AccountancyISCO 3313

Bookkeeper

A bookkeeper is a person who records a company's day-to-day financial transactions — sales, purchases, payments and receipts — and keeps the books in which they are held balanced and correct.

Take the free test Check yourself in a minute ↓AI risk: 76/100 (very high risk)

Check yourself in a minute: bookkeeper

Rate 5 of the 18 essential skills of this occupation (European ESCO data). No account needed.

perform balance sheet operations

prepare financial statements

follow the statutory obligations

identify accounting errors

use accounting systems

About bookkeeper

Bookkeeper duties follow the daily flow of paperwork. Each transaction is entered in the right place: the sales day book, the relevant journal and the general ledger, so that every amount appears where an auditor would expect to find it. The bookkeeper manages the general ledger, reconciles what the records say against what the bank and the suppliers say, and detects accounting errors, which is the part of the work that actually takes skill, because an error that balances is harder to find than one that does not. Trial balances are prepared from those records, and the books and transaction records are made ready for the accountant, who then analyses the balance sheet and the financial statements.

The work is done inside accounting software, within the department's procedures and the company's policies, and it has to respect tax regulations, since much of what is recorded eventually supports a tax return.

The skills of a bookkeeper are accuracy sustained over repetition, knowledge of double-entry records, and the patience to trace a discrepancy to its source rather than adjusting it away. Qualifications for the role are set by the employer and the national accounting rules.

European Skills Framework

Skills and knowledge areas required for this occupation based on European classification.

Essential (18)

accounting department processesaccounting department processesThe different processes, duties, jargon, role in an organisation, and other specificities of the accounting department within an organisation such as bookkeeping, invoices, recording, and taxing.bookkeeping regulationsbookkeeping regulationsThe methods and regulations involved in the process of accurate bookkeeping.financial statementsfinancial statementsThe set of financial records disclosing the financial position of a company at the end of a set period or of the accounting year. The financial statements consisting of five parts which are the statem...depreciationdepreciationThe accounting method of dividing the value of an asset over its useful life for the allocation of cost per fiscal year and in parallel to decrease the value of the asset from the accounts of the comp...accounting techniquesaccounting techniquesThe techniques of recording and summarising business and financial transactions and analysing, verifying, and reporting the results.accounting entriesaccounting entriesThe financial transactions recorded in accounting systems or books of a company together with the metadata linked to the entry such as the date, the amount, the accounts affected, and a description of...commercial lawcommercial lawThe legal regulations that govern a specific commercial activity.tax legislationtax legislationTax legislation applicable to a specific area of specialisation, such as import tax, government tax, etc.company policiescompany policiesThe set of rules that govern the activity of a company.perform balance sheet operationsperform balance sheet operationsMake up a balance sheet displaying an overview of the organisation's current financial situation. Take into account income and expenses; fixed assets such as buildings and land; intangible assets such...prepare financial statementsprepare financial statementsCollect, entry, and prepare the set of financial records disclosing the financial position of a company at the end of a certain period or accounting year. The financial statements consisting of five p...follow the statutory obligationsfollow the statutory obligationsUnderstand, abide by, and apply the statutory obligations of the company in the daily performance of the job.identify accounting errorsidentify accounting errorsTrace accounts, revise the accuracy of the records, and determine the faults in order to solve them.use accounting systemsuse accounting systemsEmploy accounting systems for recording and managing the accounts, obligations, and rights that the company possesses. Utilise these systems for accounting operations, financial analysis, and preparat...manage the general ledgermanage the general ledgerEnter data and revise the adequate maintenance of general ledgers in order to follow up on the financial transactions of the company, and other non routine transactions such as depreciation.attach accounting certificates to accounting transactionsattach accounting certificates to accounting transactionsCollate and link documents such as invoices, contracts, and payment certificates in order to back up the transactions made in the accounting of the company.prepare trial accounting balancesprepare trial accounting balancesEnsure that all transactions are recorded in the books of the company and totalise all the debits and the credits of the accounts to find out balance in the accounts.maintain financial recordsmaintain financial recordsKeep track of and finalise all formal documents representing the financial transactions of a business or project.

