“Accounting” is one of those umbrella terms that encapsulates much more than what it suggests, and over time, people have misconstrued it to be something else entirely. One of the most common views when engaging in accounting services in Singapore is that it is but an annual affair; used to record and tabulate financial statements so as to file for tax reporting.
That is actually just bookkeeping.
Accounting services not only help to compile and maintain financial records, but a large part of what accounting can do is to analyse those reports and recommend actionable steps to grow profitability. This takes into account not just the financial spendings and earnings, but understanding local regulations and grants to optimise the use of such programmes.
Here are some typical services that one can engage a firm for, so as to produce a holistic set of accounting services to help your business grow – other than just bookkeeping.
Corporate tax accounting and advisory
Singapore has a fairly streamlined taxation process but even so, many individuals find it daunting to approach this task. This becomes even more complicated when the delineation between business and personal tax is fuzzy and experienced accountants can efficiently file these away for you in their respective categories.
The advisory comes in to help identify claims that may exist in the current fiscal year, and help businesses leverage for relief and from paying unnecessary taxes.
Entity formation and compliance
Business owners can benefit from accountants when developing their business plans. Their sound knowledge of local laws and regulations in this area can save on time while opening up opportunities to help develop a strong business plan and strategy.
This can also include in the long-term, compiling of unaudited financial statements for the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) of Singapore, or assisting with Goods and Services Tax (GST) registration along with refund applications.
Bank Reconciliation
Human error is inevitable even with professional bookkeeping services, and so bank reconciliation also becomes a critical part of accounting services in Singapore, especially for large organisations with large volumes of transactions.
This service compares the internal records with bank records for discrepancies, and fixes any that might occur through a regulated system.
Accounting auditing
Similar to bank reconciliation, the auditing process is a stringent and detailed process to validate all financial transactions to ensure accuracy. This is often an independent process to ensure that it is a fair and true investigation and can be performed regularly or at random.
Forensic accounting
When investigations from reconciliation or auditing reveal a significant discrepancy, forensic accounting dives into the trail to track down missing or extra funds.
While it may be a case of human error, this process is helpful for when genuine fraud has occurred, with the accountants working with law enforcement to settle the event. Doing so promptly will likely lessen penalties and help with other side effects such as financial loss or reputation damage.
Accounts payable and receivable
Two sides of a coin, accounts payable and receivable deals with the daily operations and transactions of the company in your general ledger, helping you with an indicator of the business’s financial health at any given time.
Payable deals with expenses, including future ones as well, and can help one manage cash flow by observing items like purchases and loans.
Amount owing to the company that are unpaid are accounts receivable, and it helps with budgeting for the long-term.
Combined, these accounting services can help with expenditure solutions, deal with duplications, and even boost collection rates for a more seamless cash flow.
Payroll processing
Payroll is almost compulsory in all businesses and accountants can help with structuring and setting up the entire payroll system. While seemingly straightforward and many times automated, payroll accounting is like a maintenance that keeps time tracking, timely processing and authorisation, along with concerns dealing with bonuses and deductions.
Miscellaneous reviews and compliance
At times, an organisation will also want to review and reaffirm their accounts are in order. This could be for stakeholder reporting purposes or it could be triggered by an event which warrants a check.
Quality reviews can be conducted internally or by a third-party and will give a broad overview of the financial health and accuracy at the end of the process. A good follow-up is a standards compliance review and advisory, which helps to peruse and update existing practices to ensure compatibility with local laws.
Conclusion
Now that we’ve established some of the more typical accounting services being offered out there, you can now speak with your desired talents to better structure your accounting for your business.
PLCO can help you with a myriad of accounting services. Speak with our consultants to determine what suits your business.
