Bookkeepers
Maintain and evaluate records of financial transactions in account books and computerised accounting systems. Ensure financial records comply with regulatory and legislative requirements. May prepare and lodge business activity statements on behalf of organisations.
A deadline week for a small business
You are a bookkeeper working with several small business clients, keeping their records accurate and getting their tax statements lodged on time. It is Wednesday and three clients have statements due on Friday. One has sent you everything, one has sent you half and one has not replied at all.
Choose what you would do. Then see what happens. There are often good reasons for each choice.
I know it is a mess. Can you just put my ute loan repayments and the family holiday on as business costs? It will lower my tax and I will not tell anyone it was you.
Explain that only business costs can be claimed, and show what counts
He is annoyed, but he sees that the figures are right. You explain how the ute is split between work and private use. Clients are better protected by accurate books.
Do it for him just this once, since he is a loyal client and a good mate
The books are wrong, and the tax office could ask questions you cannot answer. Your name is on the statement, not only his.
Tell him you cannot work for someone who asks that
You protect yourself, but you lose a client who might have learned. A calm explanation first would have kept the relationship.
My bank feed says I got paid a large amount from a customer, but I cannot find the invoice. Can you just put it down as sales so it matches the bank?
Record it as sales, since the money is already sitting in the bank
The sale is counted in the wrong period, and the tax figure is wrong. The bank feed tells you what moved, not what it was.
Leave it out of the books until Maria sends the invoice over
That is careful, but the books are now out of line with the bank, and the statement is days away. You can record it as unidentified while you chase.
Ask Maria who the customer was and find the invoice first
She finds that it was a deposit for a wedding order. You record it correctly as money received in advance. Matching the bank is not the same as matching the truth.
I got a letter from the tax office saying my business activity statement is overdue. I am scared. I thought you had done it. What do I do?
Tell him you sent it and the tax office must have made a mistake
He believes you, and you have not checked. When the office shows it was never lodged, he feels lied to and leaves.
Tell him to call the tax office himself and sort it out
He does, but he is nervous and has no one with him. Your role is to help with exactly this kind of thing.
Check your records first, then tell him honestly what you find
You find that you had not been given his figures, and you tell him so. You lodge the statement together that day. Facing it early is better than hoping.
How it went
On Friday every statement is in and each client knows where they stand. Bookkeeping is steady, trustworthy work that holds a business together, and sometimes means saying no kindly. Would you enjoy being the person a small business relies on?
This is a simplified, fictional situation to help you explore. It is not professional instruction or a test of your ability.
Case study: The shoebox on the counter
A fictional case set in a freelance bookkeeping practice that works with tradies, cafes and small shops.
The situation
Dimitri ran a small bookkeeping practice. A plumber named Aziz arrived the day before the quarterly tax statement was due, carrying a shoebox of crumpled receipts and phone photos. He had not kept records for four months, and hoped Dimitri could sort it out in a day. Some of the receipts clearly belonged to the business, others looked personal, and several had no date.
What they did
Dimitri did not refuse the job, and he did not promise to make it all fit. He sorted the receipts into three piles: clearly business, clearly personal and unsure. He asked Aziz to look at the unsure pile and then finish what he could on the day. He explained what he could not include, and why, and lodged what was accurate. He then set up a simple app for Aziz to photograph receipts as he went.
How it turned out
The statement went in on time, based only on what was supported. Aziz paid a little more than he would have liked, but he understood why. By the next quarter he was sending photos weekly, and the books took half the time.
What would you do?
- Why did Dimitri not simply include everything in the shoebox?
- How would you explain to a client why a receipt cannot be used?
- What small habit would help most clients avoid this situation?