Accounts Receivable Checklist

Pull a D&B, Experian Business, or Creditsafe report on every new commercial customer before extending net-30 terms. Flag thin-file or sub-650 PAYDEX scores for partner review; these are the accounts that age into 90+ buckets.

Enter the approved limit on the customer record in QuickBooks, Xero, or NetSuite. Tie the limit to the credit-report tier — typically 10% of reported working capital, capped by internal policy.

For declined or thin-file accounts, collect a 25-50% deposit, a personal guaranty, or move to prepay-only terms. Document the exception in the customer file so collections has the basis if the account ages.

Confirm DSO targets, credit limits, and term tiers still match current cash needs. If DSO has drifted above 45 days, tighten approval thresholds or shorten terms before the next billing cycle.

Pull the shipped/delivered list from the operations system and generate invoices in QBO or NetSuite. Bill within 24-48 hours of fulfillment — every day of billing lag is a day added to DSO.

Missing PO numbers and wrong tax jurisdictions are the top two reasons invoices get kicked back by AP departments. Run an Avalara or TaxJar sales-tax check on out-of-state shipments above the $100K nexus threshold.

Honor the channel on the customer record — AP portal (Coupa, Ariba, SAP), emailed PDF, or paper. Portal-only customers that get emailed invoices simply don't pay until you reload through the portal.

Download the BAI2 file or bank-feed report from Plaid/direct feed. Reconcile the deposit total to the bank balance before applying — applying cash that hasn't cleared creates phantom receipts.

Match by remittance advice, not by amount. Customers paying multiple invoices in one wire often short-pay one line item — applying FIFO without the remittance hides the dispute.

Park unidentified deposits in a suspense account (1499 or similar) — never to Ask My Accountant. Email the customer's AP contact within 24 hours; remittance details are easiest to recover while the wire is recent.

Pull the original invoice, PO, and proof of delivery. Common short-pay reasons: pricing error vs. the PO, missing credit memo for a return, sales tax on an exempt customer. Issue a credit memo or chargeback within five business days to keep the account clean.

Automated reminder five days before the net-30 due date catches the AP queue before it goes stale. Use the dunning workflow in QBO, Xero, or a tool like Chaser/Upflow.

First-touch is a phone call, not an email — voicemails get ignored, but reaching a live AP clerk usually surfaces the actual blocker (missing PO, portal not loaded, dispute). Log every contact attempt on the customer record.

Send a formal demand letter, place the account on credit hold in the AR system, and notify the salesperson. Don't ship more product into a 60+ account without partner approval — that's how bad debt compounds.

For accounts past 90 days with no response, package the invoice, PO, proof of delivery, and dunning history for the agency or attorney. Most agencies take 25-50% on a contingency basis — weigh against the write-off.

Get the plan in writing with signature, dated installments, and an acceleration clause if any payment is missed. Set calendar reminders against each installment date so missed payments are caught the day they happen.

Run the aging in standard buckets: current, 1-30, 31-60, 61-90, 90+. Export to Excel and tie the report total to the GL receivables balance — a delta means a misposted JE or unapplied cash.

DSO = (AR / credit sales) × days in period. CEI (collection effectiveness index) shows how much of what was collectible actually got collected. Track both monthly — a creeping DSO is the early signal of credit-policy drift.

Call out customers above 10% of total AR, accounts that moved bucket-to-bucket since last month, and any new entries in 90+. These are the items the controller will want context on before the close package goes to the partner.

Sub-ledger total must equal the 1200 (or equivalent) GL balance. Variances usually trace to JEs posted directly to the GL receivables account — a control breach that should be locked out via QBO/NetSuite user permissions.

Monthly statements catch invoices the customer never received, duplicate billings, and applied-to-wrong-invoice errors. Many disputes only surface when the customer's AP team reconciles their open-payables to your statement.

Roll the allowance for doubtful accounts using the aging method or a percentage-of-sales approach, whichever the policy specifies. Document the methodology in the workpaper — auditors will test it under ASC 326 (CECL).

Write-offs above the policy threshold (commonly $1,000 or $5,000) require controller or CFO sign-off. Attach the collections history and final demand correspondence to the JE so the audit trail survives without follow-up questions.