Can I use annual accounts software just once?

The short answer

Yes. If the supplier offers one-off use, that can suit a single file. Check export, corrections and access afterwards beforehand.

Legal basis: art. 2:10 DCC

What does paying per set of annual accounts mean?

Annual accounts do not automatically call for a continuing software subscription. Whether one-off use is possible follows from the supplier's offer and terms. Distinguish between paying per report, per legal entity and per financial year. These units look alike, but can lead to different costs when a correction is made.

Ask what falls under one completed set of annual accounts. Is a second draft included, can you adjust the comparative figures later, and does a renewed publication remain the same file? With a holding company and an operating company, these are different legal entities, even if you process both in one afternoon. A consolidated report may moreover be a separate service. Have a quote match your actual situation and compare amounts on the same VAT basis. Without published rates or a quote, a general price for one-off software cannot responsibly be named. A cheap entry rate can become less attractive if necessary output is charged separately.

What do you keep after access ends?

Above all, check what happens when the period of use ends. Can you still download the final annual accounts? Do the source files, correction entries and notes remain available? A PDF is useful, but does not necessarily contain the data with which you can later answer a question about a balance. The retention obligation of art. 2:10 DCC does not disappear because a software contract ends. The Dutch Tax Administration (Belastingdienst) also mentions various tax retention periods for administrative data. Therefore plan your own archive export before cancelling. Also open the files outside the programme and check whether names, financial years and account numbers have stayed recognisable.

One-off access suits above all a simple file that you can actually complete within the agreed period. In a discussion about valuation, missing bank data or an ongoing audit, completion may take longer. Ask how reopening works and whether support after the end is charged separately. If you have the same BV every year, compare the costs over several years, including setting up the file again. That is a calculation example you can fill in yourself with quotes; it is no reason to choose a subscription in advance. The best form of payment depends on your way of working and expected changes.

When does one-off use fit?

After purchase, record who is responsible for the final check, adoption and sending. A licence end date is not a postponement of a statutory obligation. Make sure you do not still have to look up a missing note on the last day of access. Note with the saved output which version was adopted and which information was ultimately filed. Whoever takes over the file later must be able to understand it without access to your old account. For a one-off assignment, portability is therefore at least as important as the purchase price. Ask about this possibility beforehand and actually check it with a trial export.

How it works at Jaarrekening.io

For the annual accounts, Jaarrekening.io has no subscription. You pay once per financial year, by size class: micro € 250, small € 500, medium-sized € 2.000 and large € 5.000, excl. VAT. The first annual accounts in your account are free. Only the bookkeeping in the app is a monthly subscription per legal entity; with an export from your own package you do not need it.

What the free first annual accounts include →

Sources

• Dutch Tax Administration (Belastingdienst): setting up your records

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