Monthly Close

A repeatable month-end close process for small businesses that produces reliable financial statements and catches errors before they compound.

Read these when needed

• Read references/CLOSE-ARTIFACTS.md before marking a month closed or handing the package to an accountant.
• Run scripts/monthly_close_summary.py when you want a deterministic summary of close checklist completion and outstanding blockers.

Why monthly close matters

Without a regular close, errors accumulate. A missed transaction in January becomes a cascading reconciliation problem by June. A miscategorized expense in March inflates a tax line by December. Monthly close is the discipline that keeps books trustworthy.

The purpose is simple: at the end of each month, verify that every transaction is recorded, categorized, and reconciled — then lock the period so nothing changes retroactively. The output is a set of financial statements you can actually trust.

When to run

Close the prior month within the first 5–10 business days of the new month. Example: close March by April 10. Waiting longer means bank statements pile up, memory of transactions fades, and the close takes exponentially longer.