Failure to pay business taxes punctually or accurately is usually due to inadequate preparation. The following daily, weekly, and monthly tasks will help you keep your finances in order and avoid paying tax penalties:
Daily Accounting Responsibilities
1. Check Account Balances
Check your business bank account and credit card balances at the end of every working day. Doing this ensures that you won’t miss a single transaction.
2. Deposit Cash and Checks
Deposit all cash and checks on the day you receive them. Any delays might cause you to lose track of incoming revenue.
3. Reconcile Payments and Receipts
Make sure the transaction information entered into your accounting software matches your bank and credit card statements. Discrepancies will lead to inaccurate bookkeeping and tax filing.
4. Update Inventory Records
Running out of stock early or buying stock you don’t need can prove costly and muddle up your accounting. Avoid such mistakes by updating what goes in and out of your inventory daily.
Weekly Accounting Responsibilities
1. Pay Vendors and Suppliers
Paying vendors and suppliers on time prevents complications that could later disrupt bookkeeping and tax preparation.
2. Review Employee Timesheets
Review your employees’ timesheets two days before the end of each workweek. That way, you won’t miss overtime or other payments that might affect your bottom line or business tax calculations.
3. Compare Your Month-to-Date Profit and Loss with Your Budget
Track your spending regularly to avoid going over budget and having a lower-than-anticipated bottom line. The easiest way to do this is by comparing your business budget with your month-to-date profit and loss statement on a weekly basis.
4. Scan Your Documents and Receipts
Having digital copies of financial records makes it easier to find the documents you need and keeps you prepared for tax audits. This only works, however, if you store your scanned documents with easy-to-understand file names.
Monthly Accounting Responsibilities
1. Deposit Cash and Checks
Double check to make sure all of your cash and checks for the month are deposited into your bank account.
2. Reconcile Payments and Receipts
It’s important that you reconcile all of your payments and receipts to ensure all of your business transactions are accurate. By doing this daily and monthly, it will be easier to find and correct and errors in time for you to correct them.
Quarterly Accounting Responsibilities
1. Review Bank, Credit Card, and Reconciliation Records
Having a professional accountant reconcile your monthly financial records ensures that there are no discrepancies. MKS&H accounting experts can perform this task for you in a timely and efficient manner. Aside from balancing your accounts, our experts are trained to detect possible fraud.
2. Review Financial Statements with an Accountant
MKS&H can also help with monthly reviews of your company’s profit and loss (P&L) statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement. Hiring one of our experts to do this for you is the best way to catch potential financial problems before they wreak havoc on your finances.
3. File Your Returns
You must file tax returns and pay business taxes quarterly. Make your tax payments before April 15, June 17, September 16, and January 15 every year. MKS&H can handle the entire process on your behalf so you can avoid paying penalties for late or erroneous payments.
Contact MKS&H
At MKS&H, we provide leading accounting and tax services to businesses in various industries. Whether your business is foreign-owned or US-based, contact us today to keep your company compliant with relevant tax laws.
