Month end closes your WIP and Debtors periods, so you can report on the month with confidence. Follow the steps in order, and check the prerequisites before you start. You’ll need admin access to Timesheet Administration and the Debtors application to complete these steps.
Understand the two period closes
The WIP period audit and the Debtors period end are separate processes, and you can complete them in either order.
The primary reason to run the Debtors period end is to age debtor balances. Unlike the Debtors period end, the WIP period audit isn’t strictly required. It closes WIP periods, which stops adjustments to prior closed periods. The audit is date driven, so you can print your month end audit report for the set financial period dates.
You can run the Debtors period end before the WIP period audit, including before all timesheets are complete.
Before you start
Confirm each of these items is complete before you begin.
Take a backup of the APS database.
Make sure all staff timesheets are complete for the month.
Enter and post all disbursements.
Enter and post all receipts.
Post and clear all fee batches.
When you’re ready, all staff should be out of Timesheets, Debtors, and Fees and Disbursements.
🤓Tip: If required, use Joe Admin Security to lock users out of these areas while you complete month end.
Complete the WIP month end
The WIP ledger is an open item ledger, but the WIP period audit closes each WIP period. You access the audit from Timesheet Administration.
Step 1 – Complete and post disbursements
Make sure all disbursement batches are complete and posted for the month.
Complete and post all disbursement batches for the month.
To check the entire month, right-click in the white area of the screen, then filter by WIP date.
Step 2 – Complete and post timesheets
Before you admin post all timesheets for the month, check that all timesheets are complete. Then run the following checks for each week before you post.
Integrity check: if nothing appears on the screen within a few seconds, the check has completed successfully. If you get an error:
Un-post and delete the entry in question through Timesheets.
Close Timesheets, then go back into Timesheets.
You will most likely find the entry is still there, as a second entry.
Run the integrity check again through Timesheet Admin. It should now be correct.
Reconciliation report: this report checks that all timesheet entries have been sent to the WIP ledger. Make sure there are no figures in the Difference column. If there are:
Go into that staff member’s timesheet and find the entry. This generally means a timesheet entry hasn’t posted properly.
Un-post and re-post the entry, or delete it from within Timesheets.
If the problem persists, call APS Support.
Posting integrity: if you get an error, contact APS Support.
Once you have completed all checks, admin post all timesheets for each week of the month.
Step 3 – Complete the WIP period audit
This assumes your database is set to enforce period audit in System & User Settings. Complete the audit at the end of each period.
From Timesheet Administration, click Tools, then click Period Audit.
Select the correct year from the drop-down list.
Select the current month to be closed, then right-click and click Close Audit Period.
Print the audit period report.
⚠️Important: Closing the audit period logs each timesheet entry as audited, so it can’t be altered. To change an entry, you’ll need to reopen the period and complete a timesheet adjustment.
Complete the Debtors month end
The Debtors ledger is bound by calendar months.
⚠️Important: Complete these steps in order for each month end.
Step 1 – Post fee batches for the current period
Any un-posted fees roll into the next Debtors period, but they won’t hold up the month end process.
Post all fees that need the current Debtors period end date.
Check fees in progress from the Fees application, Worklist area, by viewing all batches.
Step 2 – Post all debtor batches for the current period
Post all debtors transactions for the current Debtors period end date. You complete this from the Debtors application.
Filter by Active batches.
Review the batches to make sure they’re complete.
Post any batches that need posting.
Step 3 – Run integrity checks
Run the Debtors integrity check before you run statements and reports, because errors affect both. Ideally, run it daily after each receipt batch entry, so errors are caught early rather than at month end.
In the Debtors application, click Tools, then click Integrity Check.
Click Start, then check that all items have a tick.
If you get any crosses, click the Result Data List radio button to investigate.
A common item is the OI Debtors Allocation Integrity, where the software hasn’t allocated a receipt against an invoice correctly.
To fix the allocation, go to the Results area, then click Allocation.
Click Edit, then click Synchronise.
Allocate the receipt again.
Restart the integrity check until all items have ticks or a question mark.
Step 4 – Review the unallocated transactions report
Review the unallocated debtor transaction report from Standard Reporting before you run statements. Ideally, this report only shows clients who have paid an invoice in advance, or clients who have overpaid an invoice.
In Standard Reporting, change the Selector to Debtors Transactions.
Select the Unallocated Debtor Transaction Report.
Review any information the report returns.
If receipts paid in advance in the previous period haven’t been offset against the invoice raised, allocate or re-allocate them through the Debtors application:
Enter the Client Sortname, then click Allocate to review allocations.
Step 5 – Run statements
Run statements from the Debtors application once you have reviewed the unallocated transactions report.
Review the statement options and filters.
To preview the statements, click Report Style Preview.
Click OK to run the statement batch to screen, then send it to the printer.
