Ledger and tax setup

Chart of accounts, tax treatment and control accounts your accountant will recognise.

Why charts of accounts sprawl

Because every new reporting question gets a new code. Somebody wants spend by branch, so the chart gains a code per branch per category, and two years later there are four hundred accounts nobody can navigate.

Ledger and tax setup, in three chapters

Structuring it

Keep the chart small and put analysis in dimensions: cost centre, branch, project, entity. One marketing account with a branch dimension beats three marketing accounts.

Decide dimensions before you post anything. Adding one later means every prior posting lacks it, and you will be reporting on a gap for a year.

Read next

Ledger and tax setup, answered.

Rather have someone walk it with you?

Half an hour with your own data usually saves reading three of these. The guides will still be here afterwards.