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Highlights

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A Dozen Invoice Best Practices to Improve Profitability: An Easy Get-in-Shape Plan for Your Dept.

 

When even just a simple thing like an invoice is not handled properly it can turn into an expensive proposition for the organization lagging behind in integrating best practices into its invoice processing. The unfortunate thing is that it isn’t a difficult thing to do; it just takes determination, management backing, and a little knowhow. Here’s an easy get-in-shape plan. We’ll take a look at the cost of ignoring best invoice practices, what those best practices are, and then give you some advice on how to integrate practices not currently in use.

 

The Cost of Ignoring Best Practices

 

When invoices are not handled in an efficient, effective manner duplicate payments occur. And, as those reading this are well aware, few vendors return those duplicates. An organization not using good invoice practices can estimate that one-tenth of one percent of invoices will be paid incorrectly, with about half of that being eventually recovered through normal routines. For example, an electric bill paid twice will result in a credit on a future bill. The only cost is the lost investment income on the funds. The remainder will sit hidden away as credits on the vendors’ books. Many of these vendors will “forget” to include the credits on your statements, some intentionally hiding them.

 

The rest of this article appeared in the December 2007 issue of Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow, which also contains the following articles:

 

• Consultants’ Corner: A Sound Policy Regarding Reimbursing Tips Paid Out of Pocket
• How to Survive an AP Systems Conversion
• Reader Comments on Tipping by Traveling Employees
• Auditing P-card Activity: A Basic Automated Approach
• Dates to Remember When Filing Your 1099s and 1042-S
• Update: Unclaimed Property & the California Cases
• Tips, Tactics & Strategies – two pages of short items

 

Click here to buy this entire issue for only $19.95. It will be delivered electronically to the email address you provide during your purchase.

 

Click here to get the "Best of 2008" of Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow for the low, low price of $39.95 delivered electronically. 

 

Click here for additional information or to start a new subscription to Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow. 

 

Frequently Asked Questions about the IRS TIN Matching Program

 

Without a doubt, the TIN Matching Program is probably the best tool an accounts payable organization can use to minimize headaches when issuing 1099s. Yet, it is used by only a small fraction of eligible organizations. Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow receives so many queries about this program we thought our readers might appreciate some concise answers to their most frequently asked questions.

 

Background

 

As most reading this know, a TIN, or taxpayer identification number, can be any one of the following:

           - SSN or social security number

           - EIN or employer identification number

           - ITIN or individual taxpayer identification number

           - ATIN or adoption taxpayer identification number

 

Payers who file any one of the following documents may use the program:

• 1099 B

• 1099 INT

• 1099 DIV

• 1099 MISC

• 1099 OID

• 1099 PATR

 

Annually, information from the prior year must be reported to the IRS regarding payments made to third parties that are not corporations (except medical and legal). When information on a 1099 is reported with an error, a B-Notice is issued. To help reduce the number of errors, it is recommended that every organization use the IRS TIN Matching Program.

The rest of this article appeared in the November 2007 issue of Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow, which also contains the following articles:

 

•  A T&E Policy for Employees Staying with Family on Business Trips

• ACH Data Accuracy: Real-life Solutions to a Very Practical Problem

• Book Excerpt: Controlling P-card Use

• Why Good Accounts Payable Managers Need to Be Control Freaks

• Sample Family Stay Policy

• Our Readers Input On Family Stays

• Individual Names in the Master Vendor File

• Tips, Tactics & Strategies – two pages of short items

 

Click here to buy this entire issue for only $19.95. It will be delivered electronically to the email address you provide during your purchase.

 

Click here to get the "Best of 2008" of Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow for the low, low price of $39.95 delivered electronically. 

 

 

Click here for additional information or to start a new subscription to Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow.