Ensure that everything that needs to be recorded, uploaded, and categorized is properly squared away, and you haven’t missed anything over the past month. If other people are contributing to the software, confirm that they’ve also done their part to the fullest. With so many tasks competing for your attention, it can be especially difficult to maintain your quality of work.

Most invoices are due within 30 days, noted as “Net 30” at the bottom of your invoice. Without a due date, you will have more trouble forecasting monthly revenue. Read more about getting paid faster in our guide to getting invoices paid on time. Solid bookkeeping practice is fundamental, but can also be overwhelming, even for those who specialize in it. Keeping financial records accurate and up-to-date involves a multitude of tasks. If you get behind, it derails your whole financial system, not to mention your business.

Review, Pay, and Record Invoice Payments: The Customer and The Vendor

Financial statements.The bookkeeping checklists above should help you get yourself organized. You or your bookkeeper have processed all the paperwork and put it
in a format your accountant can use. Your accountant will go through
your small business https://www.bookstime.com/blog/what-does-accounts-payable-mean bookkeeping reports, third party statements and government information reports submitted to CRA (or IRS). If you receive paper checks and cash payments, deposit them weekly to keep your cash flow healthy and your records up to date.

The items that are necessary for entering in the checklist are the sales invoices, purchase invoices, cheque payments, etc. And these items are the input of the checklist that you can make yours for the monthly accounting and finance. And these are the reason for which you need to own your accounting and the bookkeeping checklist. Accounting software like QuickBooks can help you generate financial reports, manage taxes, and take care of other small business accounting tasks.

Send Statement for Current and Past Due Invoices

This means the accountant has not been engaged to
review your paperwork. Taking stock of your company’s performance and health is essential for further planning and strategizing, so it is necessary to make sure that the data presented is accurate. One advantage of manually backing up your data is that it also allows you to revert to an earlier version if you deleted something you shouldn’t have. It also allows you to discover errors monthly bookkeeping checklist that would be easier to fix by going back a few days and reentering data, rather than making significant adjustments. There is also the issue of unauthorized overtime pay – if an employee works more than 40 hours a week, you can be held liable to pay for overtime even if you haven’t authorized it. It will also help keep track of payroll expenses so you can make changes to your labor mix and stay within your own budgets.

• Businesses can also manage their travel and entertainment expenses without the constant headache of submitting manual expense reports.
• Record and categorize all monthly and annual revenue and expenses for the month so that you can keep up with the financial status of your business on a monthly basis.
• By diligently following these checklist items, you can stay on top of your financial responsibilities, make informed decisions, and foster long-term financial stability.
• If you’re past the deadline on any invoices, make it a priority to settle it before the new month kicks off.
• Therefore, the month-end checklist should include (cash) journal entries for revenue accounts to be closed to the income summary account and expense accounts to be closed out to the income summary account.

Each month, there are a number of deadlines you need to meet to keep your clients’ books in order. These can include filing payroll taxes, sending invoices, and reconciling credit card accounts. The monthly bookkeeping is the records used in the maintenance of the daily as well as the monthly business expenses and other transaction that is used in the overall business. And the business organization keeps the check on the overall expenses by keeping in the items recorded in the checklist.

Key Monthly Bookkeeping Checklist Items (Free Template)

Remember, you can purchase my month-end procedures to ensure you have a more accurate set of books. When the work is complete, your accountant should provide you
with an adjusted trial balance, adjusting and closing entries. If your bookkeeper (is that you?) doesn’t have the knowledge to categorize your transactions properly … Creating budgets for various expenses, activities and projects isn’t hard, but sticking to these budgets can be difficult. The best way to reduce variances in budgets is to check for such things each month and then work toward corrective action. Analyze your cash inflows and outflows to identify potential financial challenges.

Properly maintaining your books is a critical part of running a business. Access to the financial status of your company can help you make better decisions and keep an eye on whether you’re progressing toward your goals. You must save in the bookkeeping checklist in the folder of the computer itself or in the print-out form.

Provide a summary of the cash balance

While you’d probably love to focus on design all day, the reality of running an interior design firm means that there are other important tasks that need to be addressed to operate effectively. If you need help with weekly, monthly, or annual bookkeeping tasks, we are here to help. At Remote Quality Bookkeeping, we provide cost-effective, efficient, and accurate bookkeeping services for small businesses and franchisees throughout the United States.

If you don’t have a budget, comparing your current income to previous months can be a good way to prepare for the future. Toward the end of the year, it is imperative to assess the company’s yearly financial performance and its current financial health. This is determined by preparing statements, including the profit and loss statement, cash flow statement and the balance sheet. Introducing the right accounting automation tools into your monthly accounting checklist is a game changer. It can help improve the accuracy of your books and records, save your team time, and prevent financial loss. The checklist is there to remind you of the various points required in the transaction process done in the business.