You can see a payment in the bank account, but cannot find its invoice. A supplier document appears twice in the folder, and the receipt from the last purchase is still in a jacket pocket. Your accountant asks for an explanation while you try to remember what happened several weeks ago.
Monthly document handover becomes easier when you check the same groups of records each time. The exact scope depends on your company's activity. The overview below is a starting point for a Slovak s.r.o. that you can adapt with your accountant to reflect your sales methods, employees and systems.
Sales invoices and related corrections
Provide a list of sales invoices together with the documents in the agreed format. Include invoices customers have not yet paid. Your accountant needs both issued documents and payment information to track open receivables.
Identify credit notes, cancelled orders and corrections separately. It must be possible to trace an adjustment to the original document and understand what changed. If you issue documents through an application, agree on an export that preserves those relationships.
Check the numbering sequence as well. A missing number may have an explanation, but you need to know what it is. Do not overwrite invoices already sent in a way that removes the original version. Instead, tell your accountant what was corrected.
Purchase invoices, including those awaiting payment
Supplier invoices belong in the records even if they have not been paid. Check email inboxes, supplier accounts and recurring subscriptions. An invoice may be available inside an application account without arriving as an email attachment.
Check that the document is addressed to the correct company and contains every page. If a supplier has only sent an order or payment request, distinguish it from the other documents for the transaction. Do not automatically treat documents marked as advance requests or pro forma invoices in the same way as final invoices.
Add a short explanation for unusual purchases. For materials, for example, identify the project they were used for if your company tracks costs that way. Record the purpose while the person who placed the order still remembers it.
Bank statements from every account used
Provide statements covering the whole agreed period and all company accounts. Include foreign currency accounts and any additional financial services you use. Your accountant needs a continuous record of transactions, rather than phone screenshots of selected payments.
Agree on the export format in advance. A PDF can support reading and checking, while a structured export may make processing easier. The data must be complete and connect with the previous month's records.
A bank transaction shows a movement of money, but may not explain the entire underlying transaction. Relevant supporting documents still need to be found. The Slovak Accounting Act requires accounting transactions to be supported by accounting documents. Slovak Accounting Act, Sections 6 and 10.
Cash and purchases paid outside the company account
If the company uses cash, prepare the relevant cash documents and supporting records. Explain deposits and withdrawals whose purpose is unclear. Check that the cash overview corresponds with what the company actually records.
Receipts must be readable and complete. A photograph should show the whole document, including details near the edges. Several overlapping receipts or pictures taken in poor light may be unusable.
If a managing director or employee paid for a company purchase personally, add their name and state whether they have been reimbursed. Do not send the same purchase again without explanation simply because the company later repaid them. Preserve the link between the purchase and its settlement.
Card terminals and payment gateways need their own reports
A card payment reaching the company bank account may not correspond to a single order. The provider may send a combined settlement after deducting fees or taking refunds into account. Your accountant therefore needs reports from the relevant service as well.
Provide payment, fee and refund information in the agreed breakdown. For an online store, it helps if a payment can be matched to an order. During regular handovers, check which dates the gateway report uses and how they relate to the bank statement.
Tell your accountant before introducing a new payment method. Agreeing on an export is easier than untangling several months of combined settlements that have simply accumulated in the bank account.
Contracts, assets and events invoices do not explain
Accounting also needs information about events that do not fit a list of routine invoices. These might include a new loan agreement, a lease, an asset purchase or disposal. Provide the related documents and dates.
If you hold stock, agree on how inventory records will be supplied. The company must be able to explain movements and differences found during checks. The accountant cannot work these out from sales invoices alone.
Similarly, report an insured loss, an insurance payment received or a payment dispute. A brief explanation and supporting documents can establish the context. The aim is to record the circumstances while the event is still being handled.
Keep payroll information separate
If the company has employees, monthly processing includes working time records and changes affecting pay. Starters and leavers need separate attention. Send this information according to the agreed deadlines, rather than waiting to include it with the final invoice.
Store and transfer sensitive personnel records with restricted access. Not everyone who can upload a supplier invoice needs to see payroll information. Hiring Your First Employee in Slovakia explains the preparation of this work in more detail.
A final check before handover
Before closing the month's document set, review the bank transactions and invoice list. Add an explanation for each unclear payment or record it as an outstanding question. Check for duplicate versions and for accounts or services introduced during the month that have not yet been included.
Mark anything still awaiting a supplier response or internal approval. Your accountant will then know it is a recognised gap and who is handling it. When the document arrives later, send it as an identified addition.
After the first few months, shorten or extend the checklist to suit actual operations. A business without stock does not need inventory records, while a shop needs to pay more attention to sales receipts. When discussing accounting with Hanesy, go through one actual month and establish which groups of records your company will provide regularly.