Who is the chief accountant? Standards and conditions for chief accountants in Vietnam

Who is the chief accountant? Standards and conditions for chief accountants in Vietnam (Internet image)

1. Who is the chief accountant?

According to Clause 1, Article 53 of the Law on Accounting 2015, the chief accountant is the head of a unit’s accounting apparatus and in charge of execution of accounting works therein.

The chief accountant is subject to direction by the accounting unit’s legal representative and also direction and inspection by the chief accountant of the superior accounting unit, if any, in terms of professional works.

(Clause 3, Article 53 of the Law on Accounting 2015)

2. Standards and conditions for chief accountants in Vietnam

According to Clause 1, Article 54 of the Law on Accounting 2015, a chief accountant must meet the standards below:

- Meet the standards specified in Clause 1 Article 51 of Law on Accounting 2015;

+ Comply with professional ethics, be truthful, integrated, and abide by law.

+ Have professional accounting knowledge and skills.

- Have at least an associate degree in accounting;

- Have a certificate of training in chief accountant’s techniques;

- The holder of a bachelor’s degree in accounting must have at least 02 years’ experience of accounting works; the holder of an associate degree in accounting must have at least 03 years’ experience of accounting works.

3. People prohibited from practicing accounting in Vietnam

Specifically, in Article 52 of the Law on Accounting 2015, the following people are prohibited from practicing accounting:

- Minors; people who completely or partly lose their civil capacity as declared by the court; people forcibly sent to reform schools or rehabilitation centers.

- People banned from practicing accounting under an effective court’s judgment or decision; people undergoing criminal prosecution; people sentenced to imprisonment or were convicted of economic crimes or other crimes related to finance, accounting and have not had their criminal records expunged.

- Parents, adoptive parents, spouses, children, siblings of the legal representative, head, Director, General Director, deputies of the head, Deputy Director, Deputy General Director in charge of finance – accounting, and the chief accountant of the same accounting unit, except for private enterprises, single-member limited liability companies owned by individuals, and other cases specified by the Government.

- People holding the position of managers, executive officers, treasurers, warehouse-keepers, buyers or sellers of assets in the same accounting unit except for private enterprises, single-member limited liability companies owned by individuals, and other cases specified by the Government.

4. Rights and obligations of chief accountants in Vietnam

* Obligations of Chief Accountant

A chief accountant has the responsibility to:

- Comply with regulations of law on accounting and finance of accounting units;

- Organize the operation of the accounting apparatus in accordance with this Law;

- Make financial statements in accordance with accounting regimes and accounting standards.

(Clause 1, Article 55 of the Law on Accounting 2015)

* Rights of Chief Accountant

- The chief accountant has the right to perform accounting works independently.

- Chief accountants of regulatory agencies, organizations and public service agencies using state budget, and enterprises whose over 50% charter capital is held by the State, apart from the rights specified in Clause 2 of ticle 55 of the Law on Accounting 2015, also have the right to:

+ Offer opinions in writing about employment, reassignment, pay raise, commendation, and disciplinary actions for accountants, warehouse-keepers, and treasurers;

+ Request relevant departments of the accounting unit to provide adequate documents related to the chief accountant’s accounting works and financial supervision works in a timely manner;

+ Preserve his/her opinions in writing if they are at odds with that of the decision maker;

+ Submit written reports to the legal representative of the accounting unit on discovered violations against regulations of law on finance and accounting in the unit. If the decision has to be complied with, the report shall be sent to the person superior to the decision maker or a competent authority. In this case

(Clause 2 and 3, Article 55 of the Law on Accounting 2015)

Thanh Rin

>> CLICK HERE TO READ THIS ARTICLE IN VIETNAMESE