Swedish Accounting Terminology – Glossary
Accounting language can feel like a secret club. This glossary is your way in. Look up terms as they come up – in emails from your accountant, in Fortnox or in Vendion's admin.
Terms are sorted alphabetically. We've grouped them by category to make it easier to find what you need.
Core terms (the ones you meet first)
Bokslut (Year-end close) : Annual financial summary – income statement, balance sheet and notes. Required by the Swedish Bookkeeping Act and Annual Accounts Act.
Dagbok (Journal) : Chronological list of all vouchers for a day (or period). The clean "transaction list."
Debet (Debit) : Left side of a voucher. Increases assets and expenses, decreases liabilities and revenue.
Eget kapital (Equity) : The owner's share in the company. Formula: Assets − Liabilities = Equity.
Huvudbok (General ledger) : Summary of all accounts and their current balances. Shows where the money "sits" right now.
Konto (Account) : A numbered record where transactions are booked. E.g. 1910 (Cash), 3001 (Food), 2620 (VAT 12%).
Kontoplan (Chart of accounts) : The complete list of accounts a company uses. Vendion (and all Swedish companies) use the BAS chart.
Kredit (Credit) : Right side of a voucher. Increases liabilities and revenue, decreases assets and expenses.
Netto (Net) : Amount excluding VAT. 80 SEK net + 20 SEK VAT = 100 SEK gross (at 25% rate the numbers differ).
Brutto (Gross) : Amount including VAT. In Swedish restaurants, prices are always displayed gross.
Periodisering (Accrual basis) : Recording revenue in the correct period – when earned, not when money arrives. Main rule in Swedish accounting.
Skuld (Liability) : Money or obligation the company owes someone (supplier, Tax Agency, employees, guest holding a gift card).
Tillgång (Asset) : Resource the company owns (cash, receivables, inventory, equipment).
Verifikation (Voucher) : The fundamental accounting record. A dated entry with debit and credit sides that always balance.
VAT and taxes
Arbetsgivaravgift (Employer tax) : Statutory fee the employer pays on wages (31.42% in 2026). Booked on account 7510–7519.
Ingående moms (Input VAT) : VAT you pay to suppliers and can deduct (account 2641). Applies to purchases of raw materials, services etc.
Moms / Mervärdesskatt (VAT) : Tax on sales and purchases. Swedish rates: 6%, 12%, 25%.
Momsdeklaration (VAT declaration) : Report to the Tax Agency about the month's or quarter's VAT. Usually due the 12th or 26th of the following month.
Utgående moms (Output VAT) : VAT you collect from guests and must remit to the Tax Agency. Account 2610 (25%), 2620 (12%), 2630 (6%).
POS-specific terms
Betalmedel (Payment method) : How the guest pays – cash, card, Swish, invoice, gift card.
Kassa (Cash, 1910) : Physical cash in the drawer. When the guest pays cash, 1910 increases (debit).
Kassadifferens (Cash discrepancy) : Difference between counted amount in the drawer and the Z-report total. Booked against 3740 (rounding).
Kassaregister (Cash register) : Legal term for POS. Regulated by SKVFS 2014:9 (Cash Register Act) and requires a control box.
Kontrollbox / CCA (Control box) : Certified control unit every receipt passes through. Generates a control code tracked by the Tax Agency.
Kortfordringar (Card receivables, 1580) : Money card terminal companies owe you. When the guest pays by card, 1580 increases.
Klippkort (Stamp card) : Punch card – buy 9 get 10. No accounting entry at stamping, only at redemption of free item.
Lojalitetspoäng (Loyalty points) : Reward points the guest earns. NOT booked as liability (unlike gift cards) – it's an option, not an obligation.
Presentkort (Gift card) : Multi-purpose voucher per VAT Act Ch 5 § 40. Booked as liability on 2421 at issuance, VAT only on redemption.
Retur / Återköp (Return) : When an order is canceled after payment. Reverses prior bookings (negative credit on revenue, negative debit on payment method).
X-rapport (X-report) : Mid-day report without closing. Shows totals but doesn't create a voucher.
Z-rapport (Z-report) : End-of-day close. Zeroes the day's counters and creates a voucher. Must be run every day.
Öresavrundning (Penny rounding, 3740) : Small balancing corrections (±1 öre) when debit and credit don't match due to rounding.
Invoicing and customers
Faktura (Invoice) : Document sent to guest for later payment. Booked as receivable (1510) until payment arrives.
Kundfordran (Accounts receivable, 1510) : Money a guest/customer owes you. When an invoice is sent, 1510 increases (debit). When payment arrives, 1510 decreases.
Kreditfaktura (Credit invoice) : Reverse invoice – correction or return of a previous invoice.
Leverantörskuld (Accounts payable) : Opposite of receivable – money you owe a supplier. Account 2440.
Nettobetalvillkor (Net payment terms) : E.g. "Net 30 days" = payment due within 30 days of invoice date.
Accounts and audit
Bokföringslagen 1999:1078 (Bookkeeping Act) : Swedish law regulating bookkeeping. Requires every transaction to have a voucher and be kept for at least 7 years.
Bolagsverket (Companies Registration Office) : Authority that registers companies and receives annual reports.
Bruttomarginal (Gross margin) : (Revenue − cost of goods) / Revenue × 100. For restaurants typically 65–75%.
Bruttovinst (Gross profit) : Revenue − cost of goods (before wages, rent etc.).
Nettoresultat (Net result) : The bottom line after all costs, interest and taxes. "What's left."
Resultaträkning (Income statement, P&L) : Revenue minus costs = the year's result.
Balansräkning (Balance sheet) : Snapshot of assets, liabilities and equity at a date.
Revisor (Auditor) : Authorized professional who audits bookkeeping. Mandatory for larger companies.
Redovisningskonsult (Accounting consultant / bookkeeper) : Bookkeeper handling daily accounting for you – your everyday contact.
Årsredovisning (Annual report) : Official report to the Companies Registration Office about your business. Filed 6 months after fiscal year-end.
Legal and technical terms
BAS-kontoplan (BAS chart of accounts) : Standard chart of accounts for Swedish companies. Vendion uses it.
SIE-fil (SIE file) : "Standard Import/Export" – text file with accounting data that all Swedish accounting programs can read. Vendion exports SIE Type 4.
SKVFS : Swedish Tax Agency's statute collection. SKVFS 2014:9 regulates cash registers.
Skatteverket : Swedish Tax Agency.
Organisationsnummer (Organization number) : Unique 10-digit identifier for Swedish companies. Always included in SIE export.
K2 / K3 : Accounting regulatory frameworks. K2 for smaller companies, K3 for larger. Your accountant knows which applies.
See also
Next time your accountant emails "can you export SIE for the previous period so I can file VAT?" – now you'll know exactly what it means.
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