Small Business Accounting Services in Singapore

Accounting plays a vital role in business. It allows businesses to understand their financial positions and comply with statutory requirements. 

However, accounting may be time-consuming and costly for smaller businesses. For one, staff may have to be hired to perform accounting, and having such employees on payroll might place a significant strain on the business’ finances.

Hence, businesses today may consider outsourcing their accounting services to a professional accounting services provider.

This article will explore the importance of accounting operations, and some of the benefits of outsourcing such services if you run a small business in Singapore.

Difference between Accounting and Bookkeeping

Businesses should first understand the difference between accounting and bookkeeping. 

As a subset of accounting, bookkeeping is the recording of financial transactions within a business. It consists of activities such as producing invoices and completing payroll.      

On the other hand,  in accounting, an individual interprets and uses the information prepared by a bookkeeper to understand the financial performance of the business. This involves activities like posting adjusting entries, preparing financial statements and completing income tax returns using the transactions recorded by bookkeepers. 

As a result, skills like analysis and interpretation are vital for accountants since they have to interpret and analyse transactions prepared by bookkeepers. 

What Do Accounting Operations Consist of?

Accounting operations may consist of:

• Bookkeeping services
• Preparation of periodic management reports
• Processing of accounts payable and receivable     
• Preparation of budgets, financial analysis, business reviews etc.
• Bank reconciliation
• Auditor and tax liaison
• Drafting of financial statements, as their filing is required under the Singapore Companies Act.

Why Outsource Your Business’ Accounting Operations?

If you are considering outsourcing your business’ accounting operations, you may engage an accounting firm to do so. The following are some of the benefits of outsourcing your business’ accounting operations:

1. You save time

Outsourcing your business’ accounting operations can help you to save time. Tasks like data entry and paperwork can be time-consuming, and outsourcing such tasks can allow you to focus on the growth of their businesses.  

2. You tap on professional accounting expertise

By outsourcing your business’ accounting operations, you can also let someone with the expertise take care of your accounting. For instance, they can help you to prepare your financial reports. You can then utilise the information to make decisions regarding business operations and plans. 

3. You save costs

Outsourcing can help you to save on employment costs, since you will not need to hire full-time staff to take care of your accounting operations. You will also save on the recruitment and training of employees. This is especially advantageous for smaller businesses since manpower is costly.

4. You can get assistance on other services from the same firm

The company you outsource your accounting to may also be able to help you with other services. Such services could include corporate secretarial services and applying for any licences/passes required for your business. Again, this frees up time for you to focus on business development.

How Much Will it Cost to Outsource Your Business’ Accounting Operations?

Accountancy firms may offer different fees and services for companies of different sizes and needs.

As an example, an accounting firm may charge from $600 per annum for bookkeeping, and $300 per annum for the compilation of financial statements. Some firms also offer packages with different services bundled together ranging from $299 to $1,899 a month.

You can get a quote for accounting services in Singapore here.

What Will You Need to Do to Outsource Your Business’ Accounting Operations?

Decide which services you require from accounting firms

To outsource your business’ accounting operations, you should first decide what services you require from the accounting firm. As mentioned above, different firms offer different services, and there are also various accounting operations that may be outsourced. Hence, you should first decide which types of services you want to outsource to the accounting firm. 

Prepare the relevant information and ensure its security 

You should also prepare the relevant information, such as financial data, to hand over to the accounting firm.

On a side note, you should ensure that information is handled in a secure manner as there may be risks associated with sending financial data via email.

For instance, you should check with the accounting firm on their network security and encryption methods to ensure data privacy.

— 

Outsourcing your accounting services can bring about many benefits to your business. Since accounting firms have financial expertise, they have the potential to help you achieve your business and financial goals.

If you require accounting services for your small business in Singapore, please get in touch with us using this form.