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Or forward a receipt to your designated Shoeboxed email address.

• It’s also helpful for keeping track of what is selling and what isn’t.
• In addition to recording money coming in, part of your accounting duties is staying on top of cash going out.
• Below, we discuss the basics of creating a monthly bookkeeping checklist tailored to your business by exploring eight of the most important accounting tasks.
• In Financial Cents, you can create a project from this checklist template, making it easy for you and every member of your team to get work done.
• Don’t forget to download my checklist form HERE to use during your bookkeeping process.

You should also take the time to review your balance sheet and your statement of cash flows. I recommend hiring a financial consultant to go over your financial statements and budget with you, if not monthly then quarterly. They will save you money and help you set a financial road-map for your practice. This is also a service many bookkeepers offer, so make sure to ask about that during the hiring process. The next crucial monthly step is to collect the statements from the clients, including a bank statement, credit card statements, loan statements or other financial records. If this step is not already automated, you will need to collect these from your client or directly from the financial institutions if you have access.

Veterinary Bookkeeping Solutions

They can ultimately take assets or put liens on them, which negatively impacts your credit. If your staff members have different ways of completing work, it’s time to standardize your process to improve the quality and consistency of your firm’s work. Standardizing your processes through a checklist will save you from the headache that comes law firm bookkeeping with inconsistent work. You’ll also receive a number of important monthly statements that help you spot any “red flags,” places where your business could be in danger or areas where you may be able to improve. Ideally, vendors should offer 30 days to settle payments, you can often negotiate longer terms if your company is low on cash.

This step should be easy at this point because you’ve been doing it weekly. Go through these steps to make sure all transactions are in your books through the end of the month. As your business grows, there are a lot of tasks for a lot of clients that continue to grow, and it can be overwhelming, but having a monthly closing process can help. Similar to Accounts Payable Reports helping monitor the status of your bills, Aged Accounts Receivable Reports track if your clients are paying in a timely manner. Additionally, this report alerts you of any invoicing errors, like duplicate invoices, providing you the opportunity to handle the inconsistency and prevent overstating your revenue. Once you calculate and file your sales tax, begin focusing on any open deposit reports.

Navitance Specialized Financial Services Beyond an Inhouse Bookkeeper

Of course, you may find you would rather just have someone do these tasks for you. If that is you, you may want to consider hiring an outsourced bookkeeping service that understands the needs of nonprofits and churches. Some businesses might be more complicated and need more time or have more steps involved. Remember, if you dread this monthly task and have the revenue to support it, then it’s time to outsource. You’ll need to do this for every account that has a monthly statement.

It’s important to review any past due accounts and send reminders to those customers who are late on their payments. The sooner you can get a customer to pay their invoice, the more likely they are to pay. It’s also better to catch any accounting errors within the current month to prevent a snowball effect of errors from month to month. Also, transactions are more likely to still be fresh on your mind. This is also a good time to inspect your upcoming invoices to confirm that you’ve received the value you’re paying for before making payment. If your company sells physical goods, accounting software is an easy way to know exactly how much of each product you have on hand.

Download the Template

Have you sent out all of the invoices for any work you’ve completed or any progress billings that are due. You might find others, such as the statement of cash flow, helpful. If you missed something during your weekly bookkeeping, then this will catch those errors.

While the process of matching your bank balance to your bookkeeping records may be cumbersome, it’s an important protocol that will help you spot any errors or fraud. If you’re doing business in a state with an income tax, you’ll need to pay these taxes every month. Note that the amount and procedure for doing so differs from state to state. Accurate financial data provided through streamlined bookkeeping helps management make informed choices regarding budget allocations or investment opportunities. Streamlined procurement ensures that necessary supplies or materials are readily available when needed without delays or excess inventory.

Scan Documents and Receipts

One bill might say “due upon receipt,” while another might be “due within 30 days.” It can be confusing trying to keep track of different due dates. One of the benefits of using a payroll provider is that they will handle any 1099-MISC forms or W-2s, so you’re covered on that front. However, you will also need to file business income taxes, which will require you to submit either an IRS Form 1120 or an IRS Form 1120S.

If you write physical checks, this step will make sure those are all in there correctly. This will vary by business and by location but something to keep in mind to be completed regularly. These annual checks mainly cater toward regulatory and compliance requirements, along with reporting of performance to shareholders.

Owners draw, taking money right out of the bank account, getting a regular paycheck. Abacus the Accountant takes on the best (and legal) way to pay yourself in this week’s edition of Dear Abacus. You must keep the records of the sales invoices in the checklist that are used in preparing the bookkeeping for your business.