1. Annual Bookkeeping Report as the primary administrative source for the production of SBS: current experiences
MERIKE PÕLDSAAR
Workshop
EFFICIENT WAYS OF STATISTICAL DATA COLLECTION FROM ENTERPRISES
22-23 March 2012
Luxembourg

2. Annual Bookkeeping Report electronically (1)
Annual bookkeeping report — the primary administrative source for annual business statistics.
According to the Estonian Commercial Code all Estonian enterprises (excluding sole proprietors) are obliged to submit their annual bookkeeping reports to the Commercial Register 6 month after the end of accounting year.
Starting from January 1, 2010 commercial undertakings, non-profit associations and foundations are obligated to provide their annual bookkeeping reports only electronically.
Project “Aruandluskorralduse lihtsustamine” (“Simplification of reporting arrangement”).
The government working group — cooperation of various institutions (since Oct. 2008):
Ministry of Justice, Centre of Registers and Information Systems, Board of Auditors, Ministry of Finance, Statistics Estonia, Bank of Estonia, Tax and Customs Board, Board of Auditors, Estonian Accounting Standard Board, Chamber of Commerce, etc 2

3. Annual Bookkeeping Report electronically (2)
The working group defined activities:
To create form for annual bookkeeping report which enables to submit main annual bookkeeping reports and notes electronically;
To create the list of variables needed for statistical data production to avoid double data collection;
To unify concepts i.e to create integrated taxonomy
To create the common environment for data submitting
The XBRL (eXtensible Business Reporting Language) was chosen as data transmitting standard. 3

4. Annual Bookkeeping Report electronically (3)
The project organisation
come to an agreement on elements of taxonomy
definitions of variables
come to an agreement on administration of the taxonomy system
define the needs to change legal acts
to inform the data providers about the changes in data submission
description of the task for the technical application — web solution
realization of the task 4

5. GAAP taxonomy
Government of Estonia approved the first Estonian GAAP taxonomy forms for profit-oriented entities and non-profit associations and foundations on
The third taxonomy approved on includes also forms for
companies compiling consolidating annual report
companies compiling liquidation and closing reports
companies whose main activity is to provide financial services
Since the submission of annual reports in XBRL is mandatory
Exceptions to the requirement:
Companies using IFRS
Companies with state ownership, who report to Ministry of Finance
Branches of foreign companies registered in Estonia

6. thereof in annual bookkeeping report
Taxonomy elements
Elements in taxonomy could be divided
Main reports (balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement, equity statement) — mandatory,
Notes — materiality principle (may be ignored if no effect)
Taxonomy elements described in regulation
Possibility to add elements — free text (not usable for statistical data production)
Not enough to produce statistical data!
EKOMAR
thereof in annual bookkeeping report
not included
(SBS) 
TOTAL
main report
notes
641
381
59,4% 72
11,2%
309
48,2%
260
40,6%

7. Main obstacles (1)
Materiality principle: financial statements shall set out all material information which affects the financial position, economic performance and cash flows of the accounting entity. Information in financial statements is considered material if failure to disclose the information could influence the business decisions made by the users of the statements on the basis thereof. Immaterial items may be accounted for and recorded in the financial statements using a simplified method.
Other problems:
Accounting year could be different from calendar year
Consolidated reports

8. Main obstacles (2) Amended Bookkeeping Law (01.01.2010)
Article 141 “Taxonomy of the annual bookkeeping report” (unofficial translation):
State or local government institution or other public law functions executing institution cannot require from accounting entity submission of taxonomy data what accounting entity has according to the law submitted to the Commercial Register for publishing with annual report.
Exceptions
The deadline is before the deadline of annual report
The period is different (calendar year ≠ accounting year)
Different definitions are used
2 year transition period for Statistics Estonia

9. Web solution
Annual bookkeeping reports to be submitted either by filling in the set forms or by uploading an XBRL instance file
Signed digitally (ID-card)
Generation of PDF report (can be signed digitally)
Starting from May 2010 Statistics Estonia started to receive annual bookkeeping reports data in XBRL format via X-road (an environment that would facilitate making queries to different main state databases in Estonia).
To avoid double data collection, it was decided to pre-fill statistical questionnaires with the data from annual bookkeeping reports in eSTAT (Statistics Estonia electronic data collection system).

