In accounting, a schedule is defined as the supporting report or document which constitutes detailed information, explaining the elements of the chief financial report. It serves as a kind of proof to all the data that is presented in the financial report, with answers to all the numbers mentioned in the report. In other words, accounting schedules provide all the financial accounting in detail which cannot be illustrated within the chief report. For example, if we talk about the schedule of the balance sheet, not only the liabilities, assets, and equities of a company will be presented, but a breakdown of each category will be shared as a sub-category or a sub-schedule. Types of Accounting SchedulesThe accounting world constitutes a lot of financial terms which have different meanings and executions. These terms together lay the foundation for financial reporting and serve as the basis for the various types of accounting schedules discussed herein. Accounts Receivable Schedule The accounts receivable schedule lets you know about the payments which others have to pay to your company in exchange for your products and services which were consumed by them. This easily lets you know which customers have outstanding invoices as the invoices are collaboratively assigned to every single customer. With this report, you will know if you need to schedule a collection call or reduce the ‘credit extended’ in case a customer has not paid you yet for your services. For example, businesses can generate payment notices to the customers with unpaid invoices after simply cross-verifying the list of such customers with the help of this schedule. Accounts Payable Schedule The accounts payable schedule lists the number of vendors to whom your company have payments pending. If your business buys services and raw materials from a lot of different companies, there is a good amount of possibility that your business gets offered terms, with cash not forming the only source of payments. For example, the debts which are outstanding are actually a liability on a business which must be paid as soon as possible. This schedule precisely tells you about how much money is to be paid and to whom. In other words, it is one of the best ways to arrive at the accounts payable solutions. Inventory Schedule The inventory schedule lets you know about the raw materials that are available for use for manufacturing and the number of ready-to-sale products to the customers. The complete costs of all these things form the inventory, which is considered as an asset to the company. Any revenues that come as a result of incurred costs while providing a service also come under the inventory. The distribution details of the inventories will be shown in this schedule. In a nutshell, inventory accounting is comprised of the following:
Fixed Asset Schedule The fixed asset schedule comprises of the fixed assets listing in detail, which is mentioned in the general ledger. In exact terms, this schedule will let you know about the particular asset number, gross cost, description, and accumulated depreciation. Accumulated depreciation is defined as the complete fixed asset depreciation, which is ‘expense charged’ owing to its acquisition and availability for use. The accumulated depreciation account is an account for the assets which are having a credit balance i.e. it appears as a deduction from the total fixed assets amount reported on the balance sheet. Some of the major fixed assets are reported below:-
Other Accounting Schedules When the time arrives for paying the taxes, you will come across a lot of other schedule types which are referred to as different forms by the IRS. These forms are to be attached with the information of your annual tax return since they let the IRS know about the complete explanation regarding the numerical information in your tax return. Some of the common forms or schedules are listed below:
Users of Common Accounting SchedulesFinance Manager The finance manager is responsible for the cost and cash management, ensuring cash availability and least operational cost. Transfer of funds between a business's different bank accounts at the minimal cost and right time require accounting schedule reviews, which are carried out by the manager. Controller The existence and accuracy of the cash equivalents and cash recorded is provided by the controller. For this, he conducts monthly scheduling reviews to ensure their bank reconciliation with the general ledger. Treasurer Business cash availability is monitored by the treasurer, with 'excess cash placing' in temporary placements. In case, the funds lack, long-term and short-term loans are suggested to the board of directors by the treasurer. Internal Auditors Internal auditors ensure compliance with different policies and standards established by accounting bodies, business, and government agencies using the accounting schedules. Apart from this, they use the schedules to perform an audit on every cash account procedure to check propriety. External Auditors The role of external auditors is to double sure the compliance of accounting schedules with various policies and standards through a year-end audit. However, the main focus is on accounting standards' compliance with the availability, existence, and ownership of cash equivalents and reported cash. How to Prepare an Error-free Financial Report?It is extremely important that you prepare your financial report error-free as any wrong or missed out financial information can not only lead to a penalty from the IRS but also lead to poor financial assessment and decision-making. Of course, hiring an expert accounting team that takes care of the entire financial processes is the best solution but it is very much possible that even the accounting team may miss out on a financial element while maintaining the records. The reason being they have a lot of tasks to handle when it comes to accounting and the only way to make sure that no element gets left out in the financial report or schedules is by making them abide by the following practices and in case you manage accounting on your own, you need to follow the same:
ConclusionThese are the most common accounting schedules which hold immense importance and are imperative when it comes to preparing and presenting the financial reports of a company. The length of the schedules and their listings differ greatly from one business to the other. The detailed explanation provided by these schedules helps in clarifying every financial doubt, along with providing greater insights into the financial data for better business decision making. About the Author:Kellie Connor is a Sr. Business Analyst and certified accounting professional at Cogneesol, a global business accounting services provider. With extensive experience in delivering financial accounting services, she has evolved herself from a professional accountant to a writer and now turned into a highly-focused business strategist who always pens down effective accounting solutions through her writings to the business verticals’ audience.
Among the important characteristics of accounting information is the clarity of the financial data being reported and evaluated by owners and managers. Sometimes, a few simple numbers may paint the picture of a company's financial position, but at other times, more detailed information is required. Learning to read and evaluate information that is in an accounting schedule format will give you greater insight as to your company's financial standing.
While a schedule is often thought of as a predetermined time to perform a certain task, in accounting, a schedule usually refers to a report or a supporting document that provides detailed information which explains the contents of another simplified document. The schedule provides proof or documentation of where the numbers come from. For example, the balance sheet schedule will not only list the assets, liabilities and equities of a company, but it will break down each of those categories into further sub-categories and provide a detailed listing within each one. Some accounting schedules that are typically run are accounts payable, accounts receivable, fixed assets and depreciation and inventory.
The schedule of accounts payable is a detailed listing of all the vendors that your company owes money. If your company purchases raw materials and services from a variety of other companies, it is likely that you have been offered terms and are not paying for everything outright in cash. The outstanding debts are a liability that must be paid, and they are important to track closely. The schedule of accounts payable tells you who must be paid and how much money is owed.
Similarly, the schedule of accounts receivable shows you how much income you can expect to receive from outstanding invoices. Invoices are grouped by customer, so it is easy to tell if particular customers have several outstanding invoices. This report may signal the need for collection calls or for the reduction of extended credit, if a customer is falling behind in payments to you.
Inventory is the amount of product that a company has available to sell its customers, as well as the raw materials they have waiting to be used in the manufacturing process or that are already in process. The cost for all of these materials and the finished product is accounted for as inventory, and is a company asset. If a company sells a service, there may be costs incurred while providing that service. Any revenues associated with that cost that have not been received yet are also considered inventory. An inventory schedule will provide details as to the distribution of all these inventoried assets.
A fixed asset schedule is a detailed listing of all the fixed assets listed in the general ledger. The schedule will include the number of a particular asset, a description, its gross cost and its accumulated depreciation. Often, fixed assets will be divided into subcategories, so as to make account reconciliation easier to manage. Examples of fixed assets include buildings, machinery, computer equipment, vehicles and furniture.
There are other types of schedules that you are likely to come across when paying taxes for your business. The IRS has a variety of forms that are referred to as schedules. These forms are often required to be filed with your annual tax return information, as they provide a detailed explanation of the numerical information you are providing on your return. Common schedules or forms include Schedule A for itemized deductions; Schedule B to report information on interest and dividends; Schedule C to report business income or loss; or, Schedule SE to provide information on Self-Employment Tax. |
What information is contained in a schedule of accounts receivable?
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