ICAG L1 Financial Accounting - independent subject foundations cheat sheet

Separate business activity and owner transactions while recording capital and drawings appropriately.

Apply the supplied earning and expense-allocation model rather than cash timing alone.

Prudence requires caution without deliberate bias.

Identify the applicable framework and version before applying detailed recognition rules.

Distinguish changes in estimates, policies and genuine errors.

Debit assets and expenses; credit liabilities, income and capital

Trade discount is deducted before recording; cash discount is recorded on payment

Credit notes issued go to sales returns; credit notes received go to purchases returns

A trial balance proves arithmetical equality, not accuracy

Errors of principle, commission, omission and reversal do not affect trial balance agreement

One-sided postings and addition errors do affect the difference

Corrections are made by journal, not by changing source documents

Cost of sales includes carriage inwards and excludes carriage outwards

Closing inventory affects both the trading account and the balance sheet

Drawings reduce capital and are never an expense

An increase in the doubtful debts provision is charged to profit and loss

Capital = opening capital + net profit − drawings

Issued capital and actual cash received are different concepts.

Share premium in the supplied par-value model is not sales revenue.

Distinguish equity distributions from interest on liabilities.

Prime cost includes direct materials consumed, direct labour and direct expenses

Cost of production adds production overheads and adjusts for work in progress

Selling and administration costs are not production costs

Inventory is valued at the lower of cost and net realisable value

Appropriation account shares profit after interest on capital, salaries and interest on drawings

Partners' salaries are appropriations, not expenses

Current accounts record drawings, appropriations and interest

Admission goodwill compensates sacrificing partners

Dissolution uses a realisation account, with the result shared in the profit-sharing ratio

Government budget control and cash/accrual financial reporting have different purposes.

Receipts and payments records cash; income and expenditure applies accruals

Subscriptions income adjusts receipts for arrears and prepayments

Public audit has distinct mandates and purposes.

Economy, efficiency and effectiveness ask different questions.

Output counts do not establish public outcomes.

Responsibility and allegations require evidence about actual authority and action.

Analytics flags require validation and do not establish guilt by themselves.

Define incremental cash flows and the valuation date.

Discount rate, cash-flow timing and risk assumptions must be consistent.

NPV, IRR, payback and accounting return measure different things.

Expected value does not eliminate downside or estimation uncertainty.

Supplied model rates are not current market or tax facts.