Choosing annual work software: ten criteria for firms
Good annual work software reads in any package, builds an annual accounts file per client under Title 9 Book 2 DCC, records the review and delivers a publication version for SBR.
The short answer
Annual work software is the program with which a firm compiles clients' annual accounts, from trial balance to publication documents. Choose on ten points: data intake, classification, models, size class, notes, review, file, publication, SBR and pricing model. Below, for each point, you will find what to look for and what Jaarrekening.io does today.
Are you a business owner looking for software for your own annual accounts? Then read what to look for in annual accounts software.
Ten criteria for an annual work program
| Criterion | What to look for | Jaarrekening.io today |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Data intake | Does it work with any bookkeeping package of your clients, even without a link? | XAF audit file or trial balance in Excel or CSV. Direct links per package are in preparation and not yet released. |
| 2. Classification | How are accounts linked to line items, and does that stay verifiable? | Mapping via RGS codes; without a usable code an AI proposal that you check. Check whether debit and credit balance. |
| 3. Models | Does the layout follow the Besluit modellen jaarrekening (Dutch decree on annual accounts models)? | Balance sheet and profit and loss account according to the models in the Besluit modellen jaarrekening. |
| 4. Size class | Does the software apply the two-year rule, and do the exemptions follow from it? | Derivation from balance sheet total, net turnover and employees, with the prior-year figures; exemptions follow from legal form and class. |
| 5. Notes and management report | How much text do you write yourself, and how do you check it? | Editable AI drafts, marked as such, with amounts from the recorded figures; a text that has become outdated through a changed answer is only approved after updating. |
| 6. Review | Are preparing and reviewing separate? | Roles of preparer, checker and approver, enforced in the database; approval and comments per section. |
| 7. File | Do you keep the engagement letter, auditor's report and adoption with the financial year? | Templates for engagement letters, upload of the auditor's report and recording of the adoption date. |
| 8. Publication | Does the filing version follow from the same figures? | Publication version per size class from the same source. |
| 9. SBR | Does the software produce XBRL, and does it submit via Digipoort? | XBRL as a validation candidate for all four size classes, for financial years starting in 2023 through 2026 (NT18 through NT21). The app sends nothing to the KVK. |
| 10. Pricing model | Do you pay per user, per firm or per set of annual accounts? | Per set of annual accounts per financial year, from € 250 to € 5.000 excl. VAT; the first one in the workspace is free. No firm rate. |
How to weigh the criteria
Not every criterion weighs equally for every firm. A bookkeeping firm with mainly micro and small BVs benefits most from fast data intake, a tidy publication version and low cost per file. An accounting firm with compilation and audit engagements looks sooner at file building, review and the link to its own SBR software.
A practical test: take three files from last year. Choose a micro BV, a small holding and a client with a deviating chart of accounts. See how much manual work each program leaves. Pay particular attention to the comparative figures, which must be stated for every item as far as possible (art. 2:363(5) DCC), and to the reconciliation of equity.
Questions to ask a supplier
- Which size classes can I export as an XBRL file today, and for which financial years?
- Who validates the XBRL file against the Dutch Taxonomy, and who submits it?
- Where is the data stored, and is there a data processing agreement?
- What happens to AI texts: are they marked, and who must approve them?
- How is billing handled if a client changes class halfway through the year?
When Jaarrekening.io is a weaker fit
Jaarrekening.io is a weaker fit if you:
- want to get an iXBRL file directly from the annual work software;
- are looking for a complete firm package with invoicing, a time tracker and work in progress;
- want to run consolidated annual accounts in production, because the consolidation module is in beta and is not yet in the menu;
- expect a volume or firm rate.
In those cases the platform can serve alongside your existing software for preparing and reviewing, with submission via your current filing route.
Why paying per set of annual accounts works differently
With a price per set of annual accounts you only pay for files you actually make. That suits a firm with varying volumes. It also means you settle each financial year separately before you read in the trial balance. Determine the size class per client in advance; it determines the price. The cost calculator helps with a first estimate.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between annual work software and a bookkeeping package?
A bookkeeping package records the year's transactions. Annual work software starts from the closed trial balance and produces the annual accounts, the notes and the publication documents under Title 9 Book 2 DCC.
What is the best annual work software for a small firm?
That depends on your client base. Look at the size classes you serve, your clients' packages and the way you file. For mainly micro and small entities, data intake, publication version and cost per file weigh most.
Can I use annual work software alongside my current SBR software?
Yes. Jaarrekening.io delivers a publication version and, for every size class, an XBRL file as a validation candidate. You validate and submit with your existing SBR software or via an intermediary.
Does Jaarrekening.io support RGS?
Yes. Where RGS codes come with the data, the mapping to the annual accounts line items follows from those codes. Accounts without a usable code get an AI proposal that you confirm or adjust.
Read more
Preparing Dutch annual accounts?
Your first set of annual accounts is free, for every size class. Create an account and prepare the annual accounts of your Dutch company under Title 9 of Book 2 of the Dutch Civil Code.
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