SERVICE · YEAR-END
Year-end bookkeeping,
so your accountant gets books that are finished.
Year-end bookkeeping closes the year: every bank, card and loan account is reconciled to its December statement, the accruals your accountant asks for are posted, contractor payments are totaled for 1099s, and a clean trial balance goes to your accountant. ZeraBooks bookkeeping services do it in January, from $150 a month.
Free call · from $150 a month (USD) · months never done are quoted separately · clients worldwide
WHAT GETS DONE
What does year-end bookkeeping include?
Year-end is mostly the December close done with more care, plus the few jobs that only happen once a year.
Every account tied to December
Checking, savings, each credit card, the merchant account and every loan. The December 31 balance in the books has to equal the balance printed on the December statement, or the lender’s statement for a loan.
Loose ends cleared
Uncategorized lines, transfers recorded on one side only, a refund booked as income, old outstanding checks. Small items, but each one changes a number on the tax return.
Accruals you actually need
Most small businesses file on the cash basis and need few or none. If your accountant wants accrual figures, we post the December bills that arrive in January and the December invoices still unpaid.
Contractor totals for 1099s
A list of every contractor paid in the year, how they were paid and the amount that counts toward a Form 1099-NEC. Card payments are left out, because the card processor reports those.
Fixed assets and loans
Equipment bought during the year listed with its date and cost, and each loan’s interest for the year split from principal. Your accountant decides depreciation; we hand over the list.
A trial balance and the year’s reports
Profit and loss, balance sheet and trial balance for the year, from the same books, with the questions we could not answer listed on one page.
Tell us about your books. We’ll scope the work and quote it before anything starts.
TIMING
When does year-end bookkeeping happen?
It starts when the December statements arrive, not on December 31. For a calendar-year business closing 2026:
| When | What happens | Why then |
|---|---|---|
| Early December | Ask contractors for any missing Form W-9 | You need their tax ID before the 1099 deadline |
| First week of January | December bank and card statements arrive and are reconciled | Nothing can tie before the statement exists |
| Mid January | Accruals, loan interest and asset list done | January bills tell you what belonged to December |
| By January 31 | Form 1099-NEC sent to contractors and filed | IRS deadline for nonemployee pay |
| Late January to February | Trial balance and reports to your accountant | Leaves time before March 15 and April 15 |
| March 15, 2027 | Partnership and S corporation returns due | Your accountant files |
| April 15, 2027 | Individual and C corporation returns due | Your accountant files |
A fiscal year that ends in another month follows the same order, starting from that month’s statements.
WORKED EXAMPLE
What does the 1099 list look like at year-end?
Pinecrest Landscaping is a fictional lawn and tree business that closes its year on December 31, 2026. Four outside crews were paid during the year. The list our team hands over looks like this:
| Payee | Business type (from W-9) | Paid by bank or check | Paid by card | Counts toward 1099 | Form 1099-NEC? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ortiz Tree Service | Sole proprietor | 6,400.00 | 0.00 | 6,400.00 | Yes |
| Hal Kim Hauling | Sole proprietor | 3,100.00 | 900.00 | 3,100.00 | Yes |
| Dale’s Small Engine | Sole proprietor | 1,850.00 | 0.00 | 1,850.00 | No, under $2,000 |
| Greenway Irrigation Inc. | Corporation | 4,200.00 | 0.00 | 4,200.00 | No, corporations are generally exempt |
The $900.00 Hal Kim was paid by card is reported by the card processor, so it stays out of the total. For payments made from 2026 the 1099-NEC threshold is $2,000, up from $600, under the current IRS instructions. Your accountant or payroll provider files the forms; the list is what they file from.
WORKED EXAMPLE
What does a finished year-end look like for one business?
The same business, account by account, on the day the books go to the accountant:
| Account | Books at Dec 31 | Proof | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business checking | 31,482.16 | December bank statement closing balance | Ties |
| Fuel card | (1,128.40) | Card statement closing December 31, new balance | Ties |
| Equipment loan | (18,940.55) | Lender’s December statement, principal balance | Ties |
| Utilities payable | (412.30) | December service bill received January 9 | Accrued |
| Owner draws | 42,000.00 | Twelve monthly transfers to the owner’s personal account | Checked |
Pinecrest files on the cash basis, so the accountant only asked for the utility accrual, to put the December bill in 2026. The $7,850.00 of December mowing invoices still unpaid at year-end were listed for the accountant but not booked as income.
IF THE YEAR WAS NEVER DONE
What if the books were not kept during the year?
Then year-end becomes a catch-up first. The two are quoted separately so you can see what each costs.
Monthly clients
The year is already eleven-twelfths done. Year-end work is part of the monthly fee: December is closed, and the 1099 list, accruals and the year’s reports follow.
A few months behind
The missing months are done first, oldest to newest, then year-end. See catch-up bookkeeping for how a backlog is worked through and quoted.
Books kept but wrong
If balances don’t match the statements, the job is a bookkeeping cleanup before any year-end figures are worth sending.
From January onward
Once the year is closed, monthly bookkeeping services keep the next one current, so next January is a short job.
WITH ZERABOOKS
How does ZeraBooks do year-end bookkeeping?
Our team keeps the books on ZeraBooks, our own AI-native ledger. You send documents and watch the work.
- 1
A free call
Tell us the accounts, your year-end, who files your return and whether the months are done. We agree the monthly price, and quote any catch-up on its own.
- 2
Upload December and anything missing
Bank, card and loan statements go into your upload portal, along with the W-9s you have. No bank feed is used; the statements are the record.
- 3
Every account proven to December
A year only closes when each account’s ledger balance matches its December statement to the cent.
- 4
One list of questions
Was this payment to a contractor or a supplier? Is this transfer a loan to the business or an owner contribution? You answer them together.
- 5
The package for your accountant
Trial balance, profit and loss, balance sheet, the 1099 list and the asset and loan schedules. Your accountant can also open the read-only dashboard. See bookkeeper vs accountant for who does which part.
How much does year-end bookkeeping cost?
For monthly clients the year-end close is part of the monthly fee, which starts from $150 a month (USD) and is agreed after a free call. Months that were never done are quoted once as catch-up work.
When should year-end bookkeeping start?
As soon as the December statements are available, usually in the first week of January. Waiting until March leaves your accountant little time and pushes many returns to an extension.
Do I need accruals at year-end?
Only if your accountant prepares the return on the accrual basis or asks for specific ones. Many small businesses file on the cash basis and need none. We ask your accountant, then post what they want.
Does ZeraBooks file my tax return or my 1099s?
No. ZeraBooks is not a CPA firm and files no returns. We hand your accountant the trial balance, the reports and a 1099 list with every amount they need.
Do I have to use your bookkeeping service?
No. If you would rather close the year yourself, ZeraBooks AI bookkeeping reconciles every account against your statements and runs a year-end review, from $79 a month billed annually after a 7-day trial.
WE DO YOUR BOOKS
Send us December’s statements.
Your accountant gets a finished year.
Tell us your accounts and who files your return. We quote the monthly bookkeeping and any catch-up separately before work starts. Book the free call.
Last updated October 19, 2026 · Written by Damin Mutti, founder of ZeraBooks