Accounts receivable is a debt owed by buyers, borrowers, or any other accountable persons that must be paid within a pre-agreed period of time.

This type of debt can be positioned as one of the components of working capital. In addition, it is able to characterize the diversion of working capital for further use by debtors.

Description of accounts receivable in simple words

Accounts receivable - information from Wikipedia

The occurrence of receivables

The occurrence of a debt of this type is preceded by a situation in which the goods have in fact already been sold, but the agreed amount has not yet been transferred to the seller’s account. In this situation, no document is drawn up that could confirm the fact of the debt in writing. An exception may be a signature confirming acceptance of the goods on the accompanying document.

Types of accounts receivable

There are several types of accounts receivable. We are talking about normal and expired.

• In the first case, we are talking about debt for certain goods, which in fact already belong to the buyer, but the payment period has not yet arrived.
• Overdue accounts receivable are debts for goods for which payment has not been received within the time period specified by both parties. In turn, this type of debt may be doubtful or hopeless. In the latter case, the problem is resolved with the participation of collection agencies.

Regardless of the maturity date of receivables, they relate exclusively to the current assets of the company. Accordingly, this amount is managed at enterprises within clearly established limits. This function is often assigned to a financial manager, general or commercial director. In addition, responsibilities may be divided between the legal department and managers.

Long-term and short-term accounts receivable

The division of receivables into long-term and short-term is determined by the timing of debt repayment by accountable persons, borrowers, customers, and buyers.

Long-term accounts receivable- this is one according to which debts are repaid after a period of 12 months after the conclusion of the contract. This is a non-current asset of the enterprise. This debt is assessed and displayed on the balance sheet at its current value, taking into account accrued interest.

There are several types of long-term receivables:

• for property transferred under financial lease, for example, equipment, buildings, housing;
• received long-term bills, which are a tool for long-term attraction of financial resources to finance the acquisition of specific assets, the implementation of long-term projects related to the implementation of real investments, etc.

That is, this is a large loan of funds from an organization that is subject to long-term repayment.

Short-term receivables- this is debt that is characterized by a short time to repay the debt - up to a year after the reporting date. It includes the debt of buyers and customers for goods and services - it is possible to secure them with bills of exchange.

This type includes settlements with the budget, repayment of debts on advances paid, accrual of income for the provision of funds for use, internal settlements, etc.

Short-term receivables are treated as payment subject to adjustment of the allowance for doubtful debts or overdue and bad debts. It dominates the total amount of debt because deferment of payment on debt for a period of more than a year is very rare.

An increase in accounts receivable - what does this mean, consequences

The dynamic growth of accounts receivable leads the company to certain financial difficulties. The desire to increase profits by any means possible without taking into account the possible consequences can lead to disastrous results.

For the banking system, an increase in accounts receivable means “pulling out” working capital from circulation and providing it to the borrower in order to receive additional income by returning the loan taken by the client with interest for using the loan. Non-repayment of a loan is a loss of the bank’s own money, and if the number of hopeless defaulters grows and the corresponding work to repay debts is not carried out, then the bank faces losses leading to inevitable bankruptcy.

Also for a trading company, a long-term debt to defer payments for services provided or products supplied can lead to unpleasant consequences in terms of the financial state of affairs and lead to a court settlement.

The solvency of an organization directly depends on the successful management of current assets, and preventing the growth of accounts receivable will prevent a shortage of working capital. If there is inadequate control over payment and settlement discipline and loans are provided without sufficient consideration of the borrower’s solvency, analysis of his reliability in repaying the loan, or market monitoring, then in this case the organization obviously dooms itself to a decrease in its own assets and a decrease in funds in its accounts.

The main goal of the company's management is to keep debt within an acceptable level, which depends on the size of the enterprise, on production volumes, on its territorial affiliation and on many other factors.

Accounts receivable management

Accounts receivables need to be managed differently at different stages. At the preliminary stage, it is very important to objectively assess the client’s reliability and solvency, discuss all the details of the refund procedure, and correctly draw up all the necessary documents.

After this, it is necessary to track the facts of debt payment and take into account the correctness of filling out the papers prepared in advance.

