There is no denying that accounting software is very convenient. Automating processes such as creating timesheets, generating invoices, and logging expenses helps your business operations to proceed much more efficiently.
There is a legal side to all this as well. The software at zistemo is designed specifically for small businesses and freelancers, and as well as making the day to day running of your business so much easier, it will also help to ensure that you tick all of the legal boxes when it comes to filing and completing your tax returns and maintaining a financial record throughout the tax year. Here is a quick guide to how zistemo can help you.
How can zistemo software help you with legal best practice
When you are freelance, you will need to get all of your expenses, outgoings, and other vital financial data ready to submit a tax return each year. And, both small businesses and freelancers can be subject to a tax audit or other financial audit by the authorities. So, it is essential to make sure that the financial side of your business is being run well. The software at zistemo will ensure that your financial data is impeccably recorded, maintained, stored, and presented. You will be any tax officer’s dream!
Why a professional design is so important for your estimates
Many businesses rely on financial estimates to manage their financial data - perhaps yours does to. Estimates can cover things such as pension money paid to employees, expenses claims, and income taxes. When creating estimates, it is essential to conform to what are known as the GAAP: the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles of the US. A professionally designed estimate created using zistemo will ensure that all of your financial data is arranged in the correct manner, and is conformable to current legal standards.
A professional aesthetic does wonders for your business too
The professional estimate design that zistemo creates for you will instantly impress with its clear and easily accessible format. As well as looking extremely professional, this clear design has the further advantage of making sure that all of the data is very easy to read and understand. Simplifying and streamlining your estimates, whilst ensuring that all of the essential data is there at your fingertips means that processing and analysing this data (both of which zistemo can also do for you automatically) will be a breeze.
Which information must be on your invoice that you don’t run into trouble?
When filling in invoices, there are certain things that you need to include. This is important for yourself, your clients, and for any authorities, who may audit your data. Let’s break this information down into that which is legally essential, and that which will (though not strictly required by law) help you immensely to keep your business on the right side of the law.
Information which must legally be included on an invoice
If you are a registered or limited company, or an LLP. you will need to include your company’s registered address on all of your invoices. This is the address, which you registered with Companies House. It is not legally necessary to include any of the names of the company directors on invoices. However, legal practice dictates that, if you have included the name of one director or member, you need to include the names of any other directors or members alongside them. Other significant legal requirements for invoicing relate to VAT. If your company is registered for VAT, you will need to include your VAT number and address, as well as full details of any discounts and VAT charges that apply, and the date that the invoices have been issued. These legal requirements do not strictly apply to freelancers (who rarely if ever register themselves as companies or register for VAT). But, to be on the safe side, it is a good idea for freelancers to include as much information as possible on invoices - try following the rules for VAT and limited companies as far as possible (so, giving an address, date, company name, and so on, but leaving out VAT registration numbers).
Information which it is helpful to include for good legal practice
Using zistemo software to add a few other items of information to your invoices will ensure that you follow legal best practice. Numbering your invoices serially project by project is a great idea, for instance, as it helps you to keep track of how many invoices have been sent out and when. Recording when invoices are paid, and how promptly, is also a very useful piece of information to have. Including a brief description of your project, moreover, will help both you and your clients to remember just what is being paid for. Though not strictly legally necessary, including information like this will help immensely when it comes to the legal requirement of filling out an accurate tax return. Including this clear and accurate information on invoices helps to guard against making common mistakes in tax returns like counting the same pair of invoices twice, forgetting which invoicing slip relates to which client or which project, or mixing up which projects have been paid for and which haven’t.
Does that sound complicated? It doesn’t have to be
Navigating the legal side of running a business becomes a simple as can be when you use zistemo software. By providing an easily navigable platform for storing, creating, and analyzing financial data, zistemo is a vital tool for ensuring that your business operations have a spotless legal record. Automate these invoicing and finance processes for optimum efficiency, and make use of our clear and user friendly templates to ensure that you, all of your clients, your employees, and the financial authorities can see at a glance just how well your business is being run.
