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36 Accounting Interview
Questions And Answers
Naukri Content Team | Interview Questions | 07 Mar 2024

Are you interviewing for the accounting job profile? If you are
wondering what type of questions you are likely to face in the
interview, we are here to help.

Below given is a list of common accounting interview questions

that can help you prepare well for your upcoming interview.

1. Define what is a balance sheet?

A balance sheet is a statement consisting of all the assets,
liabilities, and capital of a company at certain point.

2. What does Tally accounting

mean? Looking for a job?
Naukri'sTally accounting
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well as large businesses for business functionalities like

accounting, finance, inventory, payroll, etc.

3. What is the difference between

capital and revenue transaction?
Accounting involves two types of business transactions-capital
and revenue. Revenue transaction refers to the transactions
relating to the day to day activities. A capital transaction refers
to the transaction for long term objective such as the purchase
of a fixed asset.

4. What is the meaning of working

capital?
Working capital refers to the value of current assets minus
current liabilities that are used in day-to-day trading.

5. What is the meaning of premises

in terms of accounting?
In terms of accounting, the word premises refer to the number
of fixed assets that are shown in the balance sheet.

6. What is VAT?
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Naukri'sVAT stands
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placed on a product’s sales price. It stands for the price of ‘value

added’ on the product in its production stage.

7. What is the basic accounting

equation?
Accounting is all about measuring the assets, capital, and
liabilities of a business. Therefore, the basic accounting
equation is:

Assets = Liabilities + Owners Equity

8. How are accounting and auditing

different?
Accounting and auditing are two different terms. Accounting
means recording the daily financial activities of a business,
whereas, auditing is checking whether these events are noted
correctly or not.

9. What is retail banking?

Retail banking means carrying out financial transactions with a
retail client and not any other business or organizational
customers.

10. What are trade bills?

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Naukri'sTrade bills
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transaction.

11. What is double entry

bookkeeping and what are its rules?
Double entry bookkeeping follows the principle by which every
debit has a corresponding credit due to which the value of the
debit is equal to the total of all credits. This simply means that
when one account is debited at the same time another account
is credited by the similar account.

Rules followed

In the case of personal account: debit the receiver and

credit the giver

In the case of real account: debit is what comes in and

credit is what goes out

In the case of nominal account: debit all the expenses

and credit all the incomes

12. What is debit and credit note?

Debit note is nothing but an intimation note sent to an
individual dealing with the business stating that his account
will be debited for the purpose indicated therein. Whereas,
credit note is an intimation note sent to an individual dealing
with the business stating that his account will be credited for
the purpose indicated therein. Looking for a job?
 13. Can you name the different
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branches of accounting?
Different branches of accounting are:

Financial accounting

Management accounting

Cost accounting

14. What does the term dual aspect

mean in terms of accounting?
The term dual aspect means every transaction that you carry
out has two aspects, i.e., it affects two accounts in their
respective opposite sides. For example, to make a purchase, you
have to give cash in exchange for the product or service you
avail and when you sell something you get the money in
exchange for the sale you make. So in short, losing and
receiving money are the two aspects of a financial transaction.
Therefore, the transaction should be recorded in two places.

The concept of duality in terms of fundamental accounting

equation is:

Assets = Liabilities + Capital

15. Name the accounting events

that are a part of compound Looking for a job?
 entries?
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A compound journal entry is an accounting entry in which

there is more than one debit, more than one credit, or more
than one of both debits and credits. Accounting events that
generally involve compound journal entries are:

Different expenses related to diverse line items in a

supplier invoice

Payroll related deduction and payments

Overall bank deductions related to bank reconciliation

Customer invoice related financial receivable and sales

tax

16. What is inactive and dormant

account?
Inactive accounts are the accounts that are closed and will not
be used anytime in the future. Dormant accounts are accounts
that are not functional but can be used in the future.

17. What are fictitious assets?

Fictitious assets are assets that cannot be shown or touched, but
can only be felt such as rights, good will, etc.

18. What is the meaning of the

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general ledger account?
Naukri'sThe general
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maintains for recording information of a specific type of

transaction such as assets, liabilities, gains, losses, equities, etc.
In short, these accounts are maintained for recording all type of
transactions that are aggregated in the income statement and
balance sheet.