10. EUROSTAT grant 2009
MEETS projects on Modernisation of Business Statistics
“Use of administrative data for business statistics”
The goals of the project
to harmonize statistical surveys using information from annual bookkeeping reports to facilitate the data transmission from administrative data sources,
to create the correspondence tables to transmit data from administrative data files to statistical data files as the XBRL uses the specific coding system of variables,
to create rules, formulas and tables to calculate statistical variables using information from annual bookkeeping reports as bookkeeping variables are not always directly usable.

11. Harmonization of statistical surveys using information from annual bookkeeping reports
It was important to simplify the use of data from annual bookkeeping reports and make easily understandable for data providers which data from annual bookkeeping reports are used in prefilled statistical questionnaires.
It was taken into account that unification leads to
change of the codes of variables,
change of the data checks in questionnaire instructions,
changes in data production software (input, transfer, production and output software).
At the same time unification
facilitates the creation of correspondence tables,
simplifies the preparatory work for the data publishing,
help in the creation of the universal data production software (technical development is in the phase of creation).

12. New correspondence tables (1)
The new correspondence tables had to be created to transmit data from administrative data files to statistical data files as the XBRL uses the specific coding system of elements.
The identification elements (ID-elements) in taxonomy are often very long and textual.
ID-element
Number of symbols
PropertyPlantAndEquipmentHypercubeExcludedElementsOfAcquisitionOfLandAndBuildingsExceptNewBuildingsAndRenovations
113
PropertyPlantAndEquipmentAcquisitionsAndAdditionsAcquisitionOfLandAndBuildingsExceptNewBuildingsAndRenovations
110
BiologicalAssetsFairValueMethodCurrentAssetsDecreaseOfValueFromDueToProductionOfAgriculturalProducts
100

13. New correspondence tables (2)
New codes are limited to 10 symbols, convenient for the SBS data production
Main reports — 735 statistical codes
Notes — 3272 statistical codes
Example: Income statement (extract)
ID-element (XBRL)
Statistical code
Current period
Previous period
Revenue
Ka_50_1
Ka_50_2
OtherIncome
Ka_60_1
Ka_60_2
ChangesInInventoriesOfAgriculturalProduction
Ka_70_1
Ka_70_2
ProfitLossFromBiologicalAssets
Ka_80_1
Ka_80_2
ChangesInInventoriesOfFinishedGoodsAndWorkInProgress
Ka_90_1
Ka_90_2
WorkPerformedByEntityAndCapitalised
Ka_100_1
Ka_100_2
RawMaterialsAndConsumablesUsed
Ka_110_1
Ka_110_2
OtherOperatingExpense
Ka_250_1
Ka_250_2
EmployeeExpense
Ka_260_1
Ka_260_2
DepreciationAndImpairmentLossReversal
Ka_270_1
Ka_270_2
OtherExpense
Ka_280_1
Ka_280_2
TotalProfitLoss
Ka_290_1
Ka_290_2
FinancialIncomeAndExpense
Ka_330_1
Ka_330_2
TotalProfitLossBeforeTax
Ka_340_1
Ka_340_2
IncomeTaxExpense
Ka_350_1
Ka_350_2
TotalAnnualPeriodProfitLoss
Ka_360_1
Ka_360_2

