Year-End Financial Accounting Checklist For Business Owners

Year-End Financial Accounting Checklist for Business Owners

With the year ending, many business owners panic realizing how far behind they are in their company’s recordkeeping.

If the case is the same with you, a year-end checklist can help you manage financials better.

Furthermore, a strategic review of finances at the year-end helps make sound financial decisions and future planning.

Why Do You Need an Accounting Checklist?

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To keep your business financials organized.

To ensure that no accounting tasks fall through the cracks.

To make it simple to train and enroll someone for your company's accounting, provide them with a clear list of responsibilities.

Here's What Else Can Happen if Accounting is not Done Right

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Costly Mistakes

Chances of IRS Audit (or Tax Penalties)

Misleading Reports

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Fewer Tax Deductions

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Payroll Problems

Late and Overdraft Fees

Difficulty in Securing Capital

The Cost of Lagging on Your Books

Whether you are behind by a few months or years, the reality is that poor accounting practices will cost you money — now and in the future.

According to a U.S. Bank study,

82% of businesses cited poor cash flow as a reason for their failure.

Follow this Year-end Accounting Checklist to Improve Financial Management

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Gather & Analyze Financial Statements Your financial statements are a lifeline for your business and help you understand your business’s financial performance and situation.

Some financial statements you must not ignore are;

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Review Accounts Payable & Accounts Receivable Examine both your payables and receivables to ensure you've settled all collections and debts; contact customers who have not paid or are late on payments. Look for pending bills and clear them asap.

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Reconcile All Checking Accounts Reconcile all of your company's financial transactions (including bank accounts, credit card accounts, payroll accounts, loans, lines of credit, and all other financial transactions) to maintain accurate records.

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Examine Your Business's Financial State to Plan Ahead Use important and helpful financial statements to assess and have an overall view of your firm’s current financial state. This will help you prepare a plan or budget for the next fiscal year.

Make sure you set a realistic budget and stick to it for desired results.

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Plan Your Taxes Tax planning is essential. Review all your financials to determine your tax liability, eligible tax deductions, and file your taxes on time, avoiding audits or penalties. Also, make sure W2 forms are distributed to all employees on time.

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Get Help with Accounts Management If you handle accounting for your firm, you might already be facing challenges while simultaneously managing finances and your daily jobs. Having an accountant in place will keep your books in order while you get more time for core business areas.

Need Help Preparing for Year-end Close?

At Cogneesol, we assist businesses across industries to streamline finance workflow, optimize accounting processes, meet compliance, ensuring smooth year-end close.

Partner With Us Talk to one of our experts today to learn about our accounting outsourcing services and pricing plans in detail.

Let's work together Get in touch with us to know about our services today

Call us +1 646-688-2821

Email us info@cogneesol.com

Visit our website www.cogneeol.com

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