Day-to-day transaction recording

Category: Accounting & Bookkeeping. From ₹3,000/mo. Typical timeline: Monthly.

Overview

Bookkeeping is the day-to-day recording of every sale, purchase, receipt, and payment a business makes, forming the foundation on which GST returns, TDS compliance, and annual financial statements are all built. Maintained consistently through the month rather than reconstructed at year-end, accurate books give owners real-time visibility into cash position and make every downstream compliance filing faster and more reliable.

Who needs it

• Small and medium businesses without an in-house accounts team
• Startups needing investor-ready, GST-compliant books from day one
• Professionals and consultants required to maintain books under Section 44AA of the Income Tax Act
• E-commerce and retail businesses with high transaction volume needing daily reconciliation

Eligibility

• Any proprietorship, partnership, LLP or company transacting regularly enough to need organised financial records
• Businesses required under the Income Tax Act or Companies Act to maintain books of account
• E-commerce sellers, service providers and traders needing GST-ready transaction records

Documents required

• Sales and purchase invoices for the period
• Bank and credit card statements
• Expense receipts and vendor bills
• Payroll and statutory payment records
• Prior period trial balance or opening balances, if bookkeeping is being taken over mid-year

Process

1. Chart of accounts setup — Configure the accounting software with a chart of accounts suited to the business's nature and reporting needs.
2. Transaction recording — Record sales, purchases, receipts and payments on an ongoing basis, typically daily or weekly.
3. Bank reconciliation — Reconcile the books against bank statements each month to catch missed or duplicate entries.
4. Periodic review — Review ledgers monthly for accuracy and flag any unusual entries or outstanding balances.
5. Reporting handoff — Share monthly trial balance and ledgers with the client and their tax/compliance advisors.

Government fees

• Government fee: Not applicable — bookkeeping is a private accounting service with no statutory fee

Professional fee

Professional fee starts at ₹3,000 per month covering transaction recording, bank reconciliation and monthly ledger reports for a low-to-moderate volume business, scaling with transaction count and number of bank accounts.

Timeline

Bookkeeping is maintained on a rolling monthly cycle, with the previous month's books typically closed and reconciled within the first 7-10 working days of the following month.

Deliverables

• Monthly trial balance and general ledger
• Bank reconciliation statement
• Receivables and payables ageing report
• Books maintained in the client's chosen accounting software (Tally, Zoho Books, QuickBooks, etc.)

Frequently asked questions

Which accounting software do you use for bookkeeping?

We work with whatever the client already uses — Tally, Zoho Books, QuickBooks or Excel-based systems — and can recommend a suitable platform if none is in place.

Is bookkeeping mandatory under law?

Certain businesses and professionals are required under Section 44AA of the Income Tax Act and the Companies Act to maintain prescribed books of account, and GST law requires transaction-level records supporting return filings.

How is bookkeeping different from accounting or auditing?

Bookkeeping is the recording of transactions; accounting involves preparing financial statements and analysis from those records; auditing is an independent verification of the accounts, each a distinct but connected service.

Common mistakes

• Recording transactions in bulk at year-end instead of monthly, making errors harder to catch
• Not reconciling bank statements regularly, leading to missed or duplicate entries
• Mixing personal and business expenses in the same books, complicating tax computation
• Failing to retain supporting invoices and receipts for entries made in the books

Penalties for non-compliance

• Penalty under Section 271A of the Income Tax Act for failure to maintain books of account as required under Section 44AA
• Difficulty substantiating expense claims during tax scrutiny if underlying invoices are not retained
• Compounding errors and reconciliation difficulty for GST and TDS filings if books are not kept current

Legal references

• Income Tax Act, 1961, Section 44AA — maintenance of books of account by specified persons
• Companies Act, 2013, Section 128 — books of account for companies
• CGST Act, 2017, Section 35 — accounts and records to be maintained under GST