Small Business Taxes For Dummies, 3rd Edition

Chapter 6

Keeping Track of Your Small Business Revenues and Costs

IN THIS CHAPTER

Developing and maintaining a business accounting system

Fulfilling tax filing requirements with good record keeping

Running your own business for many folks means hard work and long hours.

One of the ways that you can keep score and make the most of your efforts and time is to track your business revenue and expenses; the difference between the two is the profit or loss for your company. I strongly recommend that you utilize a system for accounting for your business inflows and outflows to stay on top of what’s going on in your business and to ease the pains of completing the never-ending stream of tax forms required by state and federal government tax authorities quarterly and annually.

In this chapter, I explain the basics of developing a business accounting process for your small business. I also discuss how to fulfill the myriad filing requirements of the tax authorities by keeping proper records.

Establishing an Accounting System for Your Business

If you’re thinking about starting a business or you’re already in the thick of one, make sure you keep a proper accounting of your income and expenses. If you don’t, you’ll have a lot more stress and headaches when it comes time to complete and submit ...