Bookkeeping in Ukraine for foreign-owned companies<\/h1>\n
Bookkeeping in Ukraine runs on document rules that foreign owners usually meet for the first time through a tax query. Every cost needs a primary document local law recognises, most services close with a signed acceptance act, and a VAT invoice works for the buyer only after registration in the state register. MK Audit keeps the statutory books, files the returns and reports to your head office in English. This page shows how each month is organised.<\/p>\n
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<\/div>\nBookkeeping in Ukraine means statutory books in Ukrainian and in hryvnia, built on primary documents with valid signatures. Services close with an acceptance act, goods move on delivery notes, and VAT invoices take effect only after registration in the state register. Most of it now moves under a qualified electronic signature.<\/p>\n
What bookkeeping in Ukraine actually involves<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\nPrimary documents rule the books<\/b><\/p>\nAn entry comes from a primary document, not from a system posting. It names both parties, the date, the amount and signatures. Goods move on delivery notes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The acceptance act for services<\/b><\/p>\nServices close with an act signed by both sides. A foreign invoice alone rarely does the job. Consulting, IT and intragroup charges all need one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
VAT invoices and the state register<\/b><\/p>\nThe seller registers each VAT invoice in the state register, and only a registered invoice gives the buyer input VAT. Deadlines and registration limits apply.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Signatures and deadlines<\/b><\/p>\nReturns and VAT invoices are signed with a qualified electronic signature issued to named people. Paper and electronic archives coexist, and each report has its own filing date.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\nMonth by month<\/div>\nThe monthly cycle<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\nWeek one: collect and chase<\/b><\/p>\nBank statements are imported and last month documents collected. We list what is missing, write to your suppliers, and name costs that cannot be booked yet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Week two: VAT work<\/b><\/p>\nOutgoing VAT invoices are registered and incoming ones checked in the register. The return is filed within the statutory deadline, with the payment amount confirmed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Week three: payroll and reconciliations<\/b><\/p>\nPayroll is calculated and payroll taxes reported on their own calendar. Bank, cash, receivables and payables are reconciled, currency balances revalued, exchange differences posted.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Week four: close and report<\/b><\/p>\nThe month is closed and the package sent. We flag unusual items, answer your finance team and set next month tasks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\nSystems<\/div>\nSoftware and data<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\nThe local system is the record<\/b><\/p>\nStatutory books sit in local accounting software, because it produces the forms and files the authorities expect. That database is the legal record.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
When the group works in its own system<\/b><\/p>\nWe keep the local books and send a mapped monthly export: trial balance, sub ledgers and what your consolidation needs. Under IFRS we prepare the conversion and reporting<\/a> from the same data.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nWho owns the database<\/b><\/p>\nThe database belongs to your company. Agree at the start where it is hosted, who has access, and how you get it back.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\nReporting<\/div>\nWhat your head office receives every month<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\nThe package<\/b><\/p>\nTrial balance, profit and loss, balance sheet, cash movement, payroll summary, VAT position, receivables and payables with ageing, plus open items.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Language and format<\/b><\/p>\nStatutory reports are Ukrainian, because that is how they are filed. Your package is English with the same figures, so the two never drift apart.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Who answers the group auditor<\/b><\/p>\nWe do: schedules, explanations and document copies in English. The local statutory audit<\/a> is a separate engagement where independence rules allow.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\nRisk<\/div>\nWhere bookkeeping goes wrong for foreign owners<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\nMissing acceptance acts<\/b><\/p>\nThe service was delivered, the invoice paid, nobody signed an act. The cost is questioned, and charges from the parent are read first.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Unregistered VAT invoices<\/b><\/p>\nYour supplier did not register the invoice, so the input VAT is not there. Found late it becomes a correction, found early a phone call.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Two sets of numbers<\/b><\/p>\nThe group sees one result, the local books another, and nobody can explain it. Monthly mapping keeps management and statutory figures connected.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Currency operations<\/b><\/p>\nParent loans, imports and exports create exchange differences and bank compliance steps. Revaluation done once a year hides the real result.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Staff and contractors<\/b><\/p>\nHiring papers, working time records and private entrepreneur contracts are read closely. Substance matters more than wording. See payroll outsourcing<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nThe database leaves with the bookkeeper<\/b><\/p>\nThe accountant resigns, the file sits on a laptop, the password is unknown. Broken periods start with accounting restoration<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\nHow it works<\/div>\nTaking over your books in four steps<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n01<\/b>Review the assignment<\/strong><\/p>\nActivity, document flow, VAT status, headcount, currency operations and the state of the books. A proposal follows after we review the assignment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
02<\/b>Take over<\/strong><\/p>\nDatabase, opening balances, contracts, signature keys and access rights. We record what is missing from earlier periods.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
03<\/b>First closed month<\/strong><\/p>\nThe first full cycle is run and reported in English, with the gaps found and a plan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
04<\/b>Steady state<\/strong><\/p>\nMonthly cycle, one named contact, a fixed reporting date, reply within one working day. Scope can grow into full accounting outsourcing<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n\n\nFAQ<\/div>\nWhat clients ask most often<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\nWe have accountants in the group. Why a Ukrainian bookkeeper?<\/summary>\nStatutory books, returns and document rules are local, and filings are signed with local keys. Your team keeps the management view, we keep the legal record.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\nA supplier refuses to sign an acceptance act. What then?<\/summary>\nWe warn you before the cost is booked and propose wording for the act. If it never arrives, the cost is flagged as unsupported.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\nCan you work directly in our group system?<\/summary>\nWe keep the statutory books in local software and deliver a mapped monthly export. A foreign system alone leaves the entity without the registers the authorities expect.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\nWho signs the returns?<\/summary>\nThe authorised person, usually the director, or an employee under a power of attorney, with a qualified electronic signature. Keys stay with you.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\nHow do we compare providers before choosing?<\/summary>\nAsk about the database, the reporting language, who talks to your group auditor and who carries responsibility. Our page on choosing an accounting firm in Ukraine<\/a> sets out the questions.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\nDo you also handle payroll and the annual audit?<\/summary>\nPayroll runs inside the same monthly cycle. Audit is a separate engagement, and independence rules decide whether one firm can do both.<\/p>\n<\/details><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\nAsk for a bookkeeping proposal<\/h3>\n
