What to send your CA every month, and how to send it

A GST return is only as good as the records behind it. For a small shop, the slow part is rarely the filing. It is getting complete, readable records to the CA in time.

A bag of bills handed over on the 9th of the month, with half the purchase bills missing, means late returns, guesswork and corrections later. A short, regular handover fixes most of that.

This is general information, not tax advice; confirm with your CA.

Why the records matter beyond your CA

If you are registered for GST, Section 35 of the CGST Act says you must keep a true and correct account of your inward and outward supplies, your stock, input tax credit you claim, and tax payable and paid, at your principal place of business. The section allows these to be kept in electronic form.

Section 36 says you must keep them until 72 months from the due date of the annual return for that year, and longer if there is an appeal or proceeding about them.

So these records are not only for your CA. They are yours to keep, and you should have your own copy.

The monthly handover

Agree a fixed date with your CA, for example the 3rd of every month, and send the same set each time.

1. Sales

• Sales summary for the month, split by GST rate: taxable value, CGST and SGST for each rate. Composition dealers need the total turnover instead.
• List of bills to registered business customers, with their GSTIN, bill number, date and amounts. Your CA reports these separately on the GST return.
• Returns and credit notes for the month.
• Cancelled or voided bills, with numbers, so gaps in the serial number series can be explained.

2. Purchases

• Every supplier bill, including small ones. For a regular dealer, a missing purchase bill can mean input tax credit not claimed.
• Supplier GSTIN on each bill. Check it is printed, not handwritten.
• Purchase returns and debit notes.
• Payments to suppliers: date, amount, mode (cash, UPI, cheque, bank transfer).

3. Expenses

• Rent, electricity, internet, transport, packing material, repairs.
• Salaries and advances to staff, with names and months. Keep advances separate from salary, so they are not counted as an expense twice.
• Any bill for an expense that carries GST, in case your CA can claim credit on it.

4. Money in and out

• Bank statements for every business account.
• UPI and card settlement reports, if your payment provider gives them.
• Cash register: opening cash, cash sales, cash paid out, cash deposited, closing cash.

5. Khata (credit)

• Customer balances at month end: who owes how much.
• Payments received against khata during the month.

Your CA needs this to show what is owed to you. It also helps you, because a monthly list makes old dues visible. See our udhaar recovery tips if that list is longer than you would like.

The year-end handover

At the end of the financial year, add:

• Closing stock: a count of what is on the shelves and in the godown, with cost value. Section 35 requires an account of stock for registered dealers. Count it on 31 March or as close to it as you can. Our post on godown vs display stock covers keeping the two straight.
• Dead or damaged stock written off during the year, with a note of why.
• Fixed assets bought: fridge, freezer, computer, scale, racks, with bills.
• Loans taken or repaid, with statements.
• Owner’s drawings: money you took out for personal use.

How to send it

The format matters as much as the content.

Paper is the slowest. Every paper bill has to be typed in by someone at your CA’s office, and every typing step is a chance for a mistake.

Spreadsheets are better. A clean Excel file with one row per bill, and the same columns every month, is easy for a CA to check and import. PDF reports are good for reading and for your own records, but harder to import.

A direct export into your CA’s software is best. If your CA uses TallyPrime or Zoho Books, ask whether your billing software can export or sync straight into it. Ask your CA which they prefer before you set anything up.

Whatever the format, keep scanned or photographed copies of purchase bills, named by date and supplier. Bills fade, and thermal paper fades fastest.

Five habits that save the most time

1. Same day, same set, every month. No reminders needed.
2. One folder per month, on your phone or computer, with everything inside.
3. Purchase bills photographed the day they arrive, not at month end.
4. Bank and cash matched weekly, so differences are found while you still remember them.
5. Ask your CA what was missing last month, and add it to your list.

How Bazaar IQ helps with the handover

If you bill on Bazaar IQ, much of the monthly set comes from Reports, downloadable as Excel or PDF, since sales, khata, stock, expenses and salaries are all recorded in the same app. For CAs on TallyPrime, the Tally export produces an XML file with ledger masters and balanced vouchers for sales, expenses, supplier payments and khata receipts. We recommend your CA imports the first file into a backup copy of the company to check the ledger mapping before it touches the live books. For CAs on Zoho Books, Zoho sync posts sales, purchases and expenses directly. See also our guide to Zoho’s free plan limits.