The period checklist and VAT return prep

Two questions, one tab

Closing a client's period comes down to two questions: what does the VAT return say? and is the underlying data actually done? The Period tab answers both — the VAT return card gives you the filing numbers, and the checklist proves (or disproves) that they're built on complete data.

The VAT return card

The card is titled "VAT return (UStVA)" and renders three tiles in plain English, with the German filing terms as glosses:

• Input VAT (Vorsteuer) — the VAT the client can reclaim.
• Output VAT (Umsatzsteuer) — the VAT the client owes.
• Payable (Zahllast) — the net bottom line. When input VAT exceeds output VAT, the tile flips to a green Refund due (Vorsteuerüberhang) showing the refund as a positive number — no mental sign-flipping.

The computation includes VAT from invoices and VAT booked directly on transactions, covers reverse-charge self-assessed VAT, and is always shown in the client's base currency — a CHF or GBP client's numbers are never mislabeled as euros.

The 10-item checklist

Every item carries a live count, and where there's work to do, the item is a deep link straight to the tab and bucket that contains it — no hunting:

1. All invoices reviewed — an error state while anything is still pending.
2. N invoices flagged — corrections you're waiting on.
3. All invoices have a vendor assigned.
4. N invoices categorized as "Other" — the catch-all category is fine mid-month, not at close.
5. N reviewed invoices without a document — catches documents deleted after approval.
6. Foreign currency rates verified.
7. N transactions unresolved — links into the work queue.
8. N open client queries — receipts you've requested but not received.
9. N transactions uncategorized.
10. N cleared transactions without a receipt — the backstop to the receipt gate.

A period is flagged ready to attest only when every single item is green. There's no partial credit — which is exactly what you want from a checklist you're going to put your name behind.

The practical close workflow is simply: open the Period tab, click the first red item, clear that bucket, come back, repeat. Items 7–10 usually resolve in batches via bulk clearing and smart cohorts.

Also on the Period tab

• Review stats — total / pending / flagged / reviewed for the period.
• Totals — net, VAT, and gross.
• VAT breakdown by rate — count, net sum, and VAT sum per rate, useful for sanity-checking the return card line by line.
• Exports — per-client export buttons (CSV, PDF, and an accounting-format file) plus an export history table showing when, which format, which period, how many invoices, and which advisor exported. Every export is recorded in the audit log.

For the deeper report set — profit & loss, general ledger, trial balance — see accounting reports as XLSX.

Period selection

The period selector adapts to the client's VAT filing cycle: monthly filers see month pills, others see quarters, and "Full year", "All time", and a custom date range are always available. The selection lives in the URL and survives tab switches, so the checklist, the work queue, and the invoice workbench are always talking about the same period.

Related

• The transaction work queue, explained — where items 7–10 get resolved
• The VAT workbench: reviewing client invoices — where items 1–5 get resolved
• Why VAT bookings need a receipt — the rule behind items 5 and 10
• Accounting reports as XLSX — the full report set for the closed period
• Request a receipt from your client — clearing item 8