Corporate Year-End Checklist
When compiling your year end, our job is to verify that your bookkeeping numbers match third-party proof. What works amazingly well is if you can email or upload to your client portal, your login information and password for us to simply log into your bookkeeping cloud or your computer, allowing us to pull the information we need. It limits the list of documents and reports to be compiled by you for your year end – simple, right? There are some great cloud accounting options that can automate your whole process! May we suggest some of our favorites and our client’s favorites – QuickBooks Online, Wave and FreshBooks. The list continues to grow as we are constantly trying to get even more efficient. But if you don’t work that way, and paper and pen is your thing, no problem, we can adapt!
To follow 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 reconciled to your bookkeeping total,
Provincial Corporate Tax Statement – Alberta Tax & Revenue Notice of Assessment,
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 business expenses, click HERE
Vehicle Expenses – there are two methods to calculate vehicle expenses:
Regular Method:
[Total business kilometers/ (Total kilometers driven for business + Total kilometers driven for personal use)] x Total vehicle receipts. 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, submit the spreadsheet to us as part of your year end documents
Simplified Method:
Total kilometres driven to earn business income x CRA prescribed rate HERE. Once you have calculated the amount, please inform us when submitting your year end documentation.
Once you have your documents compiled, continue to follow the steps to submit your year-end and/or your login information HERE