At the stage of active ongoing work with the client, it is also important to resolve the issue of fines for late payments and negotiate all the details of the credit limit.

When overdue receivables arise at the pre-trial stage, a set of works must be carried out to assess the actual level of the client’s solvency. An integral element at this stage are negotiations between the parties, based on the results of which a decision is made regarding further work with the debtor.

If the negotiation process could not fundamentally change the created situation, the stage of legal work with the client begins. After the intervention of the company’s lawyers, the procedure for transferring the debt to collection agencies is carried out. The latter, in turn, take all necessary measures in order to collect the debt through judicial, executive or pre-trial procedures.

Any of these stages can be divided into smaller procedures. The most appropriate style of communication with the debtor is also selected - depending on the situation, a hard or soft style of behavior is used.

The overall outcome of the entire case may depend on how the procedure for returning the amount of money is carried out. The involvement of collection agencies is a last resort. However, few doubt its effectiveness.

Accounts receivable are the debts of counterparties to your company. If the amounts cannot be recovered from the counterparty, then the debt becomes bad. It can be written off, but it must be done according to different rules in accounting and tax accounting. In this article we will tell you in simple terms what it is and give the types and repayment terms.

Tax officials and judges introduced a new ban, which made it more difficult for companies to write off accounts receivable.

The concept of accounts receivable

Create a balance sheet for your organization. Do you see the debit balance on the settlement accounts (60, 62, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 73, 75, 76)? This is the enterprise’s receivables - the amount that your company owes to other organizations, citizens, the budget and extra-budgetary funds.

Check the statute of limitations for counterparties' debts. If there is a bad debt in the accounting, it must be written off. Experts from the Glavbukh System spoke about how to do this correctly.

What is included in accounts receivable? This includes debts:

• buyers and customers (account 62);
• suppliers and contractors for advances paid to them, as well as for claims recognized or awarded by the court (invoices);
• insurance organizations for the payment of insurance compensation, organizations issuing securities owned by the organization, for the payment of dividends, etc. (account 76);
• budget and state extra-budgetary funds for the return (offset) of overpaid taxes and contributions (accounts);
• employees to the organization - for loans issued on account of amounts, compensation for damage, etc. (accounts, ,);
• founders for contributions to the authorized capital (account 75).

That is, the structure or composition of receivables is characterized by how the debts were formed:

• when selling goods (works, services) on deferred payment terms. A receivable appears at the moment when you have shipped goods to the counterparty, started performing work for him, providing services, but have not yet received payment;
• when purchasing raw materials or other products with advance payment on deferred delivery terms;
• when overpaying taxes (fees);
• issuing cash to employees.

How are accounts receivable different from accounts payable?

In practice, the question often arises - accounts receivable - do we owe it or to us? The answer is: A receivable is something that is owed to your organization, but has not yet been received by it (essentially a property right). If the company were in debt, then this amount would be accounts payable for it.

Accounts receivable are classified as current assets of a company, regardless of their maturity date. Not all types of receivables are shown on the balance sheet line of the same name. For example, debts of suppliers or contractors for advances paid under an agreement related to the acquisition (creation) of non-current assets are reflected in section I of the balance sheet “Non-current assets”.

We found out what relates to accounts receivable. Now let's look at the classification.

Intricate contracts prevent companies from writing off accounts receivable. If the contract is drawn up in such a way that the seller cannot charge the buyer a penalty for late payment, this is a sign that the transaction is fictitious. Tax authorities have the right to recalculate income tax if they prove that the debt reserve was created artificially.

Types of accounts receivable

Depending on the classification criterion, different types of receivables are distinguished.

According to the order of occurrence, receivables are divided:

• to normal, which arose within the framework of the organization’s credit policy, established standards for assessing the creditworthiness of clients and certain limits on lending to counterparties;
• unjustified, arising as a result of violation of the requirements of the regulations and norms established in the organization for granting deferred payment to counterparties, the procedure for issuing goods and materials, etc.

According to the criterion of late payment, the following are distinguished:

• planned receivables for which repayment terms have not yet arrived;
• overdue debts for which repayment dates have approached, but payment has not been received.

