Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
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'''Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)''' is the standard framework of guidelines for [[financial accounting]]. It includes the standards, conventions, and rules accountants follow in recording and summarizing transactions, and in the preparation of [[financial statements]].
One key aspect of GAAP is an emphasis of "general" as a conceptual realization of variables in method. Far from suggesting that all accounting exercises employ the same method and generate the same results, GAAP accommodates variation in applied accounting methods as long as the methods generally adhere to this set of principles, which are more broad than specific.
Pursuant to the foregoing, not only therefore does this provide for variation in method, the natural conclusion is GAAP creates an environment in which financial reporting results can vary depending on purpose. One company in one fiscal year can produce different reports, all completed within GAAP, for different audiences or different purposes, and all these reports can be considered correct.
A company may report financial performance considered acceptable by the accounting firm producing the review; yet upon closer investigation oddities may be revealed, requiring a restatement of all or part of the report. Recently (2006 - 2007) well known corporations such as [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] and [[Research In Motion]] had to restate certain aspects of their financial reports that met with disagreement as to their adherence to certain "best practices."
==Overview==
Financial accounting information must be assembled and reported objectively. Third-parties who must rely on such information have a right to be assured that the data are free from bias and inconsistency, whether deliberate or not. For this reason, financial accounting relies on certain standards or guides that are called "Generally Accepted Accounting Principles" (GAAP).
Principles derive from tradition, such as the concept of matching. In any report of financial statements (audit, compilation, review, etc.), the preparer/auditor/[[CPA]] must indicate to the reader whether or not the information contained within the statements complies with GAAP.
* '''Principle of regularity''': Regularity can be defined as conformity to enforced rules and laws. This principle is also known as the '''Principle of Consistency'''.
* '''Principle of sincerity''': According to this principle, the accounting unit should reflect in good faith the reality of the company's financial status.
* '''Principle of the permanence of methods''': This principle aims at allowing the coherence and comparison of the financial information published by the company.
* '''Principle of non-compensation''': One should show the full details of the financial information and not seek to compensate a debt with an asset, a revenue with an expense, etc.
* '''Principle of prudence''': This principle aims at showing the reality "as is" : one should not try to make things look prettier than they are. Typically, a revenue should be recorded only when it is ''certain'' and a provision should be entered for an expense which is ''probable''.
* '''Principle of continuity''': When stating financial information, one should assume that the business will not be interrupted. This principle mitigates the principle of prudence: assets do not have to be accounted at their disposable value, but it is accepted that they are at their historical value (see [[depreciation]]).
* '''Principle of periodicity''': Each accounting entry should be allocated to a given period, and split accordingly if it covers several periods. If a client pre-pays a subscription (or lease, etc.), the given revenue should be split to the entire time-span and not counted for entirely on the date of the transaction.
==National GAAP==
Every country has its own standard accounting practice version of GAAP with standards set by a national governing body.
==International GAAP==
Many countries use or are converging on the [[International Financial Reporting Standards]], established and maintained by the [[International Accounting Standards Board]].
[[Institute of Chartered Accountants of India]] is empowered for issuance of Accounting Standard in India. So far [[ICAI]] has issued 31 Accounting Standards and AS-32 is under preparation. CBDT is also empowered to issue AS for appropriate accounting method for taxation. Central Government is in line of thinking to create separate Accounting Standard body for government accounting.
==See also==
* [[International Financial Reporting Standards]]
* [[Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (USA)]]
* [[Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (UK)]]
* [[Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (Canada)]]
* [[Chinese accounting standards]]
* [[Statutory accounting principles]] for insurance companies in the US
* [[GAAPweb]] for UK based finance and accounting jobs
==External links==
* [http://www.iasplus.com IFRS/IAS Accounting Standards Guide]
[[Category:Generally Accepted Accounting Principles|*]]
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[[ja:企業会計原則]]
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