Getting started whilst changing accountants

Getting started whilst changing accountants

The Provestor accounting software has many features that allow you to run your company and see your finances in real-time. To get you started we need to collate and input some information about your company and your accounts. 

Once we have contact details for your previous accountant we will write to them and ask for what is known as professional clearance. This helps ensure nothing is missed and the experience for you is as seamless as possible. 

Our aim is to get you started with the Provestor software as quickly as possible. To achieve this we complete your company set-up in stages once we have determined a migration date with you. 

Migration date

One of our first tasks is to determine what we call your ‘migration date’. This is the date from which you will use our software to maintain your business records and capture all your transactions going forwards. For example, if we set your migration date to the 1st May you would raise invoices, record expenses, run your payroll etc from 1st May onwards.

All your financial records prior to your migration date will be entered by our accountants as ‘opening balances’. This is the final stage of the set-up process and it allows the Provestor software to determine the complete picture of your company finances and accounts.

Stage 1 – Preliminary set-up

To give you access to our software as close to your migration date as possible, we will ask you and your previous accountant for your records. This is likely to include details about your VAT (if applicable), recent invoices and 6 months of bank transactions for all your business accounts.

We use this information to complete the preliminary set-up of your company in our software.  Once complete you will be able to make a start with:
  1. Adding tenants
  2. Invoicing tenants 
  3. Business expenses
  4. Bookkeeping
You’ll also be able to record the issuing of dividends to your company shareholders. The software however won’t be able to determine profits available for dividends until we have completed the final stage of set-up.

Stage 2 – Payroll set-up (if applicable)

If you pay yourself or anyone in your company a salary, your company will have a Pay As You Earn (PAYE) scheme. If you have a PAYE scheme your company will be submitting payroll records in real-time to HMRC. 

We must work with your previous accountant to confirm the handover of the responsibility and to gather your payroll records. With your records we will configure your company payroll in our software. This will give you full control of payroll allowing you to manage salaries and effortlessly repay out of pocket expenses and mileage claims.

Once your payroll is enabled you will be able to:
  1. Create payslips using the automated payroll
  2. Process your PAYE taxes
Please be aware that we are dependant on receiving your complete company payroll records before we can start filing your records at HMRC via RTI. 

Stage 3 – Final set-up

If your migration date is part way through your company financial year, we will enter your opening balances provided by your previous accountant. 

On rare occasions we need to determine opening balances for you. If this is the case, the process will take a little longer and is dependant on the availability and format of your records.

Should your migration date be your company year end date, we will input your opening balances once your year end accounts are available. This may take a few weeks whilst waiting for your previous accountant to finalise your accounts with you. 

Once the final stage is complete you will be able to: 
  1. See your company finances in real-time with LiveCash
  2. Have a view of your profits for dividend payments

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