Depending on the duration of the delay, various groups of receivables are distinguished. For example, the delay for which is up to 45 days, from 45 to 90 days, etc.

According to the criterion of the reality of collection, the following are distinguished:

• real debts to be collected;
• problematic (doubtful);
• hopeless.

Short term

A significant portion of receivables is classified as current or short-term debt, since the repayment period will occur within 12 months after the reporting date. The rest of the receivables are long-term. These are, for example, loans provided to counterparties for a period of more than a year.

Doubtful

A receivable that has not been repaid or with a high degree of probability will not be repaid within the period established by the agreement, and is not provided with appropriate guarantees, is considered a doubtful debt in accounting (clause 70 of the Regulations on Accounting and Reporting). Every time a doubtful receivable is identified, a reserve of the same name is formed in accounting. This is required to ensure that the organization’s reporting reflects the true financial result and the volume of real obligations of buyers and customers.

In tax accounting, reserves for doubtful debts are created voluntarily, and taxable profit is reduced by the amount of the reserve (clause 5 of Article 266 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The procedure for forming a reserve is regulated in Article 266 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. It differs from the rules in accounting. In particular, only overdue debts that are associated with the sale of goods, works or services are considered doubtful. A reserve is created only if the delay is more than 45 days.

Hopeless

A bad debt is a debt that is virtually impossible to collect from the counterparty (clause 77 of the Regulations on Accounting and Reporting, clause 2 of Article 266 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation):

• the statute of limitations has expired (Article 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation);
• obligations are terminated in accordance with civil law due to the fact that they cannot be fulfilled. For example, due to force majeure (Article 416 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation), liquidation of the debtor organization (Article 419 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation), an act of a state authority or local government (Article 417 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

For tax purposes, debts are also considered bad if the impossibility of collection is confirmed by a decision of the bailiff issued in connection with the end of enforcement proceedings.

Table of types of receivables

How to bypass the new Federal Tax Service ban and write off receivables when it’s convenient for you

The Federal Tax Service prohibited including receivables in expenses if the company forgot to do it on time. But there is a legal way to get around this requirement. We have prepared instructions,

Accounts receivable management

As a general rule, debt, which is reflected in the corresponding accounting accounts, is assessed at par - based on the amounts that the company presented to its counterparties (counterparties) or actually paid or accrued. When assessing the market value of receivables, the probability that they will not be repaid is taken into account.

Please note that not only overdue receivables are considered doubtful debt, but also debts for which the payment period has not yet arrived (for example, if the counterparty organization is in bankruptcy). At the same time, the debt can be overdue, but not doubtful - say, if the buyer has temporary difficulties, but he guarantees payment at a later date.

In any case, to create a reserve for doubtful debts in accounting, it is necessary not only to review and identify debts that raise doubts, but also to assess the probability of repayment (non-repayment) in order to reasonably calculate the amount of the reserve. The methodology for assessing receivables and the procedure for forming the reserve are determined in the accounting policy .

Working with accounts receivable

Accounts receivable represent the withdrawal of own working capital from economic circulation, which is accompanied by indirect losses in the organization’s income. Therefore, you will have to work with such debts. How to work with accounts receivable?

It is necessary to administer accounts receivable and control over the timely receipt of funds from buyers and customers, since not only the well-being, but also the survival of the company depends on this. Control is needed constantly, not from time to time. You will also have to develop a specific policy in the field of payment terms. Sometimes counterparties are liquidated, but debts are not repaid. Experts spoke about this.

Nobody wants to increase receivables. Everyone is striving to expand sales - increase revenue, but at the same time ensure efficient collection and a constant flow of cash.

It is not profitable to provide lenient payment terms. Since the growth of assets (in this case in the form of receivables) is always accompanied by a corresponding increase in liabilities (in this case, due to the profit that is formed at the time of recognition of unpaid revenue). But this profit is only on paper. But in fact, receivables are those funds that are lent to the buyer (customer, etc.), thereby withdrawn from the company’s turnover, that is, from funds intended for payment of labor, purchase of materials, and maintenance of property.

When do accounts receivable arise? In cases where buyers (customers) are granted a deferment. Therefore, when providing a deferment, take into account additional costs in the contract price, for example, set different prices when paying immediately and over a period of time.

