When paying wages to an employee, you should always remember not only its size, but also about correctly made deductions. We list the basic rules that any employer should know when withholding employee salaries on their own initiative.

All deductions can be classified as follows:

• main (personal income tax, according to writs of execution);
• at the initiative of the employer (for unpaid advance payment, material damage, etc.);
• at the initiative of the employee (at the request of the employee).

This classification is presented in the order in which deductions should be made. In the article we will focus on deductions made at the initiative of the employer. In order to avoid mistakes and not violate labor laws, we will analyze the basic rules that mandatory the employer must know and comply with.

Rule 1. Deductions from wages are made only in cases provided for by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and other federal laws

According to Art. 137 Labor Code of the Russian Federation, deductions from wages To repay the employee's debt to the employer, the following may be done:

• to reimburse an unpaid advance issued to an employee on account of wages;
• to repay an unspent and not returned timely advance payment issued in connection with a business trip or transfer to work in another area, as well as in other cases;
• to return amounts overpaid to the employee due to accounting errors, as well as amounts overpaid to the employee, if the body for the consideration of individual labor disputes recognizes the employee’s guilt in failure to comply with labor standards or downtime;
• when an employee is dismissed before the end of the working year for which he has already received annual paid leave - for unworked vacation days.

In this case, there are restrictions - deductions for compensation of unworked vacation days are not made if the employee is dismissed for the following reasons:

1. the employee’s refusal to transfer to another job, required for him in accordance with a medical report issued in the manner established by federal laws and other regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation, or the employer’s lack of relevant work (clause 8, part 1, article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
2. liquidation or reduction of personnel or staff (clause 1, 2, part 1, article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
3. change of owner of the organization’s property (in relation to the head of the organization, his deputies and the chief accountant) (clause 4, part 1, article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
4. employee call to military service or directing it to an alternative replacing it civil service(clause 1, part 1, article 83 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
5. reinstatement of an employee who previously performed this work by decision of the state labor inspectorate or court (clause 2, part 1, article 83 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
6. recognition of the employee as disabled (clause 5, part 1, article 83 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
7. death of an employee (clause 6, part 1, article 83 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
8. offensive emergency circumstances hampering the implementation labor activity(clause 7, part 1, article 83 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The list of grounds allowing the employer to make deductions on his own initiative is closed and not subject to broad interpretation. For example, it is impossible to withhold from an employee’s salary any amounts overpaid to him due to an incorrect interpretation of regulatory legal acts.

Despite the fact that there are grounds for deduction, the employer should obtain the employee’s consent to it. If the latter is against it, even if the grounds are specified in Art. 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, then it is unlawful to make a deduction. The employer will have to resolve this issue in court. An exception when the employee’s consent is not required is the withholding of amounts for unworked vacation days.

Also, labor legislation allows the employer, in certain cases, to withhold from the employee’s wages material damage caused to the organization (Article 238 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Rule 2. The employer can make deductions only within the time limits specified by labor legislation

We discussed above cases when an employer can make deductions from an employee’s salary. Please note that each of these has limitations.

In Table 1 we list the deadlines that the employer must comply with.

Collapse Show

Please note: if the employer does not formalize and make a deduction within a month on the basis of Art. 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (return of advance payment, repayment of debt, incorrectly calculated payments), then he will have to resolve the issue of withholding through the court.

In the case of material damage there are also restrictions: if the amount of damage exceeds a month average earnings employee and the month period has expired, then deduction can only be made on the basis of a court decision.

Rule 3. The amounts of deductions established by law must be observed.

According to Art. 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the total amount of all deductions for each payment of wages cannot exceed 20%. Also, one should not forget about the norms of Part 1 of Art. 99 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation: the amount of deduction from wages is calculated from the amount remaining after withholding taxes. Let's look at this issue using an example, calculating the maximum amount that can be withheld from wages for a month.

Example 1

Calculation of the maximum amount that can be withheld per month

Collapse Show

Manager Klimov A.N. On August 10, an advance was issued for travel expenses in the amount of 9000 rubles. According to the advance report, which was submitted to the accounting department on August 14, the specified employee did not spend 5,000 rubles. This amount was not returned to Klimov. On August 25, the employer issued an order to withhold the amount of the unreturned advance from his wages.

The accountant accrued wages to the specified employee for August in the amount of 12,900 rubles. The employee agrees to the retention.

Let’s determine the maximum amount that can be withheld from an employee’s salary for August due to an unreturned advance:

1. Let's calculate the amount of personal income tax: 12,900 × 13% = 1,677 rubles.
2. Let's set the maximum deduction amount: (12,900 - 1,677) × 20% = 2,244 rubles. 60 kopecks

That is, for August from the salary of A.N. Klimov. The maximum you can withhold is an unreturned advance payment in the amount of no more than 2,244 rubles. 60 kopecks.

The remaining amount is 2755 rubles. 40 kopecks (5000 - 2224.6) will be withheld in the following months.

What if an employee quits and the final salary is not enough to fully cover the unreturned advance?

What to do in this situation?

1. In this case, two options are possible:
2. Agree with the employee on the voluntary return of the remaining amount of the unspent advance.

Go to court if the employee refuses to voluntarily reimburse the unrefunded amounts.

Please note: Withholding limits may be increased.

Thus, the maximum amount of deduction equal to 50% will be if the amount under the writ of execution should be withheld from the employee at the same time, say, to recover from the employee in compensation for an outstanding loan, as well as an unreturned advance issued for travel expenses.

Let's look at an example of the procedure for determining the maximum amount for withholding on several grounds: an advance payment issued for travel expenses that was not returned on time, and collection under a writ of execution.

Example 2

Calculation of the maximum size when withholding on several grounds

Collapse Show

Auditor A.P. Kochkin On August 5, an advance was issued for travel expenses in the amount of 8,000 rubles. According to the advance report, which was submitted to the accounting department on August 10, the specified employee did not spend 4,000 rubles. This amount is given to A.P. Kochkin. was not returned.

Also on August 10, the organization received a writ of execution for recovery from Kochkin in compensation for the loan that was not repaid on time (the amount of compensation is 5,000 rubles).

The accountant accrued wages to the specified employee for August in the amount of 15,500 rubles. The employee agrees to the retention.

Let’s determine the maximum amount that can be withheld from wages for August:

1. Calculate the amount of personal income tax: 15,500 × 13% = 2015 rubles.

2. We will set a maximum amount of deductions for August. According to Part 1 of Art. 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the maximum amount of deductions in this case cannot exceed 50%: (15,500 - - 2015) × 50% = 6,742 rubles. 50 kopecks

From the specified amount, at the initiative of the employer (for an advance not returned on time), the following can be withheld: 15,500 × 20% = 3,100 rubles.

3. We determine the amount that can be legally withheld from the employee’s salary for August:

6742.5 - 5000 = 1742.5 rub. (less than 3100 rub.);

4000 - 1742.5 = 2257 rub. 50 kopecks - the specified amount of an advance not returned on time can be withheld only in the next month.

That is, the following amounts can be legally withheld from wages for August:

• the amount of recovery under the writ of execution is 5,000 rubles;
• advance payment issued for travel expenses not returned on time - 1,742 rubles. 50 kopecks

The limit increases to 70% (Part 3 of Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation):

• while serving correctional labor;
• when collecting alimony for minor children;
• when compensating for harm caused by an employee to the health of another person;
• when compensating for damage to persons who suffered damage due to the death of the breadwinner;
• when compensating for damage caused by a crime.

Rule 4: Deductions must be properly documented.

