Bookkeeping Services

Bookkeeping Services: complete guide

Introduction

Bookkeeping is the day-to-day recording of a business's financial transactions: every sale, purchase, receipt, payment, expense and journal adjustment. It is the foundation on which everything else in finance rests. GST returns, TDS returns, income tax returns, audited financial statements, bank loan applications and management decisions all depend on books that are complete, accurate and up to date. When the books are weak, every downstream filing becomes slower, costlier and riskier.

Indian law requires most businesses to keep proper books. The Companies Act, 2013 requires every company to maintain books of account on an accrual basis and by the double-entry system at its registered office. The LLP law has a similar requirement for limited liability partnerships. GST law requires registered persons to keep accounts of production or manufacture, inward and outward supplies, stock, input tax credit and tax paid at their principal place of business. Income tax law requires businesses and professionals above specified income or turnover limits to keep books of account and supporting documents.

Many small businesses start with a notebook, a spreadsheet or a part-time accountant, and that works for a while. As transactions grow, the gaps start to show: unreconciled bank accounts, sales that do not match GST returns, missed input tax credit, supplier balances nobody can confirm, and a year-end rush when the auditor or tax consultant asks for figures. Our bookkeeping service puts a regular, disciplined routine in place so that your books are current every month, not rebuilt every March.

Professional help matters because bookkeeping in India is closely tied to tax compliance. The way an invoice is booked affects GST credit, TDS deduction and income tax treatment at the same time. Our team records transactions with these links in mind, reconciles the books with the GST and income tax portals, and gives you clean monthly reports. This page explains who needs bookkeeping, what the law requires, how our process works, the documents involved, timelines, how pricing works and what you receive each month.

Who Needs It

Bookkeeping support is useful for almost every business, but it is especially valuable for:

• Small and medium businesses without an in-house accounts team. Outsourcing saves the cost of a full-time accountant while keeping the books current.
• Startups. Founders need reliable numbers for investors, board meetings and fundraising, and cannot afford to spend their own time on data entry.
• GST-registered businesses. Regular bookkeeping makes monthly or quarterly GST returns accurate and allows input tax credit to be matched against supplier filings.
• Companies and LLPs. These entities must maintain books under their governing laws and have them audited or filed each year.
• Professionals and consultants. Doctors, architects, lawyers, designers and other professionals with receipts above the income tax limits must maintain books of account.
• E-commerce sellers. Marketplace settlements, commissions, returns and tax collected at source need careful reconciliation that simple records do not capture.
• Businesses with multiple branches or bank accounts. Consolidating and reconciling many accounts is time-consuming without a defined process.
• Businesses with books in arrears. If records for past months or years are incomplete, we can bring them up to date before the regular cycle begins.

Key Benefits

• Accurate, current books. Transactions are recorded within a set cycle, so you always know your cash, receivables, payables and profit.
• Smoother tax filings. GST, TDS and income tax returns are prepared from reconciled books, which reduces errors and mismatches.
• Protection of input tax credit. Purchase records are matched with supplier filings, so missing or ineligible credit is identified while there is still time to act.
• Audit-ready records. Clean ledgers, reconciliations and supporting files shorten the audit and reduce queries.
• Better cash flow control. Ageing reports for receivables and payables show who owes you money and what you owe, so follow-ups and payments can be planned.
• Informed decisions. Monthly profit and loss statements and balance sheets show which products, customers or branches are profitable.
• Lower cost than a full-time hire. You get trained bookkeepers with supervision by qualified professionals, without salary, training and leave costs.

Cash basis versus accrual basis. Many small businesses track only money in and money out. That is cash-basis recording. Companies are required to keep books on an accrual basis, which records income when it is earned and expenses when they are incurred, whether or not money has changed hands. Accrual books show a far more accurate picture of profit and of what is owed. We set up your books on the basis your entity requires and explain the difference in the reports you receive.

How it works in practice. At the start, we agree a monthly calendar with you. You share sales invoices, purchase bills, bank statements and expense records by a fixed date each month, through a shared folder or your accounting software. Our team records and reconciles them, raises queries on unclear items, and sends you a short report pack along with the figures needed for GST and TDS filings. You spend minutes answering questions instead of hours entering data.