In addition, the risk that the receivable will not be repaid must also be taken into account. The more debtors an organization has, the higher the likelihood (someone went bankrupt, disappeared, etc.).

As a result, information about receivables is analyzed for previous years and it is possible to determine the approximate value (percentage) of bad debts that ultimately remain outstanding. And also take this into account when formulating financial policy.

When managing receivables, the following methods are used to reduce risks:

• debt limitation (setting a maximum amount for one counterparty);
• limiting the period of installments or deferred payment;
• establishing strict sanctions for late repayment of debts;
• mandatory verification of the solvency of new and existing partners, as well as maintaining a “client dossier” for the purpose of ranking them (dividing them into reliable, dubious, undesirable, etc.) in order to establish different terms of cooperation.

When deciding how to deal with accounts receivable, avoid extremes.

The fact is that with a strict receivables management policy, its quality will increase, but there is a risk of losing or missing out on some customers (partners) who will go to competitors. And an overly liberal policy, leading at the initial stage to an increase in sales, subsequently turns into high costs (costs of claims, courts, etc.) or the impossibility of collecting revenue.

Accounts Receivable Inventory

Since information about accounts receivable is reflected in the financial statements - both in the balance sheet and in appendices (with explanations regarding the structure of debts), it must be reliable and accurate, and this is confirmed by the results of the inventory.

At least once a year - before preparing annual financial statements as of December 31 of the reporting year, companies conduct a complete inventory of all types of receivables. If an organization forms a reserve for doubtful debts for profit tax purposes, inventories are carried out more often - quarterly or monthly. Since on the basis of such an inventory the reserve amounts are determined (clause 4 of Article 266 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

The procedure for inventorying payments differs from the procedure for inventorying material assets - the presence of debts and their amounts are determined based on primary accounting documents, as well as as a result of mutual reconciliations with counterparties.

Templates that will speed up reconciliation with counterparties and eliminate discrepancies

Accountable persons are required to submit an advance report within a period not exceeding three working days after the expiration date for which the cash was issued, or from the day they return to work (for example, after returning from a business trip). But the period for which cash is issued is set by the head of the organization - he indicates in the order or on the statement of the accountable person (clause 6.3 of the Bank of Russia Instructions dated March 11, 2014 No. 3210-U).

For taxes, insurance premiums and other obligatory payments, the repayment period is established by the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and Federal Law of July 24, 1998 No. 125-FZ(for premiums for insurance against accidents at work).

For contracts (supply, contract, provision of services, etc.), repayment periods are established by agreement of the parties. The average repayment period for receivables is calculated as the product of the period in days and receivables in rubles, divided by revenue from all types of sales.

That is, to determine the repayment period of accounts receivable on the balance sheet, the accountant must use the following formula:

The higher the ratio, the higher the risk that the debt will not be repaid.

Experts told us more about how to prepare financial statements and reflect receivables and payables in them.

The general limitation period, according to Article 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, is three years. After its expiration, and also if the debt is recognized as bad before the expiration of the statute of limitations (say, if the debtor organization is liquidated), the debt is written off.

More often, of course, receivables that have expired or are declared uncollectible are written off. What is the statute of limitations for debt collection >>>

If a reserve has been created, debts are written off using its funds. If the reserve amount is not enough, the difference is charged to other expenses - to the debit of account 91 “Other income and expenses” (PBU 10/99). If there was no reserve, the entire amount is debited to account 91. At the same time, it must be simultaneously accepted into off-balance sheet account 007 “Debt of insolvent debtors written off at a loss”, where it continues to be taken into account for five years (in case it is possible to receive it from the debtor). And only after this period the debt is written off from the register.

In tax accounting, written-off amounts of bad debts are included in non-operating expenses. And when creating a reserve for doubtful debts - at the expense of the reserve funds. Amounts not covered by reserve funds are also considered non-operating expenses.

Accounts receivable in reporting

An experienced specialist does not have to calculate all the coefficients (there are many of them). Just look at the balance sheet indicators - the amount of accounts payable and receivable, as well as the total values ​​of sections and the balance sheet. Section V of the balance sheet reflects only debt that must be repaid in the near future (within 12 months). Experts showed how to write off accounts receivable.