In order to withhold amounts from an employee’s salary on the grounds specified in Art. 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer should issue an order about this. There is no form of order established by law, so the employer develops the form of the order independently. Orders should be issued within a month from the date of expiration of the period established for the return of unpaid advances, amounts calculated in error, and repayment of debts.

When deducting compensation for unworked vacation days, an order is not required to be issued.

If we're talking about on withholding amounts for repayment material damage, then you should also adhere to the monthly period. That is, the order is issued no later than one month from the date the employer has established the amount of damage caused by the employee (see Example 3).

Before this, as we have already said, the employer should obtain the employee’s consent to withhold (with the exception of reimbursement of amounts for unworked vacation days). To record the receipt of consent, several options can be proposed:

1. draw up a notice of withholding, which includes a column indicating the employee’s consent;
2. ask the employee to draw up a statement that he does not object to the deduction (Example 4);
3. provide in the order a note indicating consent to withholding.

Example 3

Collapse Show

Example 4

Collapse Show

In conclusion, we would like to remind you that for unjustified deductions, an organization can be fined under Article 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.

Hello! Is it possible to deduct a lump sum amount of material damage discovered on the eve of dismissal in the amount of average earnings upon dismissal? Does the limit apply in this case - no more than 20%? Can deductions be made from compensation?

The cost of damage withheld from the employee’s income should not exceed his average monthly earnings (Part 1 of Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Average monthly earnings should be calculated based on the average daily (hourly) earnings and working days (hours) during the month in which the material damage was discovered. You can deduct no more than 20% from an employee’s monthly salary. If deduction is made from last salary to be issued upon dismissal of an employee, the employer has the right to withhold the entire amount. The rules established by Part 1 of Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation do not apply in this case. Since the legislation does not directly state that in the situation under consideration it is possible not to comply with the restriction established by Part 1 of Art. 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to obtain written consent from the employee to withhold. This will avoid arguments with him. If an employee does not agree to the deduction, he can voluntarily deposit the amount due from him to the organization’s cash desk. If the employee refused to voluntarily compensate for the damage or did not agree with its assessment, then he will have to go to court to repay the loss.

The rationale for this position is given below in the materials of the Glavbukh System vip version

1. Situation: How to retain debt from an employee who quits. Deductions are made at the initiative of the organization

Withhold the entire amount of debt from the last salary to be paid. Even if it exceeds 20 percent of the salary this month. The rules established by Part 1 of Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation do not apply in this case. Based on the systemic interpretation of Articles 137, 138 and 140 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the limitation on withholding in the amount of 20 percent of the due salary applies only when monthly payment salaries. When dismissing an employee, you can recover the entire amount of the debt. This point of view is shared by specialists from the Russian Ministry of Health and Social Development in their private explanations.*

The chief accountant advises: since the legislation does not directly state that in the situation under consideration it is possible not to comply with the restriction established by Part 1 of Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, obtain the employee’s written consent to withhold. This will avoid arguments with him.*

It should be noted that in the event of a lawsuit with an employee, the court may side with the latter, obliging the organization to comply with the established limit - 20 percent of the salary amount. For example, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Buryatia concluded that Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation limits the amount of deductions for each salary payment in order to provide the employee with an amount sufficient to satisfy his basic living needs. It does not matter whether the employment relationship continues or the employee is dismissed. Consequently, when dismissing an employee, no more than 20 percent of the salary can be withheld from him (see the cassation ruling of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Buryatia dated February 27, 2012 No. 33-531).

Thus, having the written consent of the resigning employee to withhold the entire amount of his debt without restrictions, the organization will protect itself from litigation with him.

N.Z. Kovyazina

Holding order

Withhold the amount of material damage from the employee’s income in this order.

First, calculate the amount of losses, which includes:
– the amount of material damage;
– expenses for the acquisition or restoration of property (for example, repairs);
– expenses for compensation for damage that an employee caused to other citizens or organizations (for example, damage from an accident in the part not covered by insurance compensation).

The scope of losses that an employee who has caused material damage to the organization is required to compensate is specified in Article 238 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Creation of a special commission

To confirm the amount of material damage in an organization, you can create a special commission (Article 247 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Its composition is approved by the head of the organization. It is advisable to create a commission when establishing facts of theft or abuse, as well as damage to valuables.

In commercial organizations

Indicate the identified shortage (cost of losses) in the matching statement.

Prepare matching statements:
- either according to the forms approved by paragraph 1.2 of the Resolution of the State Statistics Committee of Russia dated August 18, 1998 No. 88 (forms No. INV-18 or No. INV-19);
– or according to forms developed by the organization independently and approved by the head of the organization.

If the amount of material damage can be established on the basis of documents received from counterparties, a commission need not be created. For example, in the event of an accident caused by an employee, the amount of material damage can be determined using documents received from insurance and repair companies.

Damage assessment

Determine the amount of damage based on market prices on the day the damage was caused (the employee committed an accident, discovered a shortage, etc.). In this case, the damage cannot be assessed below the value of the property according to accounting data (including wear and tear). When determining damage, do not take into account actual losses within the norms natural decline. This procedure is established by Article 246 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Written explanations from the employee

After determining the amount of damage, collect from the employee written explanations about the reasons why it arose. If the employee refuses to do this, then draw up a report. This procedure is established by part 2 of article 247 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Retention Order

To recover the amount of damage from the guilty employee, the head of the organization must issue a withholding order. The order must be issued no later than a month after the commission establishes the amount of damage.

Calculation of the amount of damage

Based on the order, deduct the cost of damage from the employee’s income, not exceeding his average monthly salary. Taking into account this rule, it is necessary to recover damages in cases where the employee bears limited financial liability, and in cases where financial liability arises for the full amount of damage.

An amount of damage exceeding the average monthly salary can be recovered from an employee only through the court (if he bears full financial responsibility). At the same time, the employee can voluntarily reimburse the amount of damage. In this case, by agreement of the parties, compensation for damage by installments is allowed.

This procedure is established by Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Situation: how to determine the average monthly earnings when calculating the amount of material damage that can be withheld from an employee’s income

The legislation does not provide for a methodology for calculating average monthly earnings. For all cases of maintaining average earnings, the uniform order its calculation based on the average daily (hourly) earnings (Article 139 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Therefore, when calculating the amount of material damage, it is necessary to use it. The different names that are used to determine the amount of payments cannot serve as a basis for using any other procedure.

The cost of damage withheld from the employee’s income should not exceed his average monthly earnings (Part 1 of Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). In this case, the average monthly earnings should be calculated based on the average daily (hourly) earnings and working days (hours) during the month in which the material damage was discovered (Article 139 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, clauses 9 and 13 of the Regulations approved by the Government Decree RF dated December 24, 2007 No. 922).

You can deduct no more than 20 percent from an employee’s monthly salary. Therefore, to recover the amount of material damage in the amount of average salary, most likely, will have to be done within a few months.*

An example of calculating material damage recovered from an employee. An agreement on full financial liability has not been concluded with the employee.

In January, due to the fault of employee A.S. Kondratiev printer failed. The employee has limited financial liability.

The amount of material damage is estimated at 12,000 rubles.

Kondratyev’s average daily earnings is 900 rubles/day. There are 15 working days in January.

Kondratyev’s average monthly earnings in January amounted to 13,500 rubles. (900 rub./day ? 15 days).

Since the average monthly salary is more than the amount of damage, by order of the manager, 12,000 rubles are withheld from Kondratyev. At the same time, no more than 20 percent of each of his salaries.

An example of calculating material damage recovered from an employee. An agreement on full financial liability has been concluded with the employee

The organization identified a shortage of money in the cash register in the amount of 52,000 rubles. With cashier A.V. Dezhneva entered into an agreement on full financial liability. She admitted her guilt.

