Xero Top Tips - Year-End Processes

With many accounting year-ends just recently passed, please find below a checklist of year-end processes to complete, before passing across to us to prepare.

Although tailored to Xero, the main points will be applicable to all year-end processes.

Please ensure that all bank transactions are reconciled for the year. In Xero, running a Bank reconciliation report will indicate this as well as show your calculated balance.

Please then ensure you check the closing position to your physical (or online) bank statement as connection issues can result in this being wrong. Bank account > Vertical ellipsis > Reconciliation report.

Please also reconcile post year-end transactions, so these can be viewed in the reports and considered when reviewing late transactions.

Please ensure that you have submitted your VAT return for the period covering your year-end and, if additional workings are used, please provide these.

Please check for any mis-postings or duplicated invoices by running an ‘Account transactions’ report in Xero. Accounting > Reports > Account transactions > select your accounting period in date range.

Please check these by running a report called ‘Aged Receivables Detail’, under Accounting > Reports as at your year-end date. This should only include sales invoices dated within your accounting period that you didn’t receive payment for until after your year-end.

This is the opposite of debtors above. Please check these are correct by running a report called ‘Aged Payables Detail’, under Accounting > Reports as at your year-end date. Please ensure that this only includes outstanding bills that are within your year-end but not paid until after your year-end.

Please provide details of any new HP or loans taken.

Uploading PDF’s or photos to transactions included in Xero is a great way to provide this additional information. You can use this function on bills, invoices or receive/spend money transactions. Just click on the ‘Add Details’ button on the reconcile screen.

My last two points are more general to the year-end process and not necessarily Xero tips.

Please do provide some additional notes or narrative – either by email, letter or via a call - to highlight any significant changes from last year and/or to point out anything that has changed.

We aim to get stock sheets out to you as close to your year-end as possible. Alternatively, please write all your stock numbers and values down as close to your year-end as possible and include with the year-end information.

This is by any means an exhaustive list, but I hope it helps provide some structure to the year-end process and the information we require before we start the preparation.