If short-term liabilities exceed current assets, this means that the organization does not have its own working capital, the situation is in crisis and requires radical measures. After all, it turns out that to pay off short-term debts there will not be enough not only the money that is already there (in accounts, in deposits, in securities) and will be received from buyers when paying off receivables, but also that which can be gained by selling stocks (not only products, but also raw materials, supplies and other valuables).

You will have to attract additional resources: either sell part of the non-current assets (which is not easy to do quickly and at an affordable price), or resort to the help of the founders, or seek other sources of financing - borrowed and other funds (which is also problematic in this situation of the company).

Ideally, the debtor and creditor should be comparable in volume with a slight advantage in favor of receivables.

How to sell a receivable

The creditor may transfer his rights to another person:

• under an assignment agreement or, as it is also called, an agreement on the assignment of the right of claim;
• on the basis of the law. For example, by a court decision, during the reorganization of an organization.

The creditor has the right to assign his rights to another person under an assignment agreement. It is also called an agreement of assignment of the right of claim. Conclude such an agreement in the same form as the original one:

• in simple written form;
• in writing and notarized if the original agreement was registered by a notary;
• in writing and register if the transaction, the claims for which are assigned, was subject to state registration.

In this case, the type of agreement that was initially concluded does not matter: purchase and sale, credit or other. For example, a purchase and sale agreement was concluded in simple written form, and the seller assigns the right to claim the debt from the buyer to a third party. The assignment agreement must also be concluded in writing.

At what price can the assignor assign the right to claim the debt?

The right of claim that the assignor transfers to the assignee is part of his property rights and is taken into account as assets. Therefore, in the assignor’s accounting, reflect the assignment of the right of claim as its sale (disposal) in account 91 “Other income and expenses.”

Proceeds from the sale of the right of claim are recognized as other income (clauses 7 and 16 of PBU 9/99). It is accepted for accounting in the amount established by the agreement on the assignment of the right of claim (clauses 6 and 10.1 of PBU 9/99).

Reflect the proceeds from the transfer of rights in accounting on the credit of account 91 in correspondence with account 76 “Settlements with other debtors and creditors”, to which the organization has the right to open a separate sub-account “Settlements under the agreement of assignment of the right of claim”. What transactions should be used to reflect assignment of claims >>>

The assignment of the right of claim for profit tax and VAT purposes is an implementation. This conclusion can be made based on the provisions of the Civil Code. The rights of claim under a contract of sale, exchange, delivery, etc. are property rights.

Tax legislation does not clearly define what relates to the exercise of property rights. Article 39 of the Tax Code defines only the sale of goods, works, and services. However, property rights do not fall under this concept (Article 38 of the Tax Code). However, the Civil Code defines property rights as an object of civil circulation (Articles 128 and 129 of the Civil Code). That is, citizens and legal entities can alienate, exchange, acquire it.

The procedure for reflecting the assignment of the right of claim by the assignor when calculating taxes depends on what taxation system he applies. Tips on taxation of assignment of rights of claim for the general system, and for special regimes -

Accounts receivable are a type of assets that characterize:

1. the amount of debts due to the organization from legal entities and individuals as a result of economic relationships with them;

2. invoices due in connection with supplies on credit or payment in installments.

According to accounting standards, accounts receivable are defined as amounts due to a company or other person from customers or other debtors.

The most common type of receivables is the debt of buyers and customers for goods, materials, services supplied to them, work performed and not paid for on time; the excess of debt on loans issued by the organization to its employees over loans received for these purposes. Accounts receivable divert funds from the organization's turnover and worsen its financial position. Timely collection of accounts receivable is the most important task of an organization’s accounting department. Upon expiration of the limitation period, it is subject to write-off at a loss as part of non-operating expenses.