Optional (18) — show

labour legislationlabour legislationLegislation, on a national or international level, that governs labour conditions in various fields between labour parties such as the government, employees, employers, and trade unions.financial department processesfinancial department processesThe different processes, duties, jargon, role in an organisation, and other specificities of the financial department within an organisation. Understanding of financial statements, investments, disclo...statisticsstatisticsThe study of statistical theory, methods and practices such as collection, organisation, analysis, interpretation and presentation of data. It deals with all aspects of data including the planning of ...support development of annual budgetsupport development of annual budgetSupport the development of the annual budget by producing base data as defined by the operations budget process.prepare tax returns formsprepare tax returns formsTotalise all the deductible tax collected during the quarter or fiscal year in order to fill tax return forms and claim it back to the governmental authorities for declaring taxation liability. Keep t...allocate billsallocate billsPrepare and issue bills to clients and debtors taken from the accounts receivable of the financial statements. Disclose the amount to pay, the due date, taxing information, and additional details as n...calculate taxcalculate taxCalculate the taxes which have to be paid by an individual or organisation, or paid back by a governmental institution, compliant with specific legislation.manage cash deskmanage cash deskEnsure compliance with company operating procedures and relevant legislation for cash desk activities. Apply the CCF policy and actively control debt management and recovery within agreed parameters.organise business documentsorganise business documentsPut together documents coming from the photocopier, the mail, or the daily operations of businesses.manage payroll reportsmanage payroll reportsMaintain personnel records as well as payroll reports. Record evaluations, promotions or disciplinary actions.interpret financial statementsinterpret financial statementsRead, understand, and interpret the key lines and indicators in financial statements. Extract the most important information from financial statements depending on the needs and integrate this informa...handle petty cashhandle petty cashHandle petty cash for minor expenses and transactions required for the daily running of a business.archive documentation related to workarchive documentation related to workSelect relevant documentation related to the ongoing or complete work and take steps to archive it in a way that ensures its future accessibility.follow up accounts receivablesfollow up accounts receivablesRevise the accounts receivables section in the financial statements in order to breakdown the financial rights that the company has over other entities. Take actions in order to close the accounts and...ensure compliance with accounting conventionsensure compliance with accounting conventionsExercise accounting management and abidance by generally accepted accounting conventions such as recording transactions at the current price, quantifying goods, separating personal accounts of manager...manage accountsmanage accountsManage the accounts and financial activities of an organisation, supervising that all the documents are correctly maintained, that all the information and calculations are correct, and that proper dec...issue sales invoicesissue sales invoicesPrepare the invoice of goods sold or services provided, containing individual prices, the total charge, and the terms. Complete order processing for orders received via telephone, fax and internet and...handle financial transactionshandle financial transactionsAdminister currencies, financial exchange activities, deposits as well as company and voucher payments. Prepare and manage guest accounts and take payments by cash, credit card and debit card.

Related Occupations

Occupations that need many of the same essential skills, so the move between them is shortest.

accountant14 shared essential skills accounting assistant12 shared essential skills accounting manager6 shared essential skills financial manager6 shared essential skills accounting analyst4 shared essential skills budget manager4 shared essential skills bank manager3 shared essential skills bank treasurer3 shared essential skills

Frequently asked questions

What does a bookkeeper do?

Bookkeepers record and assemble the day-to-day financial transactions of an organisation or company, consisting usually of sales, purchases, payments and receipts. They ensure all financial transactions are documented in the appropriate (day) book and general ledger, and that they are balanced out. Bookkeepers prepare the recorded books and ledgers with financial transactions for an accountant to then analyse balance sheets and income statements.

What skills does a bookkeeper need?

A bookkeeper needs 18 essential skills, including accounting department processes, bookkeeping regulations, financial statements, depreciation, accounting techniques.

Will AI replace bookkeeper jobs?

The AI disruption score for bookkeeper is 76/100 (very high risk). Skills most exposed to automation: financial statements, accounting entries, allocate bills. Most resilient: maintain financial records, handle financial transactions, statistics.

AI Replacement Risk

76/ 100

Very High Risk

Low riskHigh risk

Skills most at risk from AI

financial statements accounting entries allocate bills

Skills resilient to automation

maintain financial records handle financial transactions statistics

This is the average for the whole occupation. The AI Career Shield test (about 10 minutes) shows the risk in your own work and what you can do about it.

Check your own AI risk

View full AI disruption analysis →

Quick Facts

SectorAccountancy

ISCO GroupBusiness and administration associate professionals

Essential Skills18

Is bookkeeper right for you?

Take the free 10-minute Career Portrait to see which career direction fits your motivations and strengths.

Take the free test