Dezhneva’s average earnings in the month the shortage was discovered is 10,000 rubles. Since the average earnings are less than the amount of damage, by order of the manager, 10,000 rubles are withheld from Dezhneva. Moreover, from each of her salaries - no more than 20 percent.

For five months, the accountant withheld 2,000 rubles from Dezhneva’s salary. Dezhneva refused to reimburse the rest of the damage and quit. The organization went to court to recover funds.*

An example of calculating an employee’s salary, taking into account deductions within his average earnings

On January 12, 2013, due to the fault of employee A.S. Kondratiev printer failed. An agreement on full financial responsibility has not been concluded with the employee.

The amount of material damage is estimated at 10,000 rubles.

During the period from January to December 2012, Kondratyev worked 250 days. During this period, he was credited with 200,000 rubles.

In January 2013 there are 17 working days.

Kondratiev’s average salary for the month in which the material damage occurred (January 2013) is:
200,000 rub. : 250 days ? 17 days = 13,600 rub.

Since the amount of material damage does not exceed Kondratiev’s average salary, the entire 10,000 rubles can be withheld from his income.

For January 2013, Kondratyev received a salary of 15,000 rubles. Kondratyev is provided with a standard personal income tax deduction in the amount of 400 rubles. (Kondratiev has no children).

The personal income tax amount for January 2013 is:
(15,000 rubles – 400 rubles) ? 13% = 1898 rub.

The employee's income after tax is:
15,000 rub. – 1898 rub. = 13,102 rub.

The maximum amount of deductions from an employee’s monthly income is:
RUB 13,102 ? 20% = 2620 rub.

The amount of damage caused by the employee is greater than this amount. However, in January, the accountant withheld only 2,620 rubles from Kondratiev’s salary. The remaining 7380 rubles. (RUB 10,000 – RUB 2,620) the organization will deduct from the employee’s salary in the following months.

Deductions from compensation payments

Situation: is it possible to withhold the amount of material damage from compensation payments to an employee for the use of his personal property and from daily allowances

Yes, you can if the employee agrees to the retention.

At the initiative of the organization, it is impossible to deduct the amount of material damage from such payments. This conclusion can be made on the basis of Article 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. It says that deductions at the initiative of the organization should be made from salaries. Compensation payments (daily allowances, compensation for the use of personal property) guaranteed by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (Articles 168 and 188 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) do not apply to wages (Part 1 of Article 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). At the same time, labor legislation does not establish any restrictions on deductions that an organization carries out not on its own initiative, but at the request of an employee. Therefore, if such a statement is made, the amount of material damage can be withheld from any payments.

If the employee does not agree to retention, act as such. Invite him to voluntarily compensate for the amount of material damage exceeding his average monthly earnings. He can:
– deposit the required amount into the cash register;
– with the consent of the organization, provide it with property equivalent to the damaged one (repair the damaged property);
– compensate for damage by installments.

This procedure is provided for in Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

If the employee refused to voluntarily compensate for the damage or did not agree with its assessment, then he will have to go to court to repay the loss. You will also have to go to court if the withholding order was issued later than a month after determining the amount of damage (Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).*

At the same time, the organization has the right to fully or partially refuse to recover damages from an employee (Article 240 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Waiver of Damage Lien

The employer has the right to refuse to withhold damages from the employee. Refusal to recover may be complete or partial, taking into account the specific circumstances in which the damage was caused. This right is granted by Article 240 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Refusal to recover damages is permissible regardless of the following factors:
– the type of liability the employee bears (limited or full financial liability);
– form of ownership of the organization.

This is stated in paragraph 6 of the resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated November 16, 2006 No. 52.

Exempt the employee from compensation for material damage by order.

N.Z. Kovyazina

Deputy Director of the Department of Wages, Labor Safety and social partnership Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia

Details Category: Selections from magazines for an accountant Published: 07/14/2015 00:00

Deductions from wages at the initiative of the employer are possible for:

• unearned advance payment issued against wages;
• unspent and not returned in a timely manner amounts issued on account in connection with a transfer to work in another area, etc.;
• overpaid wages and other amounts overpaid to an employee due to a counting error or upon proof of his guilt in idle time or failure to comply with labor standards;
• the amount of compensation for unworked vacation days upon dismissal of an employee before the end of the year;
• amounts of benefits (temporary disability and maternity benefits) overpaid in the event of a calculation error (for example, an arithmetic error was made when calculating earnings for a period) or unlawful actions of an employee (for example, an employee concealed information affecting the amount of benefits).

Such cases of deductions at the initiative of the administration are listed in Article 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and Part 4 of Article 15 of the Law of December 29, 2006 No. 255-FZ.

Here the question may arise: what is a counting error? If you used an incorrect algorithm for calculating benefits or vacation pay, such a counting error is not recognized. In particular, the amount of temporary disability benefits accrued in a larger amount due to the fact that the length of service was incorrectly calculated cannot be recovered from the employee. But if an arithmetic error was made in the calculation (for example, subtraction was made instead of addition), then the excess can be retained. This is just a counting error.

Also, material damage caused to the organization by him or her can be deducted from an employee’s earnings. The basis here will be articles 238 and 240 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. But remember: in this case, only the amount of direct actual damage is compensated; the employee does not pay for the loss to the organization (Article 238 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). So, if, for example, an employee breaks a machine, then you can recover from him only the cost of repairs and spare parts. He is not obliged to compensate for the cost of products that were not made during the repair of the equipment.

The employee does not bear material costs if the property was damaged during a natural disaster, due to inadequate security, etc.

A complete list of such situations is given in Article 239 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Situation: is it possible to deduct a fine from an employee’s salary for violating internal labor regulations?

No you can not. In the Labor Code of the Russian Federation there is no such thing as a fine. The legislation gives the organization the right to financially punish an employee for causing material damage (Article 238 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). An employee cannot be fined for violating internal labor regulations.

For such an offense, the employee can be brought to disciplinary liability (Article 192 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). For example, make a reprimand or reprimand. As a last resort, if an employee systematically fails to comply work schedule, he can be fired.

Attention!

For deduction from wages of amounts not provided for by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the organization bears administrative liability under Article 5.27 of the Code of the Russian Federation on Administrative Offenses as a violation of labor legislation.

How to hold

To withhold any amount from an employee's salary, the organization must issue an order.

The order must be issued within a month from the date of expiration to return the advance, repay debts or incorrectly calculated payments. An exception is the collection from a resigning employee of amounts accrued for unworked vacation days. There is no monthly period for withholding these amounts.

This procedure is prescribed in Article 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Example

The manager of Alpha LLC Kondratyev A.S. received a salary of 37,000 rubles.

From this amount the employee must pay:

Membership fees - 100 rubles;

Accountable amounts not returned in a timely manner (advance for business trip) - 1000 rub.;

Repayments for the purchase of goods - 5000 rubles.

At the initiative of the administration, only 1,000 rubles can be withheld from Kondratiev’s salary. debts on accountable amounts.

The organization can make other deductions only on the initiative of the employee himself (at his request).

To withhold amounts to repay material damage caused to the organization, the manager must also issue an order within a month. This period is counted from the day when the commission establishes the amount of material losses. This is established by Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

If the employee does not agree with the grounds and amount of the withholding, then the organization will have to go to court to recover the missing amounts (Articles 137, 248 and 391 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Article 11 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). You will also have to go to court if, within the month allotted by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the manager did not issue a retention order.

What is the limit on the total amount of deductions?