Accounts receivable management is an integral part of the overall system for managing current assets of a commercial organization. In relation to the debt of customers (buyers) for the supply of goods, services rendered or work performed, it is at the same time an element of the organization’s marketing policy aimed at maximizing profits and establishing mutually beneficial relationships. Both the turnover and profitability of the company's current assets largely depend on the management of accounts receivable. On the balance sheet, accounts receivable balances usually exceed the total amount of tangible assets, cash and short-term financial investments. At the same time, accounts receivable management is a means of increasing sales volumes and providing customers with favorable payment terms for goods supplied.

Accounts receivable management should contribute to expanding the volume of product sales and the financial stability of the organization. As with the management of other current assets, the adoption of any decisions on the management of receivables should be preceded by an analysis of its composition, level and dynamics in the previous period.

In conditions of an acute shortage of working capital, which is typical for many enterprises, inflated amounts of accounts receivable reduce the mobility of current assets and lead to an unjustified increase in the duration of the financial cycle.

Since the total amount of receivables is dominated by the debt of customers for goods supplied to them, when analyzing receivables, it is advisable to compare its dynamics with the dynamics of revenue from goods sold. The growth rate of revenue from the sale of products, works, services (excluding VAT) according to Form 2 “Profit and Loss Statement” is compared with the growth rate of average accounts receivable balances on the balance sheet.

Another important indicator is the share of overdue receivables. With an increase in sales volume, the total amount of overdue receivables also increases, but its share should decrease. However, much depends on the composition of buyers. If the increase in sales volume is associated with the development of production and the sale of new goods designed for a different circle of buyers compared to the existing one, then significant changes in both the dynamics and the share of overdue debt are possible.

Accounts receivable are divided into two groups:

1. accounts receivable for goods (works and services), the payment period for which has not yet arrived. When the payment deadline approaches, the customer must be reminded of this;

2. accounts receivable for goods (works and services) not paid within the period stipulated by the contract. It in turn is divided into the following groups:

Expected within the timeframe agreed with the customer;

Difficult to implement;

Doubtful;

Hopeless.

The way each of these groups is managed is completely different. Since we are talking about customer debts, it is of fundamental importance to divide them into permanent and one-time ones. Delays in payments by regular customers may be random, and in this case, measures to collect the debt may be limited to reminding the counterparty about it. In relation to the remaining debt, a whole system of measures can be applied. In relation to debt recognized by debtors who are unable to repay it due to financial problems, it is necessary to search for mutually acceptable solutions. Most often, deferred or installment payments are used. As a means of attracting buyers, deferment or installment payments for delivered products must be cost-effective, i.e. losses caused by the diversion of own funds from circulation should be offset by the benefits from an increase in sales volume. So, if the enterprise itself uses short-term bank loans to financially support its current activities and purchase raw materials, then, for example, using bank loans for an average of 40 days, it is not advisable to provide customers with a deferred payment for an average of 60 days. The average period for providing credit to customers should be less than the average period for which the company receives a loan from a bank.

Industry specifics are also of great importance: enterprises in the light and food industries may not provide customers with deferred payments, but in mechanical engineering it is practically impossible to do without them.

According to financial statements, accounts receivable are divided into the following groups:

Short-term, payments for which are expected within 12 months after the reporting date. It predominates in the total amount of debt, since the provision of deferred payment for a period of more than a year is extremely rare;

Long-term, payments for which are expected more than 12 months after the reporting date.

This grouping is important for many financial calculations. In particular, short-term debt refers to quickly salable assets and, accordingly, is taken into account when determining the indicator (ratio) of quick or intermediate liquidity. Long-term accounts receivable are classified as slow-selling assets. True, any debt can be sold under an assignment agreement (assignment of the right of claim), and in this case it can be equated to quickly sold or even the most liquid funds, but in the amount of revenue actually received (usually no more than 50%).

In order to stimulate customers, discounts from the selling price (“skonto”) are widely used, for example:

Discount for prepayment in the amount of 5%;

Calculation according to the approximate scheme “3/15 full 30”, i.e. when paying within 15 days from the date of receipt of the goods, a 3% discount is provided, when paying from the sixteenth to the thirtieth day, the full cost of the goods is paid, over thirty days - a fine in the amount specified in the contract.

With regard to overdue debt, it is necessary to search for mutually acceptable solutions: deferment or installment payment under certain conditions, settlements with bills of exchange, in some cases barter is possible, settlements with customer shares, etc.

