Friday 26 June 2009

Confused About Accounting Terms?

By Cathy Howard

Businesses are heavily dependent on accounting language. Several concepts run accounting language and logic. Here are a few of the more crucial ones:

First, Going Concern Concept. In this field, it is presumed that an enterprise will exist for a long time. Consequently, transactions are recorded from this perspective. Because of this, there must be differentiation between expenditure that will cause benefit over a long period, and those with benefits that will be quickly exhausted. Necessarily, if it is obvious that the concerned venture will exist only for a limited time, the accounting record will state the same.

Second, Dual-Aspect Concepts. Each transaction has two areas. If the business has acquired or otherwise procured an asset, it must have resulted in: some other asset being sacrificed; or
 the existence of an obligation to pay; or
 there is gain, which is in reality the amount that the business owes to the real owner; or
 the owner has given a specific amount for the procurement of the asset specified.

In proper accounting, these two effects involving the same entry will be encoded.

Third is the Realization Concept. Accounting is a true recording of transaction, if it is to give integrity to its existence as language; it puts down what has already taken place and does not give a prediction of events. However, the predicted adverse effects of events that have already taken place are usually recorded. Unless money has been actually earned----either cash has been handed over or a legal obligation to pay the specific amount agreed upon has been assumed by the customer----sale cannot be considered as having occurred.

No profit or income could likewise be considered as realized.

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