If you are an accountant or even deal with finances and accounts of a company then knowing about vouchers is just as important as knowing about things like the cash memo format or invoice format. Click here to learn more. A voucher is a document used by a company’s accounts payable department to make sure that a payment was made for certain goods or services. It helps to track reimbursements, refunds and credits.Essentially, it’s an acknowledgement of a payment that has been made, and in some cases, it also acts as proof of the payment. For example, let’s say you are buying something from a business that uses vouchers—you give them your money, they give you the voucher, and then you submit the voucher to the company that gave you the voucher so that they can pay the company that sold you what you purchased
They can be used for any number of things, such as the purchase of goods, the services rendered by an individual or company or the cost of shipping and handling. The voucher is designed to provide information regarding who received the item or service and from whom—the name and address of the vendor, for example—and what that person was reimbursed for. The document also typically includes the signature of whoever authorized payment as well as that of whomever it was paid out to.
What is the structure of a voucher?
So now that you understand what is voucher let’s take a quick look into it structure and its details.
Vouchers are numbered consecutively as they are created so that they can be easily identified about other vouchers. They are organized into files by month and year so that it is easy for those who handle them to find specific documents if necessary. Vouchers may be kept on file for several years before being destroyed, with some companies keeping them indefinitely and others destroying them after a specified amount of time.
How is a voucher be issued?
Vouchers are issued in many different ways. The most basic way is a direct transfer of funds from an account with the company issuing the voucher to the vendor who will provide the product or service specified on the voucher. Another method is an electronic transfer of funds directly from the issuing account to the vendor’s account once the voucher is redeemed for payment. Vouchers could also be redeemed through a physical establishment such as a retail location where the store clerk would take the voucher number and manually input it into company computer systems to credit your account for the value of your voucher. Many businesses offer gift cards which operate like vouchers, but are not redeemable for cash—you should check before purchasing to make sure you know what you’re receiving. The most common forms of vouchers are discount cards, and they can be used at any establishment listed on them upon presentation.