The amount of material damage that is recovered from an employee depends on what kind of liability is provided for it: full or limited. With limited financial liability, the employee is obliged to compensate for damage in an amount not exceeding his average salary (Article 241 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

However, the specific procedure for calculating it for such cases has not been determined. This means that general rules need to be used. Paragraph 4 of Regulation No. 922 establishes that average earnings must be calculated based on the actual accrued wages and the actual time worked for the 12 previous calendar months. In this case, the months preceding the month in which the employee caused the damage.

That is, the total amount of salary for 12 months must be divided by the number of days (hours) worked and multiplied by the number of working days or hours on the employee’s schedule in the month in which he caused the damage.

Yes, in this case the average earnings will depend on the month of calculation. However, there is no reason to simply divide your annual earnings by 12.

Example

In August 2015, due to the fault of an employee of the organization A.S. Nabokov, the server failed. The amount of material damage is estimated at 25,200 rubles.

An agreement on full financial responsibility has not been concluded with the employee, which means that no more than the average monthly salary can be recovered from him. The accountant thought so.

The employee works a regular five-day work week. Billing period- from August 1, 2014 to July 31, 2015, the employee worked there for 220 working days.

The salary for these days amounted to 388,904.15 rubles.

There are 21 working days in August 2015. From here the average monthly earnings will be:

RUB 388,904.15 : 220 days × 21 days = 37,122.67 rub.

This means that you can recover from the employee the entire amount of damage caused by him, that is, 25,200 rubles.

In case of full financial liability, the employee is obliged to compensate the entire amount of damage caused (Article 242 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). At the same time, Article 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not impose any restrictions on the amount of penalties.

Full financial liability of an employee occurs in two cases.

Firstly, in situations provided for in Article 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. For example, when a shortage of valuables entrusted to an employee is discovered, if the employee caused damage due to an administrative offense (for example, an accident), etc. In this case, it does not matter whether an agreement on full financial liability has been concluded with the employee or not, he must compensate for the damage fully.

Example

The driver of the organization, Yu. I. Kolesov, became the culprit of a traffic accident. Insurance compensation was paid to the injured party by the insurance company.

Damage caused to the organization's car is recovered from Kolesov. The amount of damage caused is 45,000 rubles.

The employee is not talking about full financial responsibility. Nevertheless, regardless of Kolesov’s average salary, the organization can recover from him the entire amount of damage caused - 45,000 rubles.

Secondly, in situations where an agreement on full financial responsibility has been concluded with an employee. Such an agreement must be concluded with employees whose positions are listed in Appendix 1 to Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated December 31, 2002 No. 85.

In particular, these are cashiers, storekeepers, etc. The standard form of the agreement is given in Appendix 2 to Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated December 31, 2002 No. 85.

Example

The organization discovered a shortage of money in the cash register in the amount of 12,000 rubles. The organization established that cashier Dezhneva A.V. left her workplace, leaving the cash register office unlocked.

An agreement on full financial responsibility was concluded with the employee.

The organization has the right to recover from Dezhneva the entire amount of damage caused - 12,000 rubles.

In some cases, financial liability may be provided for in the employment contract with the employee. This is allowed in relation to the deputy heads of the organization and the chief (Article 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

At the same time, the head of the organization (unlike his deputies) bears full financial responsibility, regardless of whether this is stated in the employment contract with him or not (Article 277 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The full amount of damage can be recovered from an employee under 18 years of age only if he:

• intentionally caused damage to the organization;
• caused damage in drunk;
• caused damage as a result of a crime or administrative violation.

Such cases are listed in Article 242 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. At the same time, there is no need to conclude an agreement with the employee on full financial responsibility.

Situation: is it possible to deduct from an employee the cost of lost property issued against a receipt?

Yes, you can.

Labor legislation allows you to recover damages from an employee in the event of a shortage of valuables entrusted to him under a one-time document (Clause 2, Part 1, Article 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Such a document could be a receipt. There is no standard form for the receipt, so it can be drawn up in any form. For the loss of property received against receipt, the employee bears full financial responsibility.

How long can you hold

No more than 20 percent can be withheld from each employee’s salary. This is precisely the rule stated in Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. If the employee's monthly salary is not enough to repay the entire amount of the debt, keep the balance in the following months.

Situation: from what amount of earnings - before or after personal income tax withholding - should the maximum amount of withholding be calculated at the initiative of the organization

Determine the maximum amount of deductions by first reducing the employee’s salary by the amount of personal income tax. According to Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the maximum amount of deductions must be calculated based on the income due to the employee. And the employee is entitled to income reduced by the amount of personal income tax.

Example

In April, due to the fault of an employee of the organization A.S. Kondratyev, the printer failed. An agreement on full financial liability has not been concluded with the employee. The amount of material damage is estimated at 12,000 rubles.

Official salary Kondratiev - 15,000 rubles. His average monthly salary is 16,000 rubles. Therefore, the organization can recover from the employee the entire amount of damage caused - 12,000 rubles.

Standard tax deductions are not available to employees.

The personal income tax amount for April is 1950 rubles. (RUB 15,000 × 13%).

The maximum withholding amount for April is:

(RUB 15,000 - RUB 1,950) × 20% = RUB 2,610

Since this amount is less than the damage caused by Kondratyev, the accountant withheld only 2,610 rubles from his salary for April. The remaining 9390 rub. (12,000 - 2610) will be deducted from the employee's salary in the following months.

Situation: how to retain debt from an employee who quits. Deductions are made at the initiative of the organization

And in this case, you also have the right to withhold no more than 20 percent from the employee’s last salary. The judges also agree with this (see the decision of the regional court of June 24, 2010 in case No. 21-103).

What to do in a situation where the last payment is not enough to pay off the debt? It all depends on specific situation. If we are talking about overpaid vacation pay, then all that remains is to invite the employee to voluntarily repay the debt. And if he refuses (which is also possible), the debt will have to be forgiven. The fact is that there is no reason to consider the resulting vacation pay debt as unjust enrichment. After all, this can only be discussed in case of dishonesty on the part of the employee or a counting error. This follows from paragraph 3 of Article 1109 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

Here are examples of cases decided in favor of workers - rulings of the Moscow Regional Court dated December 15, 2011 in case No. 33-25971 and the Moscow City Court dated August 8, 2011 in case No. 33-2316.

If we are talking about material damage, then simply agree with now former employee how he will repay you the remaining amount of the debt. The same applies to unreturned imprest amounts. The employee refuses to repay the debt? This means you will have to go to court.

The maximum amount of deductions increases to 50 percent of take-home pay if you withhold money from an employee’s income under executive documents. Moreover, if at the same time you collect something on your own initiative, the total amount of deductions should also not exceed 50 percent (letter of Rostrud dated May 30, 2012 No. PG/3890-6-1). The maximum amount of deductions can reach 70 percent of earnings, if, according to executive documents, the employee must pay (Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation):

• compensation for damage caused to health;
• compensation for damage to persons who have lost a breadwinner or caused by a crime;
• child support for minor children.

But keep in mind: your share of deductions in any case cannot be more than 20 percent.

At the same time, the requirements of executive documents are mandatory. Compared to deductions initiated by the administration, they must be satisfied first. This means that an employee’s debt to the organization can be deducted from his income only after all obligations under writs of execution have been repaid.

It turns out that if, according to a writ of execution, it is necessary to withhold, for example, 30 percent of the salary, it will no longer be possible to collect the employee’s debt to the company itself (letter of Rostrud dated May 30, 2012 No. PG/3890-6-1).

The fact is that deduction from wages, for example, of amounts overpaid to an employee due to an accounting error, is not an exceptional case provided for in Part 3 of Article 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, when up to 70 percent of earnings can be recovered.