Eligibility and Legal Requirements

There is no registration or licence required to obtain bookkeeping services, but the books themselves must meet several legal requirements:

• Companies Act, 2013. Every company must keep books of account and other relevant papers at its registered office, on an accrual basis and according to the double-entry system. The books may be kept in electronic form, with a backup on servers physically located in India maintained on a daily basis. Books must be preserved for at least eight financial years.
• LLP law. LLPs must maintain proper books of account on a cash or accrual basis and according to the double-entry system, and preserve them for eight years.
• GST law. Registered persons must keep accounts of goods and services supplied and received, stock, input tax credit availed, output tax payable and paid, and other prescribed particulars at the principal place of business. Records are generally to be retained for 72 months from the due date of the annual return for the year.
• Income tax law. Businesses and professionals whose income or turnover exceeds the prescribed limits, and certain specified professions, must maintain books of account and documents that allow the assessing officer to compute their income. The detailed requirements are set out in the rules under the income tax law in force for the year.
• Audit trail. Companies using accounting software must use software that records an audit trail of each transaction, creating an edit log of each change with the date, and the audit trail cannot be disabled.
• Accounting standards. Books must allow financial statements to be prepared under the applicable accounting standards or Indian Accounting Standards.

These requirements are updated from time to time. We check the current rules when setting up your books and through the year.

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Discovery call. We understand your business, number of transactions, bank accounts, GST registrations, branches and current accounting setup.
2. Review of existing books. We examine your current records and opening balances, and identify any backlog or errors that need to be fixed.
3. Chart of accounts. We design or refine the ledger structure so that income, expenses, assets and liabilities are grouped in a way that suits your business and your reporting needs.
4. Software and access setup. We work on your existing accounting software or help you choose one, and set up secure access and a shared document folder.
5. Monthly calendar. We agree the dates for sharing documents, completing entries, reconciliations and reporting, aligned with GST and TDS due dates.
6. Recording transactions. Sales, purchases, expenses, receipts, payments, payroll entries and journal adjustments are recorded with correct GST and TDS treatment.
7. Reconciliations. Bank accounts, credit cards, payment gateways and marketplace settlements are reconciled, and purchase records are matched with the input tax credit available on the GST portal.
8. Query resolution. Unclear or unsupported entries are listed and sent to you for clarification, so nothing is guessed.
9. Monthly reports. You receive a profit and loss statement, balance sheet, receivables and payables ageing, and a short note on key observations.
10. Year-end closing. We pass closing entries such as depreciation, provisions and prepaid adjustments, and hand over a clean trial balance and supporting schedules to your auditor and tax advisor.

Documents Checklist

For all businesses:

• Sales invoices and credit notes issued
• Purchase invoices and debit notes received
• Expense bills and receipts, such as rent, utilities, travel and professional fees
• Bank statements for every account, including loan and overdraft accounts
• Credit card statements and payment gateway reports
• Petty cash records
• Opening balances or last audited financial statements

For GST-registered businesses:

• GST registration certificate and portal access details for reports
• Copies of GST returns filed so far
• E-way bills and e-invoices where applicable

For businesses with employees:

• Salary registers, payslips and attendance summaries
• Provident fund, ESI and professional tax challans
• TDS challans and returns

For companies and LLPs:

• Certificate of incorporation and PAN
• Loan agreements, share capital or contribution details
• Fixed asset register or purchase invoices for assets
• Details of related parties and transactions with them

For e-commerce sellers:

• Marketplace settlement reports, commission invoices and return reports
• Tax collected at source statements

How Long It Takes

• Onboarding and setup: about one to two weeks, covering review of existing records, chart of accounts and access.
• Monthly bookkeeping: books for a month are usually completed within seven to ten working days after we receive complete documents, timed to meet GST and TDS due dates.
• Clearing a backlog: depends on volume. Catching up a few months usually takes two to four weeks; a full year or more of arrears can take longer.
• Year-end closing: usually two to three weeks after the year ends, once all bills and confirmations are in.

Delays usually come from documents shared late, missing bills, or bank statements that are not available. A fixed monthly calendar keeps everything on schedule.

