The Month-End Close Playbook for SMEs

The Month-End Close Playbook for SMEs is a 46-page PDF that shows a small or medium UAE business how to close its books each month: what to do, in what order, who does it, what evidence to keep and who signs. It comes with an editable Word file of six templates.

What is inside

• A definition of what "closed" means, and a close calendar from two working days before month end to ten working days after, with a RACI table of who does what.
• Step-by-step procedures, with evidence and sign-off, for sales and receivables cut-off, purchases and payables cut-off, bank reconciliation, cash and petty cash, stock count and valuation, accruals and prepayments, fixed assets and depreciation, payroll and the gratuity accrual, VAT reconciliation, foreign currency and journal controls.
• Trial balance review, analytical review with worked commentary, the management pack, sign-off and lock, and a lessons log.
• A table of the 20 most common close errors, and a six-month plan to shorten your close. No benchmarks are quoted; you compare against your own history.
• A complete worked close for a made-up company (Sandstone Trading LLC, October 2026). Every figure is example data and every total was checked by calculation.
• Six templates, printed in the PDF and editable in the Word file: close checklist, bank reconciliation sheet, accrual schedule, prepayment schedule, variance commentary sheet and close sign-off page.
• An appendix, "Doing the close in Zeyto", that maps each step to the screens in Zeyto. The rest of the playbook works with any accounting software.

Who it is for Owners, bookkeepers and finance managers of small and medium UAE businesses who keep their own books or supervise someone who does. You should know what a debit and a credit are.

What it is NOT It is not a tax filing guide, an audit manual or a replacement for your accountant, and it does not give legal, tax or accounting advice for your company. Where UAE VAT, gratuity or penalty rules matter, it states only the points that are well established and tells you to check your own case with your accountant or the FTA. The gratuity daily rate is shown as a policy choice to agree with your accountant, because the law does not define it. E-invoicing is described as being on the published roadmap and timetable, not as something you can assume is ready. The examples are not results you should expect.

Requirements

• A PDF reader, and Microsoft Word or a compatible editor for the templates.
• Your own accounting records. Zeyto is not required.

Version 1.0. Written November 2026. Single business use.