How it runs for franchise owners
A LedgerBPO catch-up team works the backlog month by month in QuickBooks Online Advanced or Xero, reconciles every account to a clean cut-off date and produces a gross-sales schedule per unit that can stand up to the franchisor's audit clause.
What is catch-up bookkeeping?
Catch-up bookkeeping is a one-time project that records and reconciles months or years of transactions that were never entered. The goal is a set of books where every bank, card and loan balance agrees with the statement and every period can be reported on. It ends when the backlog is current and reconciled, usually followed by ongoing monthly bookkeeping.
What we handle for franchise owners
- Backlog rebuilt month by month with each unit reconciled separately
- Gross-sales schedule per unit prepared from POS exports for audit defense
- Royalty and ad-fund drafts matched to statements for every back period
- Missing distributor invoices requested and matched to statements
- Clean cut-off date agreed with your CPA before ongoing bookkeeping starts
The KPI that matters here
Each back month reconciled and signed off before the next one is started.
Franchises compliance notes
Franchisor royalty reporting
Your agreement defines gross sales for royalty purposes, and the definition often excludes sales tax and refunds but includes gift-card redemptions and delivery orders. We keep the ledger's sales accounts aligned to that definition so the weekly upload and the monthly royalty statement reconcile without manual adjustments. Any dispute is documented with POS exports the franchisor can trace.
Marketing-fund and local advertising reporting
Brand marketing-fund contributions are a separate percentage from royalties and many agreements also require a minimum local advertising spend, often 1 to 2% of gross sales, with proof on request. We track both in their own accounts and keep invoices attached so the annual attestation is a report, not a search.
Audit rights and record retention
Franchise agreements commonly allow the franchisor to inspect books and POS data, and to charge the audit cost to you if under-reporting exceeds a stated threshold, frequently 2 to 3%. Every sales entry carries its source document in LedgerDesk so an inspection can be answered from the file.
Multi-state sales tax and payroll
Units in different states carry different sales-tax rates, filing frequencies and payroll registrations. We track liabilities by unit and state, prepare the workings, and your registered preparer files; we do not file on your behalf.
Franchises software we work in
More for franchise owners
Other services for franchises
Catch-up bookkeeping in other industries
Frequently asked questions
How long does franchise catch-up bookkeeping take?
It depends on the number of units, the months outstanding and how complete the source documents are; a three-unit backlog of 12 months is often several weeks of dedicated work. We quote after reviewing access to your POS, bank and merchant statements. Market benchmarks for catch-up work run $200 to $500 per back month (John Galt Finance), scaled for multiple units.
Can you rebuild gross sales per unit if my POS history is incomplete?
Usually, yes. Merchant-processor statements, delivery-platform reports and bank deposits together let us reconstruct daily sales when POS exports are missing. Cash sales are estimated from deposit records and flagged as such. Any period that cannot be fully supported is documented so you and your CPA know exactly where the gaps are.
What happens after the catch-up is finished?
We agree a clean cut-off date, your CPA reviews the rebuilt balances, and the same dedicated accountant continues with monthly bookkeeping so the backlog does not return. The close calendar and franchisor reporting start from the first full month after cut-off. See the outsourced bookkeeping service for franchise owners for what ongoing work includes.
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