Tell us about the entity, we reply within one working day.<\/p>\n\n
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<\/ul><\/div>\n
An entry comes from a primary document, not from a system posting. It names both parties, the date, the amount and signatures. Goods move on delivery notes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Services close with an act signed by both sides. A foreign invoice alone rarely does the job. Consulting, IT and intragroup charges all need one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The seller registers each VAT invoice in the state register, and only a registered invoice gives the buyer input VAT. Deadlines and registration limits apply.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Returns and VAT invoices are signed with a qualified electronic signature issued to named people. Paper and electronic archives coexist, and each report has its own filing date.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n Bank statements are imported and last month documents collected. We list what is missing, write to your suppliers, and name costs that cannot be booked yet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Outgoing VAT invoices are registered and incoming ones checked in the register. The return is filed within the statutory deadline, with the payment amount confirmed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Payroll is calculated and payroll taxes reported on their own calendar. Bank, cash, receivables and payables are reconciled, currency balances revalued, exchange differences posted.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The month is closed and the package sent. We flag unusual items, answer your finance team and set next month tasks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n Statutory books sit in local accounting software, because it produces the forms and files the authorities expect. That database is the legal record.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n We keep the local books and send a mapped monthly export: trial balance, sub ledgers and what your consolidation needs. Under IFRS we prepare the conversion and reporting<\/a> from the same data.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The database belongs to your company. Agree at the start where it is hosted, who has access, and how you get it back.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n Trial balance, profit and loss, balance sheet, cash movement, payroll summary, VAT position, receivables and payables with ageing, plus open items.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Statutory reports are Ukrainian, because that is how they are filed. Your package is English with the same figures, so the two never drift apart.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n We do: schedules, explanations and document copies in English. The local statutory audit<\/a> is a separate engagement where independence rules allow.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n The service was delivered, the invoice paid, nobody signed an act. The cost is questioned, and charges from the parent are read first.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Your supplier did not register the invoice, so the input VAT is not there. Found late it becomes a correction, found early a phone call.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The group sees one result, the local books another, and nobody can explain it. Monthly mapping keeps management and statutory figures connected.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Parent loans, imports and exports create exchange differences and bank compliance steps. Revaluation done once a year hides the real result.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Hiring papers, working time records and private entrepreneur contracts are read closely. Substance matters more than wording. See payroll outsourcing<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The accountant resigns, the file sits on a laptop, the password is unknown. Broken periods start with accounting restoration<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n Activity, document flow, VAT status, headcount, currency operations and the state of the books. A proposal follows after we review the assignment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Database, opening balances, contracts, signature keys and access rights. We record what is missing from earlier periods.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The first full cycle is run and reported in English, with the gaps found and a plan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Monthly cycle, one named contact, a fixed reporting date, reply within one working day. Scope can grow into full accounting outsourcing<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n Statutory books, returns and document rules are local, and filings are signed with local keys. Your team keeps the management view, we keep the legal record.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n We warn you before the cost is booked and propose wording for the act. If it never arrives, the cost is flagged as unsupported.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n We keep the statutory books in local software and deliver a mapped monthly export. A foreign system alone leaves the entity without the registers the authorities expect.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n The authorised person, usually the director, or an employee under a power of attorney, with a qualified electronic signature. Keys stay with you.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n Ask about the database, the reporting language, who talks to your group auditor and who carries responsibility. Our page on choosing an accounting firm in Ukraine<\/a> sets out the questions.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n Payroll runs inside the same monthly cycle. Audit is a separate engagement, and independence rules decide whether one firm can do both.<\/p>\n<\/details><\/div>\n<\/div>\n Tell us about the entity, we reply within one working day.<\/p>\n\n <\/p> The monthly cycle<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
Software and data<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
What your head office receives every month<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
Where bookkeeping goes wrong for foreign owners<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
Taking over your books in four steps<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
What clients ask most often<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
We have accountants in the group. Why a Ukrainian bookkeeper?<\/summary>\n
A supplier refuses to sign an acceptance act. What then?<\/summary>\n
Can you work directly in our group system?<\/summary>\n
Who signs the returns?<\/summary>\n
How do we compare providers before choosing?<\/summary>\n
Do you also handle payroll and the annual audit?<\/summary>\n
Ask for a bookkeeping proposal<\/h3>\n
<\/ul><\/div>\n