Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 2
By Ilkin Shafiyev - Trend:
The amendments to the Law on Accounting in Azerbaijan will help facilitate the country's access to foreign financial markets and accelerate the development of the country’s capital market, the Adviser to the Minister of Taxes of Azerbaijan for Macroeconomic and Economic Analysis Khagani Abdullayev said Oct. 2 at a forum titled "Application of New Accounting Standards in Azerbaijan: Problems and Prospects".
In turn, the Head of the WB Baku Office Naveed Naqvi noted that the changes to the law are a step in the right direction.
The new transparency mechanisms give confidence to foreign investors, allow businessmen to make more informed decisions, Naqvi said.
The amendments to the Law on Accounting, adopted May 4 at a plenary session of the Parliament of Azerbaijan, provide for the mandatory presence of professional chief accountants in enterprises where the controlling stake belongs to the state, except for those enterprises whose securities are traded in the stock exchange, as well as in other socially significant structures, large business entities, organizations and public legal entities that publish annual financial or consolidated reports.
The accountants must undergo appropriate licensing according to the amendments.
The amendments also provide for the termination of the rules of simplified accounting in small and medium-sized businesses, the abolition of articles on the establishment of the advisory board for accounting and regulation of its activities, in connection with the renunciation of the provisions on application of the national accounting standards.
The changes also imply the transition of accounting entities in the country to international accounting standards.