Finance ministry commissions study on submission of annual reports
The Estonian Ministry of Finance has commissioned a study to find out the reasons for and effects of not submitting annual reports and submitting them later.
"We hope that all companies will find an opportunity to participate in the survey if they end up included in the sample. We look forward to their feedback to improve the system and make it more efficient," Finance Minister Martin Helme (EKRE) said in a press release. He added that all interviews with companies are anonymous.
One-quarter of Estonian entrepreneurs do not submit their annual reports every year. In addition, it is common for the annual report to be submitted significantly later than the deadline, the Ministry of Finance said.
Only 50 percent of the 2018 reports were submitted on time, and two months later, as of the beginning of September 2019, 62 percent of the reports had been submitted. Therefore, there are no correct statistics on the economy and, according to the ministry, distorted statistics can influence management decisions in the wrong direction in both the state and the private sector.
Statistics Estonia has created a questionnaire on the annual financial indicators of enterprises for the needs of both Estonian and international statistics. If an enterprise has submitted the annual report to the commercial register, the data presented therein will also reach Statistics Estonia (Eesti statistikaamet).
When an entrepreneur starts to submit an electronic statistical questionnaire, it will be displayed in a pre-filled form and the entrepreneur will only add data that is missing from the annual report. If annual reports are not submitted on time or are not submitted, consideration should be given to reintroducing the requirement to submit statistical questionnaires, which will increase the burden on both those submitting the data as well as on Statistics Estonia.
The study will be conducted by Tallinn University of Technology. The period from 2010 to 2018 and all legal entities, except for apartment associations, will be examined. The study should be completed in November 2020.
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Editor: Katriin Eikin Sein