What to do now the tax year has ended
April means one thing to the self-employed: a new tax year.
This is the perfect time of year to take stock of the previous year’s finances, and look at how to make improvements to your finances in the coming year. There are many ways to do this, and we’ve found some great resources and advice to help you.
One of our accounting software partners Xero has published a very helpful year-end accounting checklist for small business owners. While focused on the end of the tax year rather than the start of a new one, it is certainly worth going through this list to see if you have any loose ends to tie up.
You can download the checklist as a pdf here.
The next stage is to make a plan for the year ahead. Assuming your books from the previous year are up-to-date, it’s time to comb through them to find answers to questions like:
- Did I spend too much money? If so, where could I cut back?
- Which customers are worth the most to my business? How can I get more customers like these ones?
- Which customers wasted my business’s time and resources? How can I avoid working with these kinds of customers in the future?
- Am I paying people to do things technology can do?
The last point is especially important, especially when it comes to bookkeeping. Moving from spreadsheet accounting to modern accounting software like Xero can dramatically reduce the amount of money you need to spend with your bookkeeper – in fact, you may not need one at all! Using these platforms should also bring your accountant’s fee down, as they will have all the information they need at their fingertips when it’s time to submit tax/ VAT returns. Better still, employ the services of an online accountant who provides modern software as part of an integrated service.
