Electronic document: how to work with it?

Electronic documents have the same legal force as paper documents. Their validity and use are regulated by Law №851. Today, electronic document management is a common practice in many businesses.

What is an Electronic Document?

An electronic document is information presented in the form of electronic data. It contains mandatory requisites. If they are not specified, the document will have no legal force.

An electronic document can be processed using any electronic tools, including government, accounting, and other services that support modern electronic document management.

Mandatory Requisites of an Electronic Document

Law №996 defines the structure and format of an electronic document. When filling it out, the following requisites must be indicated:

• Title,

• Date of creation,

• Company name,

• Content,

• Position of the responsible person,

• Electronic signature of the entrepreneur.

Key characteristics of an electronic document:

1. Authenticity: only factual transactions, nothing extra.

2. Integrity: the content of the document cannot be changed after it has been signed with an electronic signature.

3. Accessibility: an electronic document can be used at any time.

Advantages of Electronic Documents Over Paper Documents

Several key advantages:

• Fast exchange, processing, and signing: an entrepreneur receives a notification when a document arrives in the electronic service (EDMS). They can view, process, sign, and download it to a computer or phone.

• Efficient management: electronic document management services allow tracking the movement of documents, their approval, and signing by partners.

• Electronic archive: no need to allocate special storage space in the office. All business documents are stored in the cloud. A specific document can be found using a search bar.

• Security: services providing electronic document management ensure high confidentiality, so there is no need to worry about secure storage.

Legal Status of Electronic Documents

The law grants electronic documents the same legal status as paper ones. Therefore, they can be officially used for the following operations:

• Exchange of contracts between partners and contractors,

• Signing financial documents and agreements,

• Submitting reports to government agencies such as the Social Insurance Fund, Treasury, Tax Office, etc.,

• Managing accounting records: generating cash orders, invoices, waybills, etc.

For such a document to have legal force, it must be signed with an electronic signature. This can be a QES (Qualified Electronic Signature) or an AES (Advanced Electronic Signature). A QES is stored in the cloud, while an AES is kept on a physical device, such as a flash drive. However, both signatures have the same level of trust from government agencies.

What is the Difference Between a Copy and the Original of an Electronic Document?

An original electronic document is the document in its digital format containing all mandatory requisites. It has a registration date and an applied electronic signature.

A copy of an electronic document is a printed version that includes all the same requisites but exists only on paper. A notary must certify the copy.

However, there are exceptions when an electronic document is not considered an original:

• Birth, marriage, and inheritance certificates,

• Reconciliation acts,

• Company orders.

These documents can only be issued in a single original copy and printed on special paper or a form.

How to Verify the Integrity of an Electronic Document?

Each electronic document must be signed with an electronic signature to be legally valid. To verify its integrity, simply check this signature or seal.

A signed electronic document cannot be altered. All its information is encrypted. The electronic document management service ensures data confidentiality and protects documents from forgery.

An enterprise's electronic signature or seal can be verified for authenticity on the Central Certification Authority website. Here, you can also find details about signatories, signing dates, etc.

Where Are Electronic Documents Stored?

An electronic document is stored in a cloud service. It can be downloaded to a flash drive, computer, or smartphone at any time.

There are specialized electronic document management services, such as VCHASNO, Signy, ASKOD Online, Document.Online, and others. These services provide:

• Cloud document storage,

• Efficient and fast search system,

• Single-time document registration,

• Tracking document movement between partners,

• Unified business information database.

All documents can be filtered by status and signing date. Only authorized persons have access.

Is It Necessary to Print Electronic Documents?

Legislation does not require the mandatory printing of electronic documents. However, during an audit, a tax inspector has the right to request a copy of an electronic document, meaning a printed version. After printing, the documents must be signed and stamped.

If an inspector requests documents for review, they must be printed no later than five days before the end of the audit. The printed documents are accepted by the inspector and listed in a report. The removal of original documents is prohibited.

Can Errors in Electronic Documents Be Corrected?

Legislation does not specify a way to correct errors in electronic documents. The Ministry of Finance recommends correcting errors from previous periods using the "red storno" method.

When correcting an error, a bookkeeping reference should be prepared, specifying the nature of the mistake and the amount.

If an error occurs in the current period, a new, correct document should be created to replace the incorrect one.

How Long Should Electronic Documents Be Stored, and What Are the Requirements?

Electronic documents must be stored for the same period as their paper equivalents, which is at least 1095 days from the date of the submitted reports in which they were used. They must be stored on electronic media with the ability to verify document integrity.

When storing electronic documents, the following requirements must be met:

• The information stored in electronic documents must remain accessible for future use.
• The ability to restore the electronic document in its original form must be ensured.
• In addition to the document's content, information about its origin, creation date, and time must be preserved.