Example

In April, the organization received a writ of execution for the recovery of 6,000 rubles from employee Kondratyev A.S. in repayment of an outstanding loan. In addition, at the beginning of April, the employee had an unreturned and unconfirmed advance payment issued for travel expenses in the amount of 2,000 rubles.

Kondratyev’s monthly salary is 18,000 rubles. Standard tax deductions are not available to employees.

The personal income tax amount for April is 2,340 rubles. (RUB 18,000 × 13%).

The maximum amount of deductions for April is:

(RUB 18,000 - RUB 2,340) × 50% = RUB 7,830

To compensate for the outstanding loan, the accountant withheld 6,000 rubles from Kondratyev’s salary.

At the initiative of the administration, 3,132 rubles can be withheld from an employee’s salary. (RUB 15,660 × 20%). However, a large amount has already been withheld from the employee (RUB 6,000). Therefore, in April, the accountant will not be able to withhold anything against the debt to the organization.

Thus, the amount of unreturned advance payment is RUB 2,000. will be deducted from the employee’s income only in the next month.

At the same time, at the request of an employee, the company has the right to withhold any amounts from his salary (letter of Rostrud dated September 16, 2012 No. PR/7156-6-1). Therefore, you can ask the employee to express his consent in writing to the withholding of his debt to the organization.

If he agrees to this, the company will be able to collect money under the writ of execution and withhold from the employee his debt to the company.

Example

In September, due to the fault of an employee of the organization Neverov A.S. The printer has failed. The amount of damage amounted to 12,000 rubles. In this case, you can recover from the employee no more than his average monthly earnings. Let's assume that its size was 37,122.67 rubles. Thus, the organization can recover from the employee the entire amount of damage caused - 12,000 rubles. Neverov’s official salary is 30,000 rubles. He is not entitled to standard tax deductions.

At the same time, in early September, the company received a writ of execution for the same employee to pay alimony in the amount of 25 percent of earnings. The company must satisfy this requirement first of all. Therefore, in order to withhold the amount of damage from the employee, the company obtained his written consent. At the same time, Neverov indicated in his statement that he was asking to withhold no more than 50 percent of the salary in hand.

For the first half of the month, the company pays an advance of 50 percent of the salary. The employee was paid 15,000 rubles. (RUB 30,000 × 50%). To pay alimony, the accountant withheld 3,750 rubles. (RUB 15,000 × 25%). And the same amount for damages.

At the end of the month, the personal income tax amount was 3,900 rubles. (RUB 30,000 × 13%).

The following amount may be withheld from wages for the second half of the month to pay alimony:

(30,000 rub. - 3,900 rub. - 15,000 rub.) × 25% = 2,775 rub.

And the same amount for damages.

Thus, the accountant withheld only 13,050 rubles from the employee’s salary for September. (3750 × 2 + 2775 × 2), including 6525 rub. (3750 + 2775) for damages. The remaining 5475 rubles. (12,000 - 6525) will be deducted from the employee's salary in October.

What are the rules for withholding material damage?

Withhold the amount of material damage from the employee’s income in this order. First, calculate your total loss, which includes:

• the amount of material damage;
• expenses for acquiring or restoring property (for example, repairs);
• expenses for compensation for damage that an employee caused to other citizens or organizations (for example, damage from an accident to the extent not covered by insurance compensation).

The scope of losses that an employee who has caused material damage to the organization is required to compensate is specified in Article 238 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Situation: who will compensate for damage in an accident for which an employee of the organization is found to be at fault

Damage in an accident that an employee caused to third parties (in excess of compensation under compulsory motor liability insurance) must be compensated at the expense of the organization (Article 1068 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). In this case, the employee who caused the damage is obliged to compensate such expenses in full (subclause 6, part 1, article 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The employee must reimburse:

• the amount that the organization transferred to the injured party in excess of compensation under compulsory motor liability insurance;
• the cost of repairing the organization's car (if the organization did not enter into a voluntary property insurance agreement or the insurance did not fully cover the costs of repairs).

However, by decision of the head of the organization, the employee may not fully or partially compensate for the damage caused by him (Article 240 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

To confirm the amount of material damage in an organization, you can create a special commission (Article 247 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Its composition is approved by the head of the organization. It is advisable to create a commission when establishing facts of theft or abuse, as well as damage to valuables. Indeed, in these cases an inventory must be carried out, and for this an inventory commission must be created. Indicate the identified shortage (cost of losses) in the matching statement (standard forms No. INV-18 or No. INV-19).

If the amount of material damage can be established on the basis of documents received from counterparties, a commission need not be created.

For example, in the event of an accident caused by an employee, the amount of material damage can be determined using documents received from insurance and repair companies.

Determine the amount of damage based on market prices on the day the damage was caused (the employee committed an accident, discovered a shortage, etc.). In this case, the damage cannot be assessed below the value of the property according to accounting data (including wear and tear). When determining damage, do not take into account actual losses within the limits of natural loss. This procedure is established by Article 246 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

After determining the amount of damage, obtain written explanations from the employee about the reasons why it arose. If the employee refuses to do this, then draw up a report. This procedure is established by part 2 of article 247 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

To recover the amount of damage from the guilty employee, the head of the organization must issue a withholding order. The order must be issued no later than a month after the commission establishes the amount of damage.

Based on the order, deduct the cost of damage from the employee’s income, not exceeding his average monthly salary. Taking into account this rule, it is necessary to recover damages both in cases where the employee bears limited financial liability, and in cases where financial liability arises for the full amount of damage.

Situation: how to determine average monthly earnings when calculating the amount of material damage that can be withheld from an employee’s income

The legislation does not provide for a special methodology for calculating average monthly earnings in this case. For all cases of maintaining average earnings, a uniform procedure for calculating it on the basis of average daily (hourly) earnings has been established (Article 139 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Therefore, when calculating the amount of material damage, it is necessary to use it.

The different names that are used to determine the amount of payments cannot serve as a basis for using any other procedure.

The cost of damage withheld from the employee’s income should not exceed his average monthly earnings (Part 1 of Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). In this case, the average monthly earnings should be calculated on the basis of the average daily (hourly) earnings and working days (hours) during the month in which the material damage was discovered (Article 139 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, clauses 9 and 13 of the Regulations approved by the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated December 24, 2007 No. 922).

Let us remind you that you can deduct no more than 20 percent from an employee’s monthly salary. Therefore, it will most likely be necessary to recover the amount of material damage in the amount of the average salary within several months.

An amount of damage exceeding the average monthly salary can be recovered from an employee only through the court (if he bears full financial responsibility). At the same time, the employee can voluntarily reimburse the amount of damage. In this case, by agreement of the parties, compensation for damage by installments is allowed.

This procedure for collecting damages is established by Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

An employee can:

• deposit the required amount into the cash register;
• with the consent of the organization, provide it with property equivalent to the damaged one (repair the damaged property).

If the employee refused to voluntarily compensate for the damage or did not agree with its assessment, then he will have to go to court to repay the loss.

You will also have to go to court if the withholding order was issued later than a month after determining the amount of damage (Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

At the same time, the organization has the right to fully or partially refuse to recover damages from an employee (Article 240 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Question:
The employee made a mistake when performing work, which led to additional expenses (material). The employee wrote an explanatory note and admitted guilt.
Is it possible to deduct from the salary the amount of damage caused to the employer?

