{"id":4441,"date":"2026-04-20T08:46:35","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T08:46:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/?post_type=glossar&#038;p=4441"},"modified":"2026-05-12T10:13:03","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T10:13:03","slug":"internal-control-system-ics","status":"publish","type":"glossar","link":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/glossar\/internes-kontrollsystem-iks\/","title":{"rendered":"Internal Control System"},"content":{"rendered":"<nav class=\"toc\" aria-label=\"Table of Contents\">\n<h2>Table of Contents<\/h2>\n<ul>\n        <li><a href=\"#einleitung\">Brief definition<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#grundlagen\">Basics<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#recht\">Legal framework<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#einordnung\">Classification<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#tools\">Control areas<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#schritte\">Structure<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#praxis\">Practice<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#fehler\">Sources of error<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#faq\">FAQ<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#fazit\">Conclusion<\/a><\/li>\n      <\/ul>\n<\/nav>\n\n<section id=\"einleitung\">\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n          <p><strong>Internal Control System<\/strong> refers to the totality of organisational measures, rules, and controls within a company that ensure the proper, safe, and traceable execution of business processes.<\/p>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"grundlagen\">\n        <h2>Basics<\/h2>\n        <p>Ein IKS unterst\u00fctzt die <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/proper-bookkeeping\/\">Proper bookkeeping<\/a> and the quality of <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/financial-accounting\/\">Financial accounting<\/a>. It lays down responsibilities, control mechanisms and processes to ensure that business transactions are recorded and processed correctly.<\/p>\n        <p>Controls can be organisational (e.g. the four-eyes principle), procedural (e.g. approval steps) or system-supported (e.g. role and authorisation concepts).<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"recht\">\n        <h2>Legal framework<\/h2>\n        <p>Legal regulations require a comprehensible organisation of bookkeeping. In connection with the <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/gobd\/\">GoBD<\/a> is an IKS particularly relevant when invoices, bookings, and storage are carried out electronically.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"einordnung\">\n        <h2>Systematic classification in the compliance cluster<\/h2>\n        <ul>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/proper-bookkeeping\/\">Proper bookkeeping<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/gobd\/\">GoBD<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/process-documentation\/\">Process documentation<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/retention-periods\/\">Retention periods<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/digitale-archivierung\/\">Digital archiving<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/operational-review\/\">Company audit<\/a><\/li>\n        <\/ul>\n        <p>An internal control system effectively prevents errors, makes changes traceable, and clearly defines responsibilities.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"tools\">\n        <h2>Typical control areas<\/h2>\n        <ul>\n          <li>Voucher validation and approval processes<\/li>\n          <li>Account assignment and booking approvals<\/li>\n          <li>Voting and plausibility checks<\/li>\n          <li>Role and rights management in systems<\/li>\n          <li>Controls for process and system changes<\/li>\n        <\/ul>\n        <div class=\"snippet tip\">\n          <p><strong>Practical<\/strong> An internal control system is effective when controls are clearly described, responsibilities are defined, and implementation in daily operations is traceable.<\/p>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"schritte\">\n        <h2>Typical structure<\/h2>\n        <ol>\n          <li>Process recording and definition of responsibilities<\/li>\n          <li>Definition of suitable controls (preventive and\/or detective)<\/li>\n          <li>Documentation in processes and in the <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/process-documentation\/\">Process documentation<\/a><\/li>\n          <li>Regular review and adjustment upon changes<\/li>\n        <\/ol>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"praxis\">\n        <h2>Practical relevance<\/h2>\n        <p>A functioning internal control system supports the quality of bookkeeping and facilitates structured preparation for a <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/operational-review\/\">Company audit<\/a>. In combination with a current <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/process-documentation\/\">Process documentation<\/a> A coherent overall picture emerges from processes, systems, and controls.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"fehler\">\n        <h2>Typical sources of error<\/h2>\n        <div class=\"snippet warn\">\n          <ul>\n            <li>Unclear responsibilities and missing approval rules<\/li>\n            <li>Controls are defined, but not documented or not implemented.<\/li>\n            <li>Excessively broad system rights without regular review<\/li>\n            <li>Process or system changes without traceable documentation<\/li>\n          <\/ul>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"faq\">\n        <h2>FAQ<\/h2>\n\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n        <h3>Is a security clearing certificate mandatory?<\/h3>\n        <p>A comprehensible organisation and control of bookkeeping processes are assumed. The scope and design should match the company's size and process complexity.<\/p>\n      <\/div>\n\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n        <h3>Does this also apply to smaller companies?<\/h3>\n        <p>Yes. Even small businesses require appropriate organisational controls, such as clear responsibilities and authorisation rules.<\/p>\n      <\/div>\n\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n        <h3>How does IKS relate to GoBD?<\/h3>\n        <p>GoBD-relevant processes (document processing, booking, archiving) should be designed to ensure that controls support traceability and auditability.<\/p>\n      <\/div>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"fazit\">\n        <h2>Conclusion<\/h2>\n        <p>The internal control system is a central element of compliance in accounting. It creates structured processes, clear responsibilities, and traceable controls, particularly with digital bookkeeping.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <footer class=\"author\">\n        <strong>Author<\/strong>\n        <span>the BAS editorial team<\/span>\n        <span class=\"note\">Services pursuant to \u00a7 6 No. 3 and 4 StBerG, no tax or legal advice.<\/span>\n      <\/footer>\n\n      <p class=\"disclaimer\">\n        Brasser Accounting Solutions GmbH is a specialised accounting service provider and part of a corporate group with Quint GmbH (tax consultancy\/auditing) and Service Place \u00c5rj\u00e4ng AB (Swedish tax office). BAS exclusively performs services according to \u00a7 6 No. 3 and 4 StBerG and does not provide tax or legal advice.\n      <\/p>","protected":false},"template":"","glossar-kategorien":[21],"class_list":["post-4441","glossar","type-glossar","status-publish","hentry","glossar-kategorien-compliance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossar\/4441","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossar"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/glossar"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4441"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"glossar-kategorien","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossar-kategorien?post=4441"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}