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Background

In Manitoba, if you are a licensed establishment and can sell Beer, Liquor and Wine .. you need to account for the purchases in the accounting records. It can be difficult, because most of the time (I believe), the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission (MLCC) holds on to preauthorized blank cheques .. the hotel or establishment just places an order, and a cheque is issued, or automatically debited out of the company’s bank account. There are usually invoices emailed to the business and just packing slips included with the shipments.

In Manitoba, Vendors selling Beer have a special price. The price is preset, plus GST and plus GST .. and then a refundable bottle deposit price is added. Individuals can return the empty beer bottles and receive that bottle deposit back. Beer drinkers do not just have to bring back the bottles purchased at one particular establishment, they can return it to any vendor that will accept returns. Usually, the MLCC (I believe) pays these vendors an extra 2 cents per bottle as a handling fee. Believe me .. it can start to get quite complicated - especially if you are “in tune” with what is really happening and monitoring your gross profit percentages.

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I have been surfing the ‘www’ looking for lists of “Accounting Blogs” in general, and here in Canada .. and for some reason I thought I would come across some list out there, anywhere … where my name or this blog would be on it. - Oh well .. I guess that’s that .. I need to work on my image online.

I mean, I know this blog has got everything but the kitchen sink … // (Okay .. I’ve got a bathroom sink .. does that count?) // but I’ve always considered this to be “the business blog” of my HART-Empire Network .. i.e. my “Home Office Blog” … i.e. my “SOHO Blog” .. and dare I say it even … the “Accounting and Bookkeeping Blog”!

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Suppose you have an accounting blog .. like .. HART (1-800-HART) … and you want to show off your accounting knowledge ….

READER: Dear HART … I just purchased a new car that was financed over 3 years, for $25,000.00 .. I put down $3,000.00 which included the first month’s loan payment of $500.00. What’s my journal entry?

HART (1-800-HART): Congratulations on your new purchase .. I hope you have many years enjoyment with your new car. Here’s how to “book” the journal entry into your accounting records.

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ALTERNATE WORKING TITLE: How to not get dropped like a Hot Potato by your Accountant and Income Tax Preparer

I shudder to think how many people are making money online selling items on Ebay and collecting payments using Paypal .. and are not reporting the income on their tax return.

It’s OKAY to sell some junk and personal items that you own on Ebay to help recoup the costs of other purchases that you may have .. and you probably don’t have to report the transaction. However, if you are buying and selling products on Ebay for profit .. you are a small business and must report your net earnings on your tax return.

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This is Part (II) of two parts, because the original post seemed to be getting long. In Part (I), I had tried to identify some of the common difficulties that can arise and problems that can stir up during the bank reconciliation process. In this part, I will discuss ways in which I overcome each of those situations and provide you with some tips to help make reconciling your banks and cash accounts easier.

Reconciling - Computer Cheques

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There are two main reasons why businesses today should care about the proper coding of cheque stubs, before giving them to the accountant or bookkeeper for input and preparation of the monthly financial statements …

* (1) Because your accountant or bookkeeper was not present when you issued the cheque, it makes sense to put as much detail on the cheque as possible to describe why you issued the cheque .. instead of letting them guess what it is for

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In my travels, I have worked with many individuals, such as students and associates in public practice, clients and ex-clients over the years, and well .. even in general - ones who can pass a test, get an A+ on exams, have respectable degrees, high paying jobs, a lot of respect in the community .. yet - they can’t reconcile the bank.

I’ve discussed earlier about the concept of reconciliation .. which just goes to show that identifying the transactions is not the end-all process in reconciling your cheque book … This happens when you will find that generally, in a given month:

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What Accounting Software Do You Use?

(feel free to add your Specific Version that you use)

I thought I would see what types of accounting systems you are using out there in the real world. I have suggested a dozen choices, if you do not know the specific version .. but I would be interested if you could click on the “Add An Answer” and let me know exactly what software and version you are using.

Thanks!

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In the past year I have been engaged to do monthly accounting and bookkeeping for several clients. Although my rates are higher than a normal part-time bookkeeper that a company may hire, sometimes it makes sense to hire your accountant do also perform interim financial statements. Because I am familiar with the work and detail needed when comes time to perform the Year End Financial Statements and Income Tax Returns, it is “BETTER” and “EASIER” getting information while it is fresh in everybody’s head.

Overall, professional fees for the year might be a little highe, but some clients can appreciate the benefit of having their accountant “in the loop”. I make sure (or at least try to the best that I can) that the client is “COMPLIANT” with all reporting requirements. This would include reminders for:

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It’s 10:00 am Monday Morning, January 2, 2006 …

TIP: For Individuals with Loan Balances who want to claim interest on their Personal Income Tax Return

FACT: You need to know what your balances are first!

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