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Tips to help you (book keeping 101)

Book Keeping Basics

Shoe boxes and shopping bags of loose receipts are common - but it costs you more for us to sort them out (hence accounting fees). So here are a few simple tips to help you manage your paperwork.


Keep book keeping for your business and personal life separate. Have two bank accounts - one for living costs and one for business transactions.


Keep your current years records in a ring binder. Have the following divisions:

  • Client invoices - who owes you
  • Bills to pay - who you owe
  • Bank Statements (Behind each statement file money paid or received in same order as the bank statement)
  • Loan Statements
  • Copy of important invoices and documents
  • if you do your GST, PAYE etc have additional divided sections for these.

If you have more than one business have a folder for each.

We also suggest you have another smaller folder for your personal items like interest and dividend certificates as well as donations (we aren't really interested in your personal shopping habits).


Don't be afraid to ask us or to modify the above to suit the size or complexity of your life and your business. - The above is only a guide.

More Business Tips for you

End of Year Preparation

To speed things up so you get the information about your performance quicker, we will ask you for some information about yourself, your family and business situation.


If you can provide this in the first instance it cuts down on the time spent processing your information.

This includes ensuring the book keeping basics have been done and supporting documents are provided.


Important items include:

  • Major Asset purchases and disposals
  • Stock on Hand information (including livestock)
  • Legal costs
  • Insurance documents and splits
  • Vehicle log books
  • Unusual or substantial repairs or maintenance
  • Dividend and Interest Certificates (both business and personal)
  • Your contact details (email, physical, postal, mobile and landline)
  • Changes in your family situation (Working for Families)
  • Donation Receipts

Again, if you're not sure what to include, we are only a phone call away

Tax Tips

The IRD tends to look closely at certain aspects of business to ensure fairness.


We find several key items are easily solved by regularly reviewing what you could claim a tax deduction for.

  • Phone usage​
  • Power
  • Insurance
  • Motor Vehicles
  • Legal Fees
  • Entertainment

Also, if you are about to have a major change in your business, tell us about it before it happens, just in case there are tax matters that need to be considered.


A quick phone call or email can save a lot of hardship later down the path.

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