Accounting

Outsourcing payroll accounting relieves SMEs and allows focus on main tasks. External service providers take over payroll accounting and communication with authorities.

The audit office must be independent; in case of self-review risk, organizational measures are necessary (Art. 729 Para. 2 CO). Clear separation of accounting and auditing required.

Companies record their expenses and revenues in expense and income accounts to determine profit or loss. Success depends on the industry and business cases; a uniform chart of accounts does not exist.

The income statement compares expenses and revenues of a company, resulting in profit or loss. It is part of accounting and shows operational results.

Business transactions are recorded in active and passive accounts, which capture the ongoing changes in assets and liabilities. The balance sheet, as a snapshot, shows all assets and liabilities, summarized in activated and passivized balance sheet items.

The balance sheet provides insight into the assets and liabilities of a company in order to present its financial position. Assets show how the capital is invested, while liabilities reveal the source of the capital.

Depreciation is only recognized for tax purposes if it is business-related and properly recorded. Tax authorities provide guidelines for depreciation rates to standardize.

Self-employed individuals can record tax-deductible provisions that reduce profit. A prerequisite for this is a legally regulated, business-related justification.

Economic goods are initially valued at acquisition or production costs, and later according to the lower of cost or market principle. These valuations influence the company's profit and thus income tax.