19. What are balance sheet

accounts?
Known as permanent accounts, balance sheet accounts are type
of accounts in which the balance is not closed in the end of
financial year and is carried forward to the next accounting
year.

20. What is marginal cost?

Marginal cost is the estimated cost of additional inputs that are
required to produce the output. The cost is calculated by
dividing the total cost change by the difference in product
output. This simply states the increase and decrease in the total
cost of the product due to the production of one extra unit in
the product.

21. What is the meaning of the term

overhead in accounting?
In terms of accounting, overhead means the value of indirect
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expenditures of a company i.e. the rent dues, salaries, etc.
 22. How many accounting
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standards are there in India and are

you familiar with each?
Possible answer:
There are over 41 accounting standards in India and I am
familiar with them. These standards are set by the Accounting
Standard Board (ABS).

23. What does deferred tax liability

stand for?
It stands for the fact that a company will be required to pay
more tax in the future due to its transactions in the current
period.

24. What are the accounting

applications you have used?
Possible answer 1:
I have experience in using Microsoft Accounting Professional,
Microsoft Small Business Financials, Financial Force, etc.

Possible answer 2:
To improve accuracy and simply the calculation process, I have
previously worked on software such as Tally, Zoho Books,
Microsoft Accounting Professional and others.

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 25. What is GST?
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It is good and service tax; a type of indirect tax that is charged

by the seller to the customer on the value of the goods or
service availed. GST was implemented in India on 1st July 2017.
This type of tax has replaced all the previously existing indirect
taxes in India.

26. What is bank reconciliation?

It is a process done by companies to ensure that their records
i.e. the balance sheet, general ledger account details, etc. are in
accordance with the bank's records.

27. What are different financial

constraints that can have an impact
on the company's financial
statements?
Some examples of financial contraints are:

Zero balance between benefits and costs incurred

Qualitative characteristics having no or zero balance

Having no clarity between true and fair view

presentation

Too much of delay leading to irrelevant information

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 28. What is the meaning of GAAP?
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GAAP stands for Generally Accepted Accounting Principles that

are issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India
(ICAI) and the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956. The
principles are general accounting standards that are followed
by the companies to summarize their accounting records into
financial statements and record the company's financial
information accurately.

29. In your view, what are the

concepts/terms that an accountant
should have good knowledge of?
Possible answer:
An accountant should have good knowledge of the following:

• Analyzing and reporting financial data

• Budget planning
• Account management
• Basic accounting principles and practices
• Knowledge of financial rules and regulations
• Knowledge of various accounting software's

30. What is cost objective and why

is it done?
Cost objective is the process of recording all the cost incurred
by the company in running the usual business. This is Looking
done fortoa job?
Naukri'sascertain
Official Blog the cost of loss and profit ratio of the company
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this to

find ways to control the cost.

31. What is a liability account?

It is a general ledger account of a company that records its
obligations, debt, customer prepayments, deferred income
taxes, etc. that are a result of the past transactions done by the
company.

Accounting HR Interview Questions

and Answers

32. How do you ensure your work is

error free?
Possible answer:
When I am in an extremely difficult situation, I am always open
to ask for suggestions from my team members. I have a habit of
reviewing everything before I send out the files on email or
show it to my seniors. I make use of software as well as
calculators to ensure I am doing the task correctly.

Read Some Accounting Concepts

33. What drew you to choose

accountancy as a profession? Looking for a job?
Naukri'sPossible
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Accountants are in great demand with opportunities across all

sectors and industries, and even in different parts of the world.
I feel it is a very challenging yet exciting job profile. Moreover, I
have always been interested in numbers and problem-solving
tasks.

Possible answer 2:
Accountancy is not just about numbers; it also helps an
individual develop his communication, leadership and
problem-solving skills. It highly satisfies me as I do not just
learn things on a professional level, but also on a personal
level.

34. Why should we hire you?

Possible answer 1:
The position that you are hiring for suits me the best. I am sure
that with the skills that I bring to the table, I would help the
company grow as I have a proven track record of managing the
company’s finances effectively.