Answer:
According to Part 1 of Art. 130 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, deductions from an employee’s salary can be made by order of the employer. But the law establishes restrictions on deductions from wages: in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 137 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, deductions from an employee’s salary are made only in those cases provided for by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and other federal laws. The Labor Code of the Russian Federation allows deductions from the employee’s wages within the framework of financial liability to the employer (Part 1 of Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), but in compliance with a certain procedure.
So, in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 238 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employee is obliged to compensate the employer for direct actual damage caused to him. Direct actual damage is understood as a real decrease in the employer’s available property or deterioration in the condition of said property (including property of third parties located at the employer, if the employer is responsible for the safety of this property), as well as the need for the employer to make costs or excessive payments for the acquisition, restoration of property or compensation for damage caused by the employee to third parties (Part 2 of Article 238 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). According to Part 1 of Art. 246 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the amount of damage caused to the employer in the event of loss and damage to property is determined by actual losses, calculated on the basis of market prices prevailing in the area on the day the damage was caused, but not lower than the value of the property according to data accounting taking into account the degree of wear and tear of this property.
At the same time, by virtue of Part 1 of Art. 233 Labor Code of the Russian Federation financial liability of the party employment contract shall be incurred for the damage caused by it to the other party to this contract as a result of its culpability illegal behavior(actions or inactions), unless otherwise provided by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation or other federal laws.
Thus, financial liability occurs in the simultaneous presence of the following conditions: the presence of damage; unlawful behavior (actions or inaction) of the perpetrator; causal connection between the unlawful act and material damage; guilt in committing an unlawful act (inaction). The absence of at least one of these conditions excludes the possibility of bringing the employee to financial liability (see, for example, the letter Federal service on labor and employment dated October 19, 2006 N 1746-6-1). To establish these circumstances, Article 247 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides for the employer’s obligation to conduct an inspection, including requesting a written explanation from the employee to establish the cause of the damage.

The direct procedure for collecting damages is established by Art. 248 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. In accordance with Part 1 of Art. 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, recovery from the guilty employee of the amount of damage caused, not exceeding the average monthly earnings, is carried out by order of the employer. The order can be made no later than one month from the date of final determination by the employer of the amount of damage caused by the employee. If the month period has expired or the employee does not agree to voluntarily compensate for the damage caused to the employer, and the amount of damage caused to be recovered from the employee exceeds his average monthly earnings, then recovery can only be carried out by the court (Part 2 of Article 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Non-compliance of this order employer in accordance with Part 3 of Art. 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation gives the employee grounds to go to court to appeal the employer’s actions.
Thus, within the meaning of these norms, by order of the employer, the amount of damage caused from the guilty employee may be withheld from wages if the following conditions are simultaneously met:
- the amount of damage does not exceed the employee’s average monthly earnings;
- the order for recovery was issued no later than one month from the day when the employer finally established the amount of damage caused by the employee.
Let us note that compensation for damage within the limits of the average monthly salary is made by order of the employer, regardless of whether the employee agrees to compensate for the damage or not.
In addition, it must be borne in mind that in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 138 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in the absence of other deductions, the employer has the right to withhold no more than 20% of the salary amount for each deduction from wages. Consequently, if the amount of damage within the average monthly earnings does not exceed 20% of the employee’s salary, the amount of damage can be withheld by the employer at a time.
If the amount of damage caused does not exceed the employee’s monthly earnings, but is more than 20% of the employee’s salary, deduction is made from the employee’s salary for several months until the amount of damage is fully recovered. Accordingly, the amount of deductions for each such payment should not exceed 20% of the employee’s salary. At the same time, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not prohibit making deductions by order of the employer in a smaller amount than is established by Part 1 of Art. 137 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Subject and theme. The article examines the problems of compensation for material damage by employees of the organization: it considers different kinds material liability, the general procedure for determining and collecting the amount of material damage from the point of view of accounting and documentary evidence of transactions performed.
Goals and objectives. The purpose of the study is to study the requirements of regulations and documents for the organization of financial liability at an enterprise, accounting and taxation of the amount of material damage and its deduction from employees’ wages.
Methodology. The research material included legislative, regulatory acts and documents on accounting and tax accounting, scientific sources regarding types of liability, determination and write-off of the amount of material damage (shortage, loss and damage to the organization’s property).
During the research, techniques were used comparative analysis, systematization and synthesis of information, review of regulatory requirements.

Results. This article defines the relationship between the norms of labor legislation and internal documents of the enterprise on the organization of material liability of employees. Examples of calculations and determination of the correspondence of accounting accounts for accounting for shortages, losses and damage to property in the legal and accounting aspects are considered, including taxation issues when deducting the amount of damage from employees' wages.
Scope of application of the results. The results of this article can be used in accounting practice in cases of financial liability of employees for damage caused.
Conclusions and significance. The procedure for documenting and justifying accounting entries for recording and writing off the amount of material damage at the expense of the guilty parties or in another manner provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation has been determined.

Many organizations, regardless of their profile of activity, are faced with problems of compensation for the amount of material damage caused by employees of the same organization while performing their official duties or carrying out illegal actions that resulted in loss, damage or loss of property.
Examples of property damage are:
– breakdown or loss of office equipment;
– unprofessional actions of employees during cash payments;
– direct theft of property;
- damage to property;
– disclosure of information constituting an official (commercial) secret;
– other situations or facts of economic life.
Labor laws require workers to careful attitude to the property of the organization. However, in practice, in particular when conducting an inventory, there are discrepancies between the actual availability of property and accounting data.
The final decision on the settlement of inventory differences is made by the head of the organization.
According to the general accounting rules, shortages and losses identified during inventory within the limits of natural loss norms (approved by the relevant ministries and departments) are written off as production or distribution costs, in excess of the norms - at the expense of the guilty parties. If the guilty persons are not identified or the court refuses to recover damages from them, then these losses are written off to financial results commercial organization or increased costs non-profit organization.
Before deciding to compensate specific employees for damages, it is necessary to conduct a review. Article 247 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation establishes the employer’s obligation to determine the amount of damage caused to him and the cause of its occurrence. To do this, it is necessary to check all the circumstances of shortages and losses. material assets, Money and other property and receive from the employee in whose job responsibilities includes the safety of the relevant assets, a written explanation of this fact.
If the employee refuses or evades his representation, a corresponding act is drawn up. If the employer proves the legality of concluding an agreement with an employee on full financial liability and the existence of a shortage for this employee, the latter is obliged to prove the absence of his guilt in causing damage.
The amount of damage is determined by the relevant experts in actual losses based on market prices prevailing in the area on the day the damage was caused, but not lower than the value of the property according to accounting data, taking into account the degree of depreciation of this property. This definition is contained in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, but the employer has the right, taking into account specific circumstances, to refuse to recover from the guilty person the amount of damage in whole or in part, or to apply certain sanctions to the employee, established by local regulations, for example, deprive of bonuses or other incentive payments. Consequently, the employee can count on resolving this situation with the employer, so to speak, pre-trial.
However, the amount of compensation for material damage, as a rule, is not reduced if it was caused by an employee under the influence of alcohol, drugs or toxic substances, or if the damage was caused by a crime committed for personal gain. In such cases, it is advisable to obtain written explanations from witnesses to this situation and document the employee’s guilt. The manager’s order to recover from the employee the amount of compensation for damage caused is drawn up in any form within a month from the moment the causes and amount of damage caused are determined.
It should also be taken into account how the employer himself fulfilled his responsibilities aimed at ensuring the safety of the organization’s property. For example, to receive cash from a bank account, a cashier must be provided with transportation and security. If a cashier with money goes to public transport where theft may occur, he should not be responsible for the lost amount.
Determining the boundaries of an employee’s financial liability is one of the most controversial issues in the relationship between employee and employer. The Labor Code provides for two types of liability: limited and full. With limited financial liability, the employee compensates for damage within the limits of his average monthly earnings, regardless of the amount of damage caused. Cases in which limited liability may apply include:
– breakdown (damage) of office equipment, household equipment;
– violation of the rules traffic when managing company car(if the organization paid a fine for its employee);
– incorrect filling in of the details of primary accounting documents;
– late payment of bills due to negligence official duties, as a result of which the organization suffered material damage.
General procedure calculation of average earnings is carried out in accordance with Art. 139 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation: based on actually accrued wages and actually worked time for the 12 calendar months preceding the period when the fact of shortage, damage or loss of property was discovered.
However, the employer cannot recover from the employee the amount of damage in the amount of one month’s earnings in a lump sum.
Overall size of all deductions for each payment of wages cannot exceed 20% of the amount that remains after withholding taxes from the employee’s wages.
Even if deductions are made from wages according to executive documents, 50% of wages must be retained. However, when compensating for damage caused by a crime, the amount of deductions can be up to 70% of the wages.
Consequently, deductions from wages at the initiative of the employer are permissible only after all mandatory deductions have been made, including under enforcement documents (deductions of alimony and the amount of compensation for harm caused to life, health, and then all the rest).
To account for the amount of material damage, account 94 “Shortages and losses from damage to valuables” is used, and for settlements with employees responsible for causing harm, account 73, subaccount 2 “Settlements with personnel for compensation for material damage”.
To recover damages from an employee who bears limited financial liability, an order (instruction) from the head of the organization is sufficient.