Step 6 – Run the Debtors period end
Run the period end from the Debtors application. The End of Period form contains system checks that must be completed before rollover can take place.
📌Note: The Period End function is only available once the calendar month end date has passed. This safeguards against early rollover. The shortcut is also on the toolbar.
Click Tools, then click Period End.
Debtors period check
The software checks that a Debtors period exists to roll into. If one hasn’t been created, a cross appears beside this step, and rollover isn’t allowed until you fix it.
Active fee extract check
This check looks for fee batches still in progress. It doesn’t stop rollover, but any un-posted fees will go into the new period and won’t be part of the previous period’s total.
If your practice policy is to clear incomplete fee batches before rollover, click Action, then click Extract Log Maintenance. From here, you can see which fee batches are still in progress. Either clear the fee log yourself, or contact the person who started the fee and ask them to remove it.
All batches posted check
This check confirms that all Debtors batches have been posted. If any batches aren’t posted, the period end process shuts down. Post or delete these batches before you continue.
Integrity check
You completed this check in step 3, so it should pass again. Re-run the integrity check to get a tick.
Control report
The control report is a compulsory step, and you must print it. It reconciles the month’s transactions, with an opening and closing balance. The closing balance should match the Aged Analysis grand total.
⚠️Important: This is the only opportunity to print this particular report, unless you have Practice IQ. You must print it before the application allows rollover to continue.
Click the hyperlink Go to Control Report.
Click Report.
In Print Preview, click Print.
Once the report has printed, click Update, then click Yes.
When the update message appears, click Close.
The audit now has its values cleared from the transaction types, and the closing balance becomes the new month’s opening balance. Once you have closed the audit, the Roll Over button is enabled at the bottom of the Rollover form.
Roll over the period
Make sure everyone is out of the database before you roll over. If that isn’t possible, make sure no one is using any Debtors functions while the rollover runs.
Click Roll Over.
Click Yes.
Wait for the rollover to complete, which takes about five to 15 seconds.
Read the message that states whether the process was successful.
Once a year, you’ll also be prompted to complete the Advance Usage Update. Follow the prompts on screen. On a successful rollover, the new period will be open.
⚠️Important: If the rollover hasn’t been successful, go to your backup and/or contact APS Support for assistance.
Finish the month end
Complete these tasks after a successful WIP and Debtors rollover.
Create timesheet headers for all staff for the new period, up until the end of the month only.
If you changed Joe Admin Security settings to restrict users from Fees, Debtors and similar areas, reinstate their security rights.
Reconcile Practice Management reports
Use these checks to confirm that WIP has moved correctly to Debtors and that your Practice Management figures agree.
Reconcile WIP to Debtors fee values
Fees are the only transactions that move from the WIP ledger to the Debtors ledger, and they do so when they’re posted and become invoices. Use this check to confirm all WIP transferred without issues.
Open the WIP Audit Summary, then add up the Time Fees, Interim Fees and Disbursement Fees. For example:
Time fees: $22,795.93.
Interim fees: $0.00.
Disbursement fees: $1,283.00.
Total: $24,078.93.
Open Debtors, click Reports, then click Reconciliation.
Add up the values of the batches with a source of Fees or Fee Spy.
Check that these values reconcile with the fees on the WIP Audit Summary.
📌Note: Exclude invoices and credit notes created directly in the Debtors module, because they don’t flow back into the WIP ledger. Only transactions made through Fees or Fee Spy reconcile back to the WIP ledger.
Verify the tax component
Compare the tax total from Standard Reporting with the tax value in the Debtors application.
In Standard Reporting, change the Selector to Debtors Transactions.
Set the Transaction Date filter to equal the current Debtors month.
Select Tax, then select Tax Summary.
In the Debtors application, click Reports, then click Reconciliation. Compare the tax value with the Tax Summary report.
Reconcile Practice IQ reports
You can reconcile Practice IQ reports back to Practice Management. Update Practice IQ first, so its reports are current.
Step 1 – Run a manual Practice IQ update
Run a manual update so Practice IQ matches Practice Management. Alternatively, wait for the scheduled update, which normally runs once a day at midday.
Step 2 – Compare the reports
Use the following report pairs to reconcile Practice IQ back to Practice Management.
WIP Period Audit vs WIP and Debt Analysis vs Control Report.
WIP Movement by Matter Partner vs WIP and Debtors Analysis, WIP Detail Report.
Fee Earner Summary Report vs PTD & YTD Utilisation Report.
Internal Matters by Fee Earner vs Staff Utilisation Report.
Debtors Control Report vs WIP and Debtors Analysis.
Why utilisation WIP differs from the lockup WIP balance
Utilisation reports in Practice IQ only show allocated staff WIP transaction types. Disbursements that aren’t allocated to a staff member won’t appear in the utilisation WIP balance. The WIP control report only shows Time transaction types, which are always allocated to staff.