Possible answer 2:
I possess the required qualification and skills for this job. I am a
pro with numbers and accounting software. I also have good
analytical skills, besides being good at mathematics, which I
believe are important for an accountant.

Check out detailed article on How to answer 'Why should I hire

you?'
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 35. Do you prefer to work alone or
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as a team?
Possible answer 1:
I like working in a team as I think two minds can do the job in a
better way than one. I also like brainstorming and collaborating
with my colleagues.

Possible answer 2:
I really enjoy collaborating with a team and brainstorming
ideas, but I can work independently too to get things done. For
the most part, I do prefer working alone as I think it helps me
work faster and meet the deadlines.

36. Do you have any questions for

us?
You can ask general questions about the company culture or
specific questions related to your profile. Some of the sample
questions to ask:

What accounting softwares are used in the company?

What are the main projects the team is working on

currently?

What are the existing challenges of the accounts

department?

How often are the financial review meetings conducted?

What are the next steps in the interviewing process?

Looking for a job?
Naukri'sCheck out
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Tips for answering accounting

interview questions
Let us take a look at some important tips to answer accounting
interview questions.

Accounting standards: Before the interview, ensure you

are aware of all the basic accounting standards as
knowing them is a basic requirement that a company has
even when recruiting a fresher.

Accounting software: Today all the companies, big or

small, make use of accounting software for a speedy and
reliable process. Hence, it is important that you are well
aware of how to use various accounting applications.

Narrate your experience: Utilize stories or your

previous work experience to tell the employer about how
you have helped your previous company reduce costs or
gone out of your way to advise the management.

Be well prepared: Apart from preparing for the

common interview questions, do some company
research and read the job description carefully to
understand if you meet the basic requirement of the
tasks/skills required to get hired by the company.

Comprehension: Listen to all the questions carefully

before answering. Don’t jump on to answering before
actually understanding what the recruiter is trying to
question you on. Looking for a job?
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preparation.

Popular accounting books to read

Accounting Made Simple by Mike Piper

Warren Buffet Accounting Book

Financial Statements by Thomas Ittelson

Accounting Cheat Sheet by John Gillingham

Guide to Indian Accounting Standards by B.D. Chatterjee

Popular accounting blogs to follow

Jagoinvestor

Chartered Club

Accounting Coach

Tax Guru

Apna Plan

FAQs
Looking for a job?
Naukri'sQ1: What
Official Blog type of questions are asked for accountant
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interview?
A: In an accountant interview, you might be asked different
types of questions. Some questions might be about your
experience, such as "Can you tell us about your previous
accounting jobs?" Other questions might be about your skills,
like "How do you handle financial reports?" They might also
ask you about your knowledge of accounting principles, such as
"Can you explain the difference between accrual and cash
accounting?" Additionally, they might ask about your problem-
solving abilities, like "How would you handle a discrepancy in
the financial records?"

Q2: What type of questions are asked for accountant

interview?
A: Accounting is all about keeping track of money. It helps
businesses know how much money they have and where it's
going. There are a few basic things to know:

1. Income: This is the money a business makes from selling

goods or services.

2. Expenses: These are the costs a business has, like buying

supplies or paying employees.

3. Assets: These are things a business owns that have value,

like cash, equipment, or buildings.

4. Liabilities: These are things a business owes money for,

like loans or bills.

5. Equity: This is the difference between a business's assets

and liabilities. It's like the owner's share of the business.

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Naukri'sQ3: What
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A:
There are three main types of accounting:

Financial accounting: This type of accounting focuses on

recording and reporting financial transactions for external
stakeholders, such as investors, creditors, and government
agencies. It includes preparing financial statements like income
statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements

Management accounting: Management accounting is used by

businesses to help internal management make decisions. It
involves analyzing financial data to provide insights and
recommendations for improving performance, controlling
costs, and making strategic decisions.

Tax accounting: Tax accounting deals with preparing and filing

tax returns for individuals, businesses, and other entities. Tax
accountants ensure compliance with tax laws and regulations
while minimizing tax liabilities through deductions, credits,
and other strategies.

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