring that portion of the share of existing partners that have to be sacrificed. This ensures a smooth reconstitution of the partnership. Since the old partners are foregoing a part of their share in profits, the new partner has to bring in some amount as goodwill to compensate for their loss.

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Jayesh Gupta
Jayesh GuptaCurious
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  2. Pooja_Parikh Aspiring Chartered Accountant
    This answer was edited.

    A cash flow statement presents the changes in the cash and cash equivalents of a business. It classifies the cash flow items into either operating, investing, or financing activities. Unlike a balance sheet that provides information about the company on a particular date, a cash flow statement proviRead more

    A cash flow statement presents the changes in the cash and cash equivalents of a business. It classifies the cash flow items into either operating, investing, or financing activities. Unlike a balance sheet that provides information about the company on a particular date, a cash flow statement provides information about the flow of cash over a period of time.

    OBJECTIVE

    Information obtained through cash flow statements is aimed to assess the ability of a business to generate cash and at the same time, maintain liquidity. Therefore, important economic decisions can be made by evaluating these cash flow statements.

    Cash Flow statements are categorized into

    • Operating Activities: These activities refer to the main activities of the business during an accounting period. They involve revenue-generating activities. As per the indirect method, profit before tax is taken as the starting point and all non-cash expenses are added while non-cash incomes are deducted. Whereas in direct method, cash receipts and cash expenses are added and subtracted respectively. Eg: sale of goods.
    • Investing Activities: These activities involve the sale and purchase of non-current assets and investments. Eg: cash payment for machinery.
    • Financing Activities: These activities result in a change in capital or borrowings. Eg: cash proceeds from the issue of equity shares.

    Importance of Cash Flow

    A cash flow statement gives us knowledge about the liquidity and solvency of the company. These are necessary for the survival and expansion of the company. It also helps in predicting future cash flows by using information from previous cash flows. It also helps in comparison between companies which shows the actual cash profits.

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