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When compiling your year end, our job is to verify that your bookkeeping numbers match third-party proof. What works amazingly well is setting you up for success during our client onboarding process, which organizes secure data feeds for your bookkeeping and pertinent financial records. This saves you time and expense compiling documents and reports for your year end – we’re big fans of efficiency! There are some great cloud accounting options that can automate your whole process, including favourites such as QuickBooks Online, Wave, Xero and FreshBooks. The list continues to grow, and we also work with enterprise and securities software suites such as Caseware and Wealth Write.Up.
The following is a basic list of information and records necessary to complete your year end. The checklist is not intended to be an entire list of all the possible documentation that you may need, as each corporation has a unique tax situation. We will do our best to find anything missing and inform you:
Trial Balance
A summary of the amounts in each bookkeeping account
General Ledger
A listing of all your transactions, preferably in Excel (not a list of journal entries)
Contracts
Any contracts signed for loans/leases given to someone, or loans/leases payable from your Company on any items. (IE: office space, vehicle, land, equipment leases/loans, etc.)
Bank Statement(s)
The last fiscal month of your year-end for all OPEN bank accounts under your business (including bank balances with a zero balance)
Bank Reconciliation
Proof that your bookkeeping records reconcile to all bank statement balances
Investment Statement
If there are investments in your company, we will need the statement of the last fiscal month of your year-end reconciled to your bookkeeping records
Accounts Receivable List
What you have invoiced customers for the work you have performed or the goods you have sold, but your customers have not paid you for as of your year-end date
Prepaid Expense List
Any money you pre-paid someone that they are holding for services or goods not yet received (IE: prepaid rent, vehicle lease deposit, security deposit, etc.)
Leases/Loans Receivable
Any money owing to your company (short or long term), including from yourself as an owner
Capital Asset Receipts/Invoices
A capital asset is any single item over $500 that you did not resell to someone to make a profit. You bought it for use in your business (IE: computer, desk, vehicle, etc., patents, trademarks, etc.)
Accounts Payable List What you have been invoiced from others for the work or services that they performed for you or the goods they sold you, but you have not paid them as of your year-end date
Credit Card Statement
The last fiscal month statement showing that it is reconciled to your Credit Card Payable account (if any)
Provincial Corporate Notice of Assessment
Alberta and Quebec administer their own corporate income tax systems, requiring corporations to file separate provincial returns. If your business pay tax to one of these provinces, please provide the Corporate Notice of Assessment or Statement of Account to show the balance on account (if any)
Leases/loans Payable Any money owing from your company (short or long term) to someone
Office-In-Home Expenses For a template to pop up at the bottom of your computer screen that will help you calculate your expenses in this category click HERE. Once complete, please submit the spreadsheet to us as part of your year end documentation.
Business Expenses
For a list of eligible expenses, click HERE.
Vehicle Expenses
There are two ways you can claim these expenses – the ‘Detailed Method’ which means claiming the actual amounts spent, and the ‘Simplified Method’ which uses a flat rate per kilometre driven. Depending on the outcome, sometimes one method provides a better deduction than the other. For more information, click HERE.
For detailed information on what you can claim, click HERE