日本の中小企業会計基準の制度的定着化と課題

Institutional Issues Facing the General Accounting Standard for SMEs in Japan

The objective of this paper is to discuss issues in institutionalizing the General Accounting Standard for SMEs in Japan (the General Standard). 1. The institutionalization of SME accounting starts by accepting that SMEs' attributes differ from those of large companies. Their different attributes lead to different accounting practices, and different accounting practices need different accounting standards. 2. To instill the General Standard at the institutional level, it is necessary to build a structure of cooperation that unifies administrative agencies (SMEA, FSA), the business community (SME-related organizations and financial institutions), accounting professionals (CPTAs and CPAs), and the education community (accounting scholars and educators). Collaboration among accounting professionals and financial institutions is particularly important in putting the General Standard in place. 3. The most crucial institutional challenge to the General Standard is how to ensure reliability of financial statements. Although it is hoped that current systems －i.e., the accounting advisor system and the document attachment system－ will become more prevalent, the possibility of an audit system intended for SMEs should be explored as a future (legal or practice-oriented) system. 4. Dissemination and promotion of the General Standard are key to improving the quality of SME accounting. To this end, it is necessary to muster the collective strength of everyone involved with SMEs (administrative agencies, SME organizations, financial institutions, accounting professionals) and to provide SMEs guidance, education, and awareness of the professionals. Through these efforts, the General Standard can become not only the generally accepted standard in Japan but also be a beacon for other countries trying to find a clear path for their SME accounting.