14. New formulas and rules to calculate statistical variables
Additional correspondence rules and formulas to use information from notes were created
Variable code in EKOMAR (SBS)
Name of the variable in EKOMAR (SBS)
Formula
EMTAK (= NACE)
c_10
Turnover
ABS(Ka_50_1+L34_100_1+L34_110_1)
c_11
sale to non-residents (export)
ABS(L32_90_1-L32_10_1_EESTI)
c_12
sale to EU Member States
ABS(L32_40_1-L32_10_1_EESTI)
c_755
Other revenue
ABS(Ka_60_1-L34_100_1-L34_110_1)
c_760
profit from the sale of tangible assets
ABS(L34_10_1+L34_20_1+L34_30_1+L34_40_1)
c_765
profit from revaluation
ABS(L34_50_1+L34_60_1)
c_21
operating subsidies for agriculture activities
ABS(L29_440_4+L29_550_3)
c_20
operating subsidies
ABS(L29_140_4+L29_300_3)
c_22
Change in work-in-progress and finished goods inventories
CASE WHEN (Ka_90_1+Ka_70_1)<>0 THEN (Ka_90_1+Ka_70_1) END
c_35
Profit/loss from biological assets
Ka_80_1
c_40
Capitalized self-constructed assets
ABS(Ka_100_1)
c_100
Merchandise
ABS(L35_30_1+L39_30_1)
EMTAK< or EMTAK>470000
ABS(L35_30_1+L39_30_1+L35_20_1+L39_20_1)
EMTAK>= and EMTAK<490000

15. eSTAT
The data collection channel for economic entities (enterprises, state and local government agencies, non-profit organisations, sole proprietors) for submission of data to Statistics Estonia
eSTAT was launched in February 2006
eSTAT is developing into a communication environment functioning between enterprises and Statistics Estonia
Authorized entry to eSTAT
by ID-card, Mobile-ID;
via Internet bank (Swedbank; SEB; Sampo, Nordea)
Sending out paper questionnaires was stopped in 2008

16. Received reports of economic entities by channel, Jan 2008–Dec 2011

17. eSTAT functionalities (for external users)
to view the list of statistical reports, which the particular enterprise has to present to Statistics Estonia during the current year
to view deadlines for presenting these statistical reports
to order reminders, which notify by about upcoming deadlines
to fill in statistical reports, i.e. to fill in cells at the website
to run controls, i.e. to check whether the statistical report is compiled as required
to correct statistical reports
to submit statistical reports to Statistics Estonia
to look at all earlier statistical reports submitted to Statistics Estonia by a respondent concerned
to administer users, i.e. to create, change and cancel rights and access
etc

18. Data collection using prefilled questionnaires
The eSTAT was improved for the year 2012 i.e. for the reference year 2011 data collection.
Statistical questionnaires in eSTAT are prefilled using administrative data.
Statistics Estonia downloads annual bookkeeping reports (ADAM)
every night — at the moment, several times per day — high season).
The administrative data are converted into the statistical format by a new transformation system (VAIS).
The information from annual reports is preloaded to eSTAT
every morning at 8 o’clock — at the moment, several times per day — high season).
Data provider has to fill in only the gaps i.e information not available from annual bookkeeping report.

19. prefilled (yellow cells) added or changed by data provider
eSTAT. SBS survey EKOMAR: Income statement (1)
prefilled (yellow cells)
added or changed by data provider
does not exist (=0)

20. prefilled (yellow cells) added or changed by data provider
eSTAT. SBS survey EKOMAR: Income statement (2)
prefilled (yellow cells)
autosum
added or changed by data provider
does not exist (=0)

21. eSTAT. SBS survey EKOMAR: Income statement (3)
Data providers are informed about the data source and the transformation made
Example: personnel costs = data from annual bookkeeping report “Income statement”
or from note “Personnel costs”
or by summing up from three notes (costs and expenses)
admin variables used in calculation of statistical variables
data source
download time

22. Summary
Annual bookkeeping reports’ data (XBRL) transmitted from administrative source to Statistics Estonia immediately.
Preparatory work for the use of administrative data is laborious.
Statistical questionnaires in eSTAT are prefilled using administrative data.
The information from annual reports are preloaded and data provider has to fill in only the gaps — information not available from annual bookkeeping report.
The double data collection is avoided and the response burden of enterprises will be diminished.

23. Thank you!