Example 1. If the amount of material damage caused by an employee (breakage of office equipment, for example a laptop) amounted to 30,000 rubles, and the average monthly salary (without ) is 21,500 rubles, then by order of the employer (at the request of the employee), the accountant has the right to deduct from the employee’s salary conditionally 4,300 rubles. (20%) until debt repayment in the total amount of RUB 21,500.
Debit account 94 Credit account 10, 41, 50, 71, etc. – 30,000 rub.;
2100 rub.;
Debit account 91.2 Credit account 94 – 8500 rub.;
Debit account 70 Credit account 73.2 – 4300 rub.

Example 2. Organization employee V.P. Petrov. by the end of March, he did not hand over to the organization’s cash desk the balance of the previously issued advance payment in the amount of 2,500 rubles. According to the manager’s order to withhold the specified amount from wages, with which Petrov V.P. was familiarized, the organization’s accountant completed the following accounting entries and calculations:
Debit account 94 Credit account 71 – 2500 rub. – the amount of damage caused by the employee;
Debit account 73.2 Credit account 94 – 2500 rub. – the amount of damage is attributed to the guilty employee;
Debit account 26 Credit account 70 – RUB 15,800 – wages accrued for March;
Debit account 70 Credit account 68 () – 2054 rub. – withholding tax on income from individuals .
The employee is not entitled to standard tax deductions. Limit size deduction for the month is: (RUB 15,800 – RUB 2,054) x 20% = RUB 2,749.20.
Debit account 70 Credit account 73.2 – 2500 rub. – the amount of damage was withheld (does not exceed 20%).

Thus, the recovery of an amount of damage not exceeding the average monthly salary, no later than one month from the date of its discovery and determination of the amount of damage, is carried out by order of the employer.
The employee's full financial liability consists of his obligation to compensate the direct actual damage caused to the employer in full. Written agreements on full individual financial responsibility are concluded with individual employees, which establish their rights and obligations and the employer’s responsibility to ensure the safety of relevant assets.
To bring an employee to full financial liability, the following conditions must be met:
– the presence in the federal law of an indication of the full financial responsibility of the employee;
– fulfillment by the employee labor function which implies full financial responsibility;
– causing direct actual damage to the employer when the employee performs labor responsibilities;
– shortage of valuables entrusted to him on the basis of a special written agreement or received under a one-time document;
– intentional infliction of damage and in other cases provided for in Art. 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
For example, if an employee services the material assets or funds entrusted to him, an agreement on full individual financial responsibility is concluded with him. Also, if an employee receives any material assets on the basis of a power of attorney, then his holding to full financial liability for shortages and damage to these assets is justified by the specified document.
As a one-time document, the courts refer to the receipt by an employee of funds from his counterparties under an expense cash order and not transferred to the organization’s cash register, as well as the receipt of funds for reporting without subsequent submission of supporting documents.
Currently, an agreement on full individual financial liability is concluded only with an employee whose position or work performed is included in the List of positions and work replaced or performed by employees, approved by Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia N 85. The named List of Positions and Works is exhaustive and is not subject to expanded interpretation.
In addition to individual financial liability, collective (team) financial liability may be introduced if the list of work performed by the team (team) is contained in the specified Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia.
In this form, all members of the team (team) bear responsibility for the safety of material assets. In the case of voluntary compensation for damage, the degree of guilt of each employee is determined by agreement between all members of the team (team) and the employer, and in case of recovery of damages in court, the degree of guilt of each member of the team is determined by the court.
In any case, when deducting the amount of damage from employees' wages, one must strictly adhere to the norms of labor law. At the same time labor legislation cases are provided that exclude the employee’s financial liability (Table 1). Required condition To compensate for material damage, there is also a causal connection between the employee’s actions and the direct actual damage incurred by the employer. These circumstances are essential for the correct resolution of cases of compensation for damage.

Table 1

Cases excluding the employee’s financial liability

Name	Characteristic
Actions resulting from force majeure	Actions of force majeure occur as a result of natural disasters, fires, floods, catastrophes and other events that cannot be prevented, since they do not depend on the will and consciousness of the employee
Normal business risk	This risk occurs as a result of the employee’s actions to develop and master new technologies, machines and equipment. Provided that the employee properly fulfilled his job duties, exercised caution, took measures to prevent damage, and the object of risk was material assets, and not the life and health of people
Urgent necessity or necessary defense	Such cases include the employee’s actions aimed at eliminating a danger that threatens the life and health of people, the property of other organizations, but which cause harm to the property entrusted to him
Failure by the employer to fulfill the obligation to provide conditions for storing property entrusted to the employee	The employer is obliged to create the necessary conditions for normal operation and ensuring complete safety of the property entrusted to the employee

Situations from judicial practice on the issue of financial liability of employees are discussed in detail in the works of Yu.A. Suslova, N.A. Vikulova, L. Minnegalieva, P. Dunaev and a number of other authors and are not the subject of the study of this article. Although the legal justification for deducting the amount of material damage from the employee lies in the basis of the corresponding accounting records.
For example, before issuing an order to withhold amounts from employees to pay off material damage, as discussed in a number of works, the employer should obtain consent from the employee to withhold:
1) draw up a notice in which to include a column indicating the employee’s consent to withhold the appropriate amount from wages;
2) the employee must file a statement that he does not object to the deduction;
3) provide in the manager’s order a note indicating consent to withholding.
From what was stated earlier, it follows that the basis for holding workers financially liable is material damage (shortage). If facts of loss, damage, or theft of property are discovered, it is necessary to conduct an inspection or inventory.
The accounting service of the organization is obliged to monitor the timeliness and completeness of the inventory, the correct documentation its results and reflect in the accounting accounts the identified discrepancies between the actual availability of property and accounting data. Based on the results of the inventory and official checks Appropriate decisions are also made regarding compensation for material damage.
If it is established who is the culprit in this situation, then the employer general rule must prove:
– existence of labor relations with the employee;
– the fact of direct actual damage, amount and cause;
– the absence of circumstances excluding the employee’s financial liability, the illegality of the employee’s behavior and his guilt in causing damage;
– a cause-and-effect relationship between the employee’s behavior (intentional actions or by mistake) and the resulting damage;
– compliance with the rules for concluding an agreement on full financial liability.
Next, the amount of damage caused is recovered from the guilty employee (Table 2). This is possible by order of the employer or by court decision.

table 2

The procedure for collecting damages from the guilty employee

Type of recovery
By order of the employer	If the amount of damage does not exceed the employee’s average monthly earnings
By agreement of the parties	If the amount of damage caused is higher than the employee’s average monthly earnings
By the tribunal's decision	If the employer did not manage to issue an order for damages within a month. If the employee does not agree to compensate for the damage voluntarily. If the employer missed the one-month deadline for issuing an order to recover damages, etc.