Pricing

Bookkeeping fees are quoted after we understand the volume and complexity of your work, so please contact us for pricing. The quote depends on:

• The number of transactions each month
• The number of bank accounts, branches, GST registrations and business verticals
• Whether payroll, inventory, or marketplace reconciliation is included
• The accounting software used
• Whether there is a backlog to be cleared before the regular cycle starts

Our quote sets out the monthly scope, reports, turnaround time and what you need to share. Return filing, audit and payroll processing can be added as separate services. Government fees and taxes payable on filings are at actual.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Mixing personal and business transactions. Using the same bank account for both makes the books unreliable and creates tax problems.
• Recording only from bank statements. Booking entries without invoices loses GST details, supplier information and the trail needed for audit.
• Leaving bookkeeping until the year end. Rebuilding twelve months at once is slower, costlier and more error-prone than monthly work.
• Not reconciling GST credit. Claiming credit for purchases where the supplier has not reported the invoice leads to mismatches and notices.
• Ignoring TDS on expenses. Rent, professional fees, contract payments and commissions often require tax deduction at source. Missing it can lead to the expense being disallowed.
• No backup of records. Losing data or paper files can make it impossible to support figures during an audit or assessment.
• Editing past periods freely. Changing closed months after returns are filed creates differences between the books and the returns.

What Happens After

Once the regular bookkeeping cycle is running, you can expect:

• Monthly report pack with profit and loss, balance sheet, ageing reports and observations.
• Figures ready for GST and TDS returns, which our team can file for you as a linked service.
• Quarterly review, where we discuss trends, cash flow and any accounting policy questions.
• Year-end handover of a closed trial balance and schedules to the auditor and tax advisor.
• Ongoing improvements, such as better invoice formats, approval workflows or software features that cut manual work.
• Record retention, with organised digital files kept for the period the law requires.

Many clients later add virtual accountant or virtual CFO support as the business grows and needs more analysis and planning.

FAQs

Is bookkeeping legally required for a small business?

It depends on the entity and its size. Companies and LLPs must keep books under their governing laws. GST-registered businesses must keep specified records. Other businesses and professionals must keep books under income tax law once their income or turnover crosses the prescribed limits.

What is the difference between bookkeeping and accounting?

Bookkeeping is the recording and reconciling of transactions. Accounting builds on this to prepare financial statements, apply accounting standards, make year-end adjustments and analyse the numbers. Our bookkeeping service includes monthly reporting, and full accounting support can be added.

Will you work on our existing accounting software?

Yes. We generally work on the software you already use, provided it supports the reporting and audit trail requirements that apply to you. If you do not yet use software, we can help you choose a suitable one.

How do we share documents with you?

Through a secure shared folder, email, or directly through your accounting software. We agree a monthly date by which documents should be shared.

Can you bring our old books up to date?

Yes. We can reconstruct books for past months or years from invoices, bank statements and other records, and then move you onto a regular monthly cycle.

Do you file GST returns as well?

GST return filing can be added to the bookkeeping service. Even if another professional files your returns, we can provide reconciled figures for them each month.

How long do we need to keep our records?

Companies and LLPs must keep books for at least eight financial years. GST records are generally kept for 72 months from the due date of the annual return. Income tax law also sets retention periods. Keeping records for the longest applicable period is the safest approach.

Is our data kept confidential?

Yes. Access is limited to the team working on your account, and we follow confidentiality obligations in our engagement terms. We recommend giving us access only to the reports and accounts we need.

What if we have very few transactions?

A small number of transactions can be handled with a quarterly cycle instead of monthly, as long as it still meets your GST and TDS deadlines. We suggest the frequency that suits your volume.

Can you handle inventory accounting?

Yes. If you hold stock, we can record purchases, sales and stock movements, and help with stock valuation at year end. Inventory work is included in the scope when you need it.

Will our auditor accept books kept by you?

Books maintained by us are handed to an independent auditor with reconciliations and schedules. Since the statutory auditor of a company cannot provide bookkeeping services to it, outsourcing your books to us does not conflict with your audit.

Can you record payroll entries?

Yes. We record salaries, deductions, provident fund, ESI, professional tax and TDS entries based on your payroll data. Full payroll processing can be added as a separate service.

Do bookkeeping requirements change?

Yes. Rules on audit trails, GST records and income tax books are updated from time to time. We review the requirements regularly and adjust your setup when the law changes.

Services by city

• Bookkeeping Services in Delhi
• Bookkeeping Services in Mumbai
• Bookkeeping Services in Bengaluru
• Bookkeeping Services in Pune
• Bookkeeping Services in Hyderabad
• Bookkeeping Services in Chennai
• Bookkeeping Services in Kolkata
• Bookkeeping Services in Gurugram
• Bookkeeping Services in Noida
• Bookkeeping Services in Greater Noida
• Bookkeeping Services in Ahmedabad
• Bookkeeping Services in Chandigarh
• Bookkeeping Services in Navi Mumbai
• Bookkeeping Services in Patna

Related Accounting & Finance services

• Internal Audit
• Virtual Accountant
• Virtual CFO Services
• Accounting Services