---
name: reconcile-business-expenses
category: money
description: Reconcile business expense records against accounts, receipts, categories, reimbursements, and the ledger, then produce a traceable exceptions report. Use when bookkeeping records do not match bank or card activity, receipts are missing, reimbursements are unclear, or a clean period close is needed.
---

# reconcile-business-expenses

Match each recorded expense to external evidence without inventing categories or receipts. Keep adjustments
traceable and send unresolved accounting or tax judgments to the responsible professional.

## Inputs

- Choose the entity, accounts, currency, period, accounting basis, and ledger owner.
- Gather read-only statements, ledger export, receipts, invoices, reimbursements, credits, and opening reconciliation.
- Use a private workspace with access limited to authorized people.

## Procedure

1. Confirm the opening reconciled balance and period boundaries for each account.
2. Normalize dates, amounts, currency, merchant names, transaction ids, and account references without altering source records.
3. Match statement transactions to ledger entries using id, amount, date, account, and supporting document.
4. Identify missing ledger entries, duplicates, split transactions, reversals, credits, fees, transfers, and timing differences.
5. Link receipts or invoices and mark missing, illegible, personal, reimbursable, or policy-exception records.
6. Apply categories only from the approved chart and documented business purpose. Flag ambiguous tax treatment.
7. Reconcile employee or owner reimbursements so the expense and repayment are not counted twice.
8. Record proposed adjustments with reason, source, preparer, reviewer, and reversible entry.
9. Calculate the adjusted ledger balance and verify it equals the statement closing balance.
10. Review exceptions with the owner or bookkeeper and obtain approval before posting.
11. Archive the reconciliation report, evidence links, approved entries, and unresolved items under the retention policy.

## Boundaries

Do not fabricate receipts, business purpose, tax treatment, or approval. Never move money or post adjustments
without authorization. Escalate material tax, payroll, fraud, or legal questions to a qualified professional.

## Done

- Each account ties from opening balance through activity to the statement closing balance
- Every material ledger expense links to a statement item and available supporting evidence
- An exceptions report identifies missing, duplicate, ambiguous, reimbursable, and policy-violating items with owners
- Approved adjustments retain source, reason, preparer, reviewer, and post-entry reconciliation proof

Then use forecast-cash-flow after the historical cash record is clean.