It should be borne in mind that employees with whom an agreement on full financial liability has been concluded are obliged to compensate the employer in full not for any damage, but only for that caused by a shortage of the property entrusted to them. In other cases, employees bear financial responsibility within the limits of their average monthly earnings. In other words, if full financial liability for causing harm in any particular case is not provided, then general rule on limited financial liability within the limits of the employee's average monthly earnings.
It is legally established that the employer has the right to fully or partially refuse to recover damages from the guilty employee. But the owner “may limit the specified right of the employer in cases” provided for by law Russian Federation.
An employee guilty of causing damage, by agreement with the employer, may:
– compensate it voluntarily in full or in part at the expense of personal funds;
– draw up a written obligation that defines specific terms for repaying the debt for compensation of material damage with installment payment;
– transfer equivalent material assets to the employer;
– repair or correct damaged property.
The agreement between the employer and the employee on compensation for damage caused should be in writing. An employee has the right to refuse voluntary payments at any time, and if he does not agree to compensate for damages in an amount exceeding his average monthly earnings, the employer has the right to sue. A decision by administrative authorities or a court verdict regarding the guilt of an employee serves as the basis for holding him financially liable and deducting corresponding payments from wages.
It should be noted that deductions from the salaries of the organization’s employees, depending on certain grounds, may be different. In accordance with the legislation, the following are withheld from the amount of accrued wages:
– the amount of income tax from individuals ();
– amounts accrued under writs of execution received by the organization, including for the payment of alimony;
– the amount of advances issued on account to employees of the organization, for which fixed time advance reports confirming the employee’s expenses have not been received;
– the amount of material damage caused by employees, etc.
Based on the manager’s order to recover the amount of damage from the employee and other documents mentioned above, the accountant writes off the amount of shortage (loss, damage) of material assets (Table 3).

Table 3

Accounting for the amount of shortage (loss and damage)
material assets

		Document	Account debit	Account credit
		Collation statement		10, 41, 43, 50, 58, 71, etc.
	Write-off of the shortfall amount within the limits of natural loss norms	Collation statement. Attrition rates	20, 23, 25, 26, 29, 44
Withholding the amount of material damage from the employee
	The amount of shortage (damage) of material assets is attributed to the perpetrators	Manager's order, agreement, employee statement
	The difference between the market (reimbursable) value and the accounting (book) value of the missing property	Accounting information. Written commitment from the employee
	Repayment of the amount owed by MOL for compensation for material damage	Pay slip (receipt cash order and employee statement)
	Revenues of the reporting period are recognized	Accounting information
If the employee is found guilty by a court decision
	The amount of shortage (damage) is written off for compensation by the employee	Order (instruction) of the head
	Recovery of damages by court decision	Performance list
	The amount of recovery is less than the amount of the shortfall	Accounting information
	Deducted from wages according to writ of execution	Payslip
If the employee is found not guilty
	The amount of material damage at book value previously attributed to the employee
	The amount of shortage of material assets is included in other expenses of the organization	Accounting information
	The amount of the shortfall, the collection of which was refused by the court or arbitration authorities in the NPO	Decision of investigative or judicial authorities
If the employer refuses to recover the amount of material damage from the employee or if there are no perpetrators
	The amount of shortages and damage to relevant material assets is taken into account	Collation statement		10, 41, 43, 50, 58, 71, etc.
	The amount of shortage of material assets is written off as other expenses of the organization	Accounting information
	The amount of the shortfall for which the perpetrators have not been identified by the NPO	Accounting information

A decision of administrative authorities or a court verdict against an employee also serves as a basis for bringing to financial responsibility.
Determining the exact amount of material damage is necessary for both accounting and tax purposes. If the employee is ready to voluntarily compensate for the damage caused, then in tax accounting the corresponding amount is included in non-operating income on the date the debt is recognized, and if the issue is resolved in court - on the date the court decision enters into legal force.
Simultaneously with the reflection of the amount of non-operating income in tax accounting, the organization has the right to include in non-operating expenses the amount of damage caused by the employee. An organization’s voluntary refusal to collect a debt from a guilty employee deprives it of the opportunity to take into account expenses from shortages and damage to property for profit tax purposes.
Most courts also believe that in the event of shortage or damage to property, the organization is not obliged to restore the “input”. , previously accepted for deduction for missing (stolen, lost or damaged) property, does not need to be restored, since such a basis for restoration is absent in clause 3 of Art. 170 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, as indicated by the Decisions of the Supreme Arbitration Court RF.
Thus, financial responsibility under labor law is borne by persons who are members of labor relations with the organization, including temporary workers, seasonal workers and part-time workers. Issues of deductions from employees' wages for the amount of compensation for damage caused to the organization relate not only to compliance with labor law standards, but also to accounting. Moreover, settlements with personnel are carried out in each organization. That is why, in our opinion, the topic of the article is quite relevant.

Bibliography

1. Regulations on accounting and financial statements in the Russian Federation: approved by Order of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated July 29, 1998 N 34n (as amended on December 24, 2010 N 186n).
2. Labor Code of the Russian Federation dated December 30, 2001 N 197-FZ (as amended on December 30, 2015).
3. Suslova Yu.A. Arbitrage practice on issues of material liability of employees // Accounting. 2014. N N 3, 4.
4. Article-by-article commentary on Labor Code RF. 3rd ed., revised. and additional / Ed. A.V. Kasyanova, E.V. Shestakova. M.: GrossMedia, ROSBUKH, 2015.
5. Klokova A.V. Financial responsibility of the employee: legal registration and accounting: professional recommendations. M.: Omega-L, 2008.
6. Letter of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia dated November 16, 2011 N 22-2-4852.
7. About enforcement proceedings: the federal law dated 02.10.2007 N 229-FZ.
8. Chart of accounts for accounting of financial and economic activities of organizations and Instructions for its application: approved by Order of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation dated October 31, 2000 N 94n.
9. Guide to personnel issues. Material liability of the employee. [Electronic resource]. Access from the reference legal system "ConsultantPlus".
10. Minnegalieva L. Compensation for damage in case of financial theft by an employee // Labor law. 2015. N 2.
11. On approval of lists of positions and work replaced or performed by employees with whom the employer can enter into written agreements on full individual or collective (team) financial responsibility, as well as standard forms of agreements on full financial responsibility: Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated December 31, 2002 N 85.
12. Letter of Rostrud dated October 19, 2006 N 1746-6-1.
13. On the application by courts of legislation regulating the financial liability of employees for damage caused to the employer: Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated November 16, 2006 N 52.
14. Vikulova N.A. Disputes with personnel regarding damage to property and lost profits // Labor Law. 2015. N 4.
15. Dunaev P. Errors of the employer when collecting damages from financial responsible person// Kadrovik.ru. 2015. N N 5, 6.
16. Busygina Yu. Main rules for deductions from workers’ wages // Entrepreneur’s Arsenal. 2015. N 9.