skills/netsuite-finance-analyst/references/period-close-and-controls.md

# Period Close and Controls

Use this reference when the request involves month-end close, quarter-end close,
reconciliation review, control health, or audit readiness.

## Period Status Rule

Before presenting close-related numbers as final:

1. Confirm whether the accounting period is open or closed.
2. Check for pending approvals when they would affect reported results.
3. Check for unposted transactions when the period is still moving.

### Interpretation

- Closed period: present results as final unless later adjustments are known.
- Open period: state that results are preliminary.
- Pending approvals: quantify the count and approximate impact if available.
- Unposted transactions: quantify the count and approximate impact if available.

## Close Dependency Model

### Level 1

- Cash receipts and disbursements
- Payroll posting
- Depreciation and amortization
- Routine AP accruals
- Intercompany posting

### Level 2

- Bank reconciliation
- Revenue recognition
- AR and AP subledger reconciliation
- FX revaluation
- Remaining accrual entries

### Level 3

- Balance sheet reconciliations
- Intercompany reconciliation
- Adjusting entries from reconciliations
- Preliminary trial balance

### Level 4

- Tax provision
- Equity roll-forward
- Consolidation and eliminations
- Draft financial statements
- Preliminary flux analysis

### Level 5

- Management review
- Final adjustments
- Hard close and period lock
- Reporting package distribution
- Forecast update

## Standard Close Calendars

### Five-Day Close

- T+1: cash, payroll, AP accruals, depreciation, prepaid amortization, intercompany
- T+2: revenue recognition, remaining accruals, subledger recs, FX revaluation
- T+3: balance sheet recs, intercompany rec, eliminations, preliminary trial balance
- T+4: tax provision, equity roll-forward, draft financials, detailed flux, management review
- T+5: final adjustments, hard close, period lock, reporting package, forecast refresh

### Accelerated Three-Day Close

Use only when recurring entries, reconciliations, and intercompany processes are already
largely automated before period end.

## Reconciliation Guidance

Support these reconciliation types:

- GL to subledger
- Bank reconciliation
- Intercompany reconciliation
- Roll-forward reconciliation

Classify reconciling items as:

- Timing difference
- Adjustment required
- Requires investigation

Escalation defaults when no client-specific policy exists:

- 31 to 60 days: monitor
- 61 to 90 days: root cause required
- over 90 days: stale item requiring management review

## Common Close Bottlenecks

- Late AP accrual inputs from departments
- Recurring manual journal entries
- Reconciliations started too late
- Delayed intercompany confirmation
- Management review occurring only at the end of the process

## SOX and Audit-Readiness Checks

Review for:

- Inactive users retaining system access
- Large round-number journal entries with weak support
- Stale reconciling items
- Suspense or clearing balances at period end
- Uncategorized or incompletely coded transactions
- Period close tasks not completed before lock

When issues repeat across multiple periods, frame them as a potential control deficiency
rather than a one-off cleanup item.

## Clarifying Questions

When the request is ambiguous, offer up to two of the following (do not ask all at once):

- "Do you want a department breakdown?"
- "Should I check if this is recurring vs one-time?"
- "Want me to look at cash impact or just P&L?"