How to Find a Professional Accountant for Business Firms?

 Most small businesses like to choose an accountant from the best chartered accountant firms in Chennai or any part of India, either selecting someone from the staff or hiring accounting services on a contract basis, especially when the business' financial challenges require an expert help to sort out the business.

The reasons why you need an accountant, range from,

·  You need to handle your financial function better.

·  Your accounting software isn't exactly providing the type of data you require to increase the growth of your business.

·  You are also facing trouble shifting from cash to accrual accounting.

·  You have a tough time going through the financial statements which are either inaccurate and/or incomplete.

With so many reasons in favour of finding the right accountant, it is time you looked for a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

 How to Find the Right Accountant?

Many entrepreneurs who start their own businesses venture out by trying to be the accountant himself or herself and attempting to do their own taxes, apart from handling the entire business, too. Granted, it is easier for a layperson, to keep track of a business' finance now with the likes of simple bookkeeping software, such as Quicken, QuickBooks and Microsoft Office Small Business Accounting. But it is difficult to handle all the financial functions yourself, especially when your enterprise grows bigger. This is when the requirement of a specialist arises.

The right accountant can be beneficial for the business in a number of ways.  With tax returns and longer term tax planning, networking, business planning and even personal tax planning if you have the major stakeholder in your business.

Choosing the Right Accountant

Many small businesses don't have a huge number of financial transactions and thus it is not required hiring a full-time accountant on staff. Then again, the financial situation of the business is such that you may need regular financial review and planning and also accounting. This is so much better than leaving everything right from invoice, receipt, and ledger to the tax preparer, at the end of the financial year.

 Finding a Referral in order to choose the Right Accountant
If you are looking for an outside accountant, try to find out the firms your friends and colleagues are using. Ask people who are in the same or similar industries for names or references.

Now if you are planning to hire an inside accountant, seek the help from colleagues and friends, look for employee search firms, newspaper advertisements, and Internet websites. These are just some of the resources that can be used.

 Interviews and Reference Checks when Selecting the Right Accountant

Some businesses can ill afford to hire the wrong person, read the accountant, especially when it comes to small enterprises. The accountant will work in a number of ways especially when handling the company's books, records, and other proprietary information.

It is absolutely necessary for the business owner to take the time to interview the different firms and individual candidates. You have to particularly check if they have the required experience in your industry, your size of the company, and software sophistication and so on. These are some of the ways to find the best accounting firms in Chennai and other cities of India.                                                                                      

Audit Vs. Accounting

When does auditing process start? Right when accounting process ends. This helps determine the purpose of the fair picture of books of accounts. Accounting is an activity of record keeping and helps both in the preparation & presentation of the financial record. 

Accounting helps track the monetary transactions. It is a business language as it is considered a tool for recording a financial statement of the business entity. Auditing, on the other hand, is an activity which verifies the financial statement. It’s main aim is to check and confirm the authenticity of financial books which the accounting staff prepares for the enterprise. Thus, it checks and proves the validity and reliability of the accounting information.

The Chief Differences Between Accounting and Auditing

The points below can help differentiate between accounting and auditing, in detail:

·         Accounting is an orderly way of maintaining the records of the monetary transactions and then preparing the financial statements of the company. Auditing is largely an analytical task which evaluates the financial information and independently expresses an opinion which is fair and true.

·          Accounting Standards governs accounting, whereas the standards on Auditing governs the auditing.

·         In comparison with auditing, accounting is a far simplified task. Accounting is as the name suggests is performed by the Accountants. Auditing is a much complex task and the task of auditing is performed by auditors.

·         Accounting helps reveal the financial position, the profitability position and the performance of the organization.  Auditing, on the other hand, helps check the correctness of the financial report.

·         Accounting, unlike auditing, is a continuous activity. Auditing, on the other hand, is a periodic activity.

·         Where the accounting ends the auditing begins.

Conclusion

Accounting and Auditing are both important in their own ways and specialised fields, but the scope of auditing is much more than accounting as it is a thorough and painstaking process. You need to understand and evaluate several things that include various tax rules, acts. Also, knowing in depth about both accounting standards and auditing standards as having proper communication skills is very important.

Apart from all the above points, there are several other points to consider and are required like integrity, confidentiality, honesty, and independence they are all to be maintained while you undergo the auditing process. When the auditor submits the financial report, it becomes helpful for a host of people such as investors, creditors, investors, debtors, suppliers, customers, government and so on for proper decision making.

Though auditing is considered more important, it would be foolhardy to consider accounting any less than auditing. There are several things which you need to keep in mind while conducting an accounting. It requires you to have complete and in-depth knowledge of all the accounting standards, conventions, principles, and assumptions too along with Companies Act rules and tax laws. The truth is auditing cannot be conducted alone, the procedure of auditing can only to be conducted when accounting outsourcing services are conducted prioperly so, accounting cannot be neglected by hook or by crook.

How will the GST impact your start up business?

The GST bill is supposed to bring about a great change in the Indian economy. GST helps streamline the whole process of indirect taxation and this helps make it more effective. 

The tax payers shall get a little relief as it will pay one consolidated tax instead of a number of taxes that includes service tax, state value-added tax (VAT), entry tax, central excise, octroi or entry tax and a few other indirect taxes as well. 

Most of the developed countries have already been using this form of taxation. This helps in simplifying the entire tax structure and also avoid the double taxation.

The GST will be levied on the price which is actually paid or payable it is also known as the “transaction value.” which includes packing cost, commission, and plenty of other expenses incurred for sales. 

This tax will be payable at the final point of the consumption. The GST will have two components – the Central GST and the State GST. This is easier to legislate and administer the respective taxes.

 Is the Implementation of GST a good news for Start-ups?

GST is thought to be a perfect for businesses in India, but is it good for small businesses too? Read start-ups?

1.    It helps ease a new business: When a new business starts you need a VAT registration from sales tax department. A business has to face many teething problems with issues regarding procedures and fees in the state. The two things that GST does is it brings about a uniformity in the process and propels an easier start to business and also a centralised registration.

2.Ease of tax burden: The current tax structure dictates that if any business which has a turnover of more than Rs five lakh, will have to get VAT registration and pay VAT. GST has a higher limit and has risen up to Rs 10 lakh. So, businesses have a turnover of Rs 10 and 50 lakh will be taxed at lower rates. This will help ease off tax burdens and a great reprieve for new businesses.

3.    Taxation process is simplified: Sticking to various regulations at different States make the process slightly more complex. GST will simplify the taxes, making the process of paying taxes simpler.

4.    Reprieve for businesses in both sales and services: Businesses such as restaurants, which are under the purview of both sales and service taxation are supposed to calculate the VAT and service tax on both items separately making the calculations process extremely complex. GST does not distinguish between sales and services, and the tax calculation is done on the total.

5.   Minimization of logistics costs across States: There are a number of transport vehicles that get delayed during the free movement across States as there are two issues to be dealt with, small border tax and also check post issues.  With the GST the Interstate movement lessens and also saves big on time, as these taxes are eliminated.

Thus the GST has a positive impact on small business and start-ups as there is a simpler taxation system.