If you ever meet someone, that isn’t a finance minded person, that enjoys doing taxes you might want to get them to a doctor. Fact is, even some that are finance minded groan, just a little bit, when it comes to tax time.
We change that tax time can be time consuming, but what we can change is how much of a hassle it is. If you keep a simple checklist with your account documentation, you can easily organise your records so that the end of the financial year is smooth as.
A year already?
Kicking off your file is something that you could have done last year, keep together the final financial statements, tax return, depreciation schedule, and any ATO correspondence from the previous financial year. This will give you a great indication of how things went this year verses last.
Transactions
This is when setting up your online bookkeeping software correctly is going to pay off big time! You can easily export your reconciled file, copy of your bank statements and reconciliations as of 30 June. If you keep them in a folder at the end of the month when you have reconciled your accounts everything should be a few short clicks away.
Old School
If you are not using cloud-based systems to keep all your recorded digitally, then you will need to get that old school box out with your cheque payment details, receipts, bank reconciliations, and your paper bank statements from 1 July to 30 June. While it’s not as high tech, it works just as good as long as you have kept everything.
That plastic card
If you have a credit card, you are going to need the statements for those as well. Simple stuff really. However, if you have a private card that you have used for business as well, you are going to need the statement and the receipts.
Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable
Another reason that cloud-based accounting is great because these reports of trade debtors and creditors can easily be compiled and ready to go. Note, for Accounts Receivable you will also need a list and details on any bad debts that have been written off.
Employee Entitlements
You will need to show how much leave and possible long service leave has been generated for any employees.
Other transactions
This list is a generalisation, but you might also need details on investments, prepayments, any fixed assets and capital gain where any applies.
Liabilities
The motherload of documentation, which again is easy to collect if you have been properly using bookkeeping software for the financial year. You will need details on leases, hires, loans, Salaries and PAYG, and Super.
Of course, if all of this fills you with dread, you can do what many Sunshine Coast businesses have done and leave this up to
Balanced Bookkeeping and Business Solutions.
Xero, Myob Bookkeepers & Tax Accountants Sunshine Coast