Providing a deferred payment to the customer is always associated with risk. When it comes to regular customers, the risk is low. The provision of a trade loan to a new buyer may be conditional on the provision of collateral: a bank guarantee or surety of a company with a reliable business reputation, collateral, reliable bills of exchange, etc. Deferred payment should be combined with incentives for prepayment through a system of discounts. For example, with full prepayment a discount of 4% is provided on the cost of the delivered products, with a partial prepayment of 50% of the cost of the shipped batch - a 3% discount, etc. The incentive system can be combined with a system of fines provided for in contracts for failure to meet payment deadlines. However, it is not advisable to resort to fines in relation to regular customers.

When deciding whether to grant a customer a deferment or installment payment plan for delivered products, his solvency, business reputation, and experience of previous relationships are taken into account.

If the company has many customers, then they can be pre-grouped:

Reliable buyers - they can be granted a deferred payment in the amount and terms they request;

Buyers who may be provided with limited trade credit;

Buyers who can only be granted a commercial loan against appropriate collateral;

Buyers whose lending involves a high risk of non-payment and is therefore impractical.

G. Kiperman. Accounts receivable management “Financial newspaper. Regional issue", N 12, March 2006.

Accounts receivable iscompany money that has not yet been given to her. Increaseaccounts receivablecan be regarded as increasing the growth rate of the company, the main thing is that debtors repay their debts on time, then there will be no problems with repaying their own debt to creditors.

The difference between the concepts of accounts receivable and accounts payable

Accounts payable is the opposite of accounts receivable. Here we are talking about the company’s own debt, which it must pay by a certain date. The concepts of accounts receivable and accounts payable do not always carry a negative connotation of the word “debt”. Often these are just accepted but not yet fulfilled obligations.

For accounts payable to arise, it is not necessary to take out a loan from a bank, but for accounts receivable to arise, it is not necessary to lend money. You can only conclude a supply agreement, in which payments are made a month after receipt of the goods. And throughout this month, the buyer will have accounts payable, i.e., an obligation to pay under the contract.

At the same time, the supplier will have receivables and will expect payments for the goods delivered within a month. This example shows that two parties to the transaction have different types of debt in relation to one obligation. And until the deadline for fulfilling the obligation comes, both parties perceive this state of affairs as a normal working relationship.

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Overdue accounts payable is a problem

The obligation is limited by the period of its fulfillment. Of course, there are open-ended obligations, the fulfillment of which occurs after the presentation of the demand. But this also has its own deadlines; such an obligation may be subject to instant execution or within, for example, three months from the date of receipt of the request. So it is always possible to determine when the obligation must be fulfilled and thereby repay the receivables. This gives rise to the classification of receivables into two types:

• Normal accounts receivable;
• Overdue accounts receivable.

Once the obligation is due, normal receivables become overdue receivables. And here you need to take action. Therefore, it is important for the company to organize work to track accounts receivable. You need to clearly know when a particular obligation is due for repayment.

It would be a good idea to monitor the financial condition of the debtor in order to detect problematic receivables in time. You can learn in advance that the obligation may not be fulfilled. If the debtor is on the verge of bankruptcy, the chances that the receivables will be paid are slim. In such situations, you need to record the outstanding receivables as soon as possible. Immediately after the deadline for fulfilling the obligation, begin work to collect it in court. Then, already having a court decision in hand, it will be possible to enter into bankruptcy proceedings as a creditor and receive at least partial compensation for accounts receivable.

Liability for malicious evasion of repayment of accounts payable

It is possible to say that the creditor does not want to fulfill his obligations only after the date of fulfillment of the obligation has arrived. Then the receivables become overdue, and you can begin to use methods of inducement and even coercion to fulfill the obligation. The creditor, in order to solve the problem of overdue accounts receivable, can take the following path.

The threat of criminal prosecution forces many debtors to pay their bills.

The emergence of accounts receivable from one person will certainly lead to the emergence of accounts payable from his counterparty. After fulfilling the obligation in full, both debts are considered repaid. But if the debtor cannot repay the debt, then the creditor has the right to use all the methods provided by law and the contract to receive money against the receivables.