Preparing the trial balance your auditor can actually use

A clean trial balance does not guarantee a quiet audit, but a messy one almost guarantees overtime. Before Kaede arrives for statutory fieldwork, we ask clients to deliver a trial balance that reconciles to the general ledger and to the draft financial statements.

Map every suspense account

Suspense and “temporary clearing” accounts should be empty at year-end, or each balance should have a named owner and a plan. Auditors sample these lines early because unexplained clearings often hide cut-off errors.

Reconcile the big four

Bank, receivables, payables, and inventory subledgers should tie to the control accounts before day one of fieldwork. Attach the reconciliation worksheets; do not wait for us to ask twice.

Flag related parties

List directors, subsidiaries, and significant shareholders with outstanding balances. Related-party disclosures are rarely material in yen terms and almost always material in reputation terms when omitted.

If your bookkeeper needs a half-day walkthrough of these steps, our compliance readiness review covers exactly this ground without issuing an opinion.