Are you a self-employed entrepreneur in Belgium? Then it is important to have your accounts in order. Doing your own bookkeeping gives you insight into your finances and helps you make decisions.
But how do you tackle this? In this article you will discover how to do your own bookkeeping for your sole proprietors, so that you meet all legal requirements!
Why do your own bookkeeping?
Doing your own bookkeeping has several advantages. First of all, you save costs because you do not have to hire an external accountant. In addition, you are responsible for your own financial records, so you are always up-to-date and have direct insight into your figures!
Last but not least, you can decide how you set up your accounts and which software to use.
Tip:
Dexxter offers free webinars and online courses so you are always up-to date with your accounting knowledge!
What is single-entry bookkeeping? 🔎
Single-entry bookkeeping or simplified bookkeeping is a form of bookkeeping used mainly by small companies and self-employed people with an annual turnover of less than €500,000. In single-entry bookkeeping, each transaction (a purchase or sales invoice, for example) is entered. In addition, you do not have to link to financial transactions.
For example, in single-entry bookkeeping you should not link your purchase invoice with its payments. That makes it all a bit simpler.
However, in double-entry bookkeeping (e.g. for a company) you do have to make the link with the financial transactions.
Accounting steps for sole proprietors 👣
Now that you know the basic concepts, you can get started with your own bookkeeping. Below is a step-by-step approach:
Step 1️⃣: Open a business bank account
It’s best to keep your business and personal finances separate. Therefore, open a separate bank account for your business. This will make it easier to keep track of your financial transactions and incorporate them into your accounts.
Step 2️⃣: Invoicing and incoming payments
Use your accounting programme to create and send invoices to your customers. Send them in a few clicks using handy templates.
In single-entry bookkeeping, it’s enough to stop your sales invoices in the accounts. Your customer’s payments have no impact on your accounting, so you don’t need to enter them.
Step 3️⃣: Expenses and receipts
Keep track of all your business expenses, including receipts. You can do this by scanning them and saving them digitally. Then you can easily process the expenses in your accounting programme.
Step 4️⃣: VAT declaration
Periodically submit your vAT declarations. Your accounting program can support you in this by automatically generating the required data based on your income and expenses.
Step 5️⃣: Reports and insight
Regularly check the reports in your accounting package to gain insight into your financial situation. This will allow you to make timely adjustments if necessary. At the end of the year, you can work with Dexxter to fill in the yearly tax return (personal income tax).
Tip:
If you use Dexxter, you can perform the above steps very easily and quickly! With handy features like automatic vAT calculations and a personal timeline to keep track of deadlines, you will always be okay with everything!
Conclusion
A good accounting software can take a lot of work off your hands and ensure efficient and clear simplified accounting. It’s important not to lose track of important tax deadlines, so you don’t get into trouble during any audit.
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