05 / Accounting flexibility
Your accounts have their organizational rules.
We start with yours.
Standard billing, disbursements or principal-based arrangements: organise billing files around the parties and supporting documents, separately from when payment is made.
The appropriate process depends on your operations, documents and applicable framework. This mock-up does not establish accounting or tax compliance.
Standard process
A service, its documents, its tracking.
A standard billing process defined for your activity.
Illustration of the document process, not a real invoice.
Disbursement process
Parties and supporting documents matter.
The process must consider your mandates, the parties involved and the documents expected.
The diagram alone does not legally classify the transaction as a disbursement.
Principal-based process
The file follows the parties and mandate.
For activities managing property on behalf of owners, the process is prepared according to the relevant mandates.
Recipients and documents must be confirmed for your actual situation.
Understand without jargon
Three arrangements.
The same starting question.
Who is involved in the service, which process do you use today and which documents should accompany the file? We start with your actual operations rather than a default structure.
01Standard
A standard process for your activity, keeping the service and associated documents linked for easier reading and tracking.
02Disbursements
The file must account for mandates, parties and supporting documents. The arrangement’s name alone does not classify a transaction.
03Principal
When you manage property for owners, the relevant parties and mandates guide the organisation and tracking of the file.
IN PRACTICE
How to prepare your process.
A clear approach before configuring files.
Describe your operations.
Explain who orders, who receives the service and how you track expenses today.
Identify parties and mandates.
Specify the owners and mandates relevant to the transactions.
List the required documents.
Necessary supporting documents and information are clarified rather than inferred automatically.
Validate the chosen process.
Configuration is prepared with you. Accounting and tax questions specific to your situation must be validated with your adviser.
Fictional example
One property portfolio.
Clearly separated files.
A standard process.
The file links the service to its associated documents for easier reading and tracking.
Presentation example only: no real file or document is created.
Supporting documents to identify.
The file must account for the parties, mandates and expected supporting documents. This example does not legally classify the transaction.
Presentation example only: no real file or document is created.
The mandate provides context.
The parties and relevant owner are identified to organise and track the property file.
Presentation example only: no real file or document is created.
A separate subject
Billing and payment:
two separate decisions.
Standard, disbursement or principal-based arrangements describe the billing file’s organisation. Deferred payment concerns the timing and conditions of settlement. Neither automatically determines the other.
Understanding deferred paymentApplicable payment terms.
The processParties, mandates and documents in the file.
GO TO THE END OF THE SUBJECT
The right questions.
Clear answers.
Principles that do not replace checks specific to your activity.
Must I change my current organisation?
Your operations are the starting point. Parties, mandates and expected documents must be clarified before choosing the process to configure.
Are disbursements and principal-based arrangements the same?
No, they are distinct arrangements. The reference page calls for clarifying the parties’ roles, mandates and supporting documents for the process. A transaction’s classification depends on your actual situation.
Does the chosen arrangement guarantee tax compliance?
No. A process label does not establish compliance. Have your adviser validate your contracts, mandates and accounting or tax consequences.
Does the accounting arrangement change the payment deadline?
These are separate matters. The arrangement organises the billing file; any deferred payment has separate terms that must be examined independently.
Are invoices automatically sent or exported?
This mock-up demonstrates neither automatic sending, exporting nor accounting software connections. These features and their availability must be confirmed before being presented as included.
Your organisation deserves
a clearly understood process.
Let’s review your operations and the questions to clarify before configuration.