Month-End Close Checklist for Startups
A month-end close is the fixed set of steps that turns the month's transactions into reliable accounts: reconcile cash, check sales and purchase cut-off, post payroll, depreciation and accruals, reconcile tax and loan balances, review the trial balance and sign off. A written checklist with owners and working-day deadlines makes the close faster and repeatable. Download the free Excel checklist to track it.
Cash and bank
- Download statements for every bank and cash account
- Reconcile each account to the ledger
- Clear or explain reconciling items that are more than 30 days old
Sales and receivables
- Confirm every sale in the month is invoiced (cut-off)
- Review receivables ageing, chase overdue items and decide on provisions
- Review credit notes and unapplied receipts
Purchases and payables
- Enter all supplier invoices received for the month
- Reconcile statements for your main suppliers
- Accrue goods and services received but not yet invoiced
Payroll, assets and accruals
- Post payroll and reconcile to the payroll report
- Accrue leave, bonuses and end-of-service obligations
- Record asset additions and disposals and post depreciation
- Release prepayments and post accruals
Tax, loans and intercompany
- Reconcile the VAT or GST control account to the return workings
- Reconcile payroll tax, PAYG or social insurance liabilities
- Agree loan balances to lender statements and accrue interest
- Agree and eliminate intercompany balances
Review and sign-off
- Run the trial balance and review unusual balances
- Prepare the profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow
- Compare to budget and the prior month and write short commentary
- Update the 13-week cash forecast with actuals
- Finance lead signs off and the period is locked
How long should the close take?
It depends on the size and complexity of the business and the quality of the records. A useful target is to agree a fixed working day for delivery, write it down and tighten it each quarter. OmniScope360 sets the close calendar and delivers a management pack on that day.
Frequently asked questions
A fixed set of steps that finalises the month's accounts: reconciliations, cut-off checks, accruals, depreciation, tax and loan reconciliations, review and sign-off.
Who should own each step?Assign an owner and a working-day deadline to every task. The finance lead reviews and signs off.
Is there a free checklist?Yes. OmniScope360 offers a free month-end close checklist in Excel on the templates page.
Want this set up for your startup?
Book a free discovery call. We review your numbers and agree what to fix first, with no cost and no obligation.
Written by Akram El-Karrar, CPA, from the work we do for startups every week.