Receipts and invoices filing index

What the receipts and invoices filing index does

A pile of receipts is useless if you cannot find the one you need. This index lists each document with its date, type, who it is from or for, the reference, the amount and the folder where it is filed, and counts the documents and the total value, so an audit or a query is easy to answer.

Who it is for

Small businesses, landlords and freelancers who keep paper or digital receipts, and bookkeepers who organise clients' records.

How to use the workbook

1. Number your folders or digital folders.
2. Enter each receipt or invoice with its date, type and reference.
3. Record the amount and the folder where it is filed.
4. Use the filter on the header row to find a document by supplier, date or folder.
5. Save a copy under a new name for each month or year, so earlier records stay as they were.

What is inside

• Document type, reference and amount for each item
• Folder or location column
• Count of documents and total value at the top
• Room for suppliers and customers
• Simple layout you can print

The workbook has these sheets: Instructions, Index. The main table has the columns Date; Document type; From or to; Reference; Amount; Folder or location. Yellow cells are for you to fill in and grey cells calculate by themselves, so leave the grey cells alone. The example rows show how it works; type over them with your own entries.

Tips for getting it right

• File receipts weekly, and photograph thermal paper before it fades.
• Name digital files with the date and the supplier.
• Keep tax records for at least five years.
• Back up the digital folder to a second place.

Why keep this record

Accounting records let you answer three questions at any time: what came in, what went out and who owes whom. Kept consistently they also make tax returns, loan applications and the sale of a business much easier, because the evidence is already organised. Entering transactions the day they happen is far cheaper than reconstructing them at year end.

Questions people ask

Do I need to know Excel formulas? No. Type into the yellow cells and the rest is worked out for you. The formulas are visible if you want to see how a figure is reached.

Can I add rows or change the layout? You can add your own columns to the right and your own notes. If you insert rows inside a table, copy the grey formula cells down so the new rows calculate too.

Will it work on my phone or in Google Sheets? Yes for viewing and typing, but dropdown lists and the charts look best in desktop Excel or LibreOffice.

Keeping it safe and up to date

Good accounting records are a legal duty as well as a management tool: keep the supporting receipts and invoices with the workbook, and keep each year's copy for at least five years. Work on a copy, never on your only file, and back it up.

Read how to keep business records for KRA for the wider picture. Free calculators that go with it: Vat calculator. See more accounting templates or ask us for a custom one.

The workbook works in Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets. It is a tool to help you work out and record figures, not tax, legal or accounting advice, and it is not affiliated with the Kenya Revenue Authority. If something does not work as described, contact us and we will put it right.

Related guides, calculators and templates

• Free calculator: VAT Calculator
• Guide: VAT invoices and quotations in Kenya: what to include and common mistakes
• Guide: Buying off-plan property in Kenya: the risks and the checks to run
• Guide: Import VAT in Kenya: how to claim it back on your VAT return
• Another template: Credit note with VAT
• Another template: Customer deposits and advance payments ledger
• Another template: Customer invoices and aged receivables tracker

Need something different? Request a custom template, browse all guides or see every Excel template.