Close the month
Month-end receipt checklist for bookkeepers.
A calm month-end is a visible checklist, not an archaeological dig through email, text messages, and random folders. Use this sequence to know what is in, what is missing, and what needs review.
Before the cutoff
- Set a cutoff date for each client and put it in the first request.
- List the recurring documents you expect: statements, rent, utilities, phone, card, or regular supplier invoices.
- Give the client one upload destination and say that photos and PDFs are both fine.
- Sort files into the month they belong to as they arrive, rather than waiting for one end-of-month pile.
- Keep the original file attached to every extracted detail so a reviewer can check it quickly.
At the cutoff
- Compare the expected-document list with what actually arrived.
- Review the items that have an uncertain vendor, date, amount, or document type.
- Send one named reminder for each missing gap. Include the upload link and the exact date you are closing.
- Mark documents that do not exist or do not apply so they do not become phantom reminders next month.
- Decide which open gaps must be resolved before bookkeeping and which can be recorded as pending client documents.
When the month is ready to hand off
- Confirm every included document is filed under the correct month and vendor.
- Confirm every exception has been reviewed, corrected, or explicitly left for later work.
- Export a machine-readable list and retain a folder of the original files with useful names.
- Record the remaining missing items and the date of the last request so the next follow-up is factual.
- Keep the finished month easy to retrieve without reopening the client’s inbox.
Three traps that make the close drag on
One vague reminder. It creates a new round of questions. Name the missing document and the deadline instead.
Trusting every extraction silently. Receipt sorting saves time only if uncertain results are easy to catch beside the original.
Counting a folder as complete. A month is complete when you can explain what came in, what did not, and what is ready to export.
Sorted Receipts turns this checklist into a live month view: client uploads go into one place, documents sort by month and vendor, low-confidence items wait for review, and gaps become a focused chase list.