Running a business · 1 min · 14 January 2025
Demystifying accounting jargon
If your accountant cannot say it in English, make them. Here is the short dictionary we actually use with clients.
C+Countplus AccountingCountplus Accounting, Nelson & Warrington
Jargon-free advice is one of our four pillars because we have sat in meetings where a client nodded at ‘accruals’ and then went home none the wiser. If a word does not help you decide, we should not have used it.
A short, usable list
Turnover is your income from sales in the period, before costs. Profit is what was left after costs. Drawings are what you took. A CT600 is the company’s tax return. Self Assessment is yours. RTI is how payroll talks to HMRC. MTD is software talking to HMRC. An accrual records income or a cost in the period it belongs to, even if the invoice or cash comes later. None of these require Latin.
Ask the only question that matters
‘What do I do differently on Monday?’ If the answer is ‘nothing, we just had to file it’, that is fine. We will say that. If the answer is ‘stop taking that dividend’, we will say that too, without a glossary.
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This article is general information, not personal tax advice. Talk to us before you act on it.