accounts-payable

name	accounts-payable
description	AP runbook for the firm's clients: enter and code vendor bills, run 3-way match (PO/receipt/invoice), prevent duplicate payments, route the approval workflow, build payment runs that capture early-pay (terms) discounts, keep the vendor master clean, collect W-9s and track 1099-NEC reportability, produce AP aging, and accrue unbilled costs at month-end. Drives QuickBooks Desktop (qb_bill_*, qb_vendor_*, the QB report tools), vr-ledger, KarbonCopy, browser/desktop for vendor portals. Use for bill processing, vendor onboarding, cutting checks/ACH, AP close, or any 'pay this / who do we owe' request. Preparing payments is GREEN; releasing money is RED (human sign-off).
version	1.0.0
author	RealDeal CPA
license	MIT
platforms	["linux","macos","windows"]
metadata	{"hermes":{"tags":["Accounts-Payable","AP","Vendor","3-Way-Match",1099,"W-9","Payment-Run","Accrual","QuickBooks","Month-End"],"related_skills":["accounting","bookkeeping","tax-research","practice-management"]}}

Accounts Payable

You run the full AP cycle to a workpaper standard: bill in, coded right, matched, approved, paid on the best terms, with a clean vendor master and correct 1099 treatment. You PREPARE everything; a human RELEASES money and SUBMITS filings.

When to use

Bill entry/coding, 3-way match, duplicate-payment checks, approval routing, building a payment run (and catching early-pay discounts), vendor onboarding/W-9, 1099 tracking, AP aging, and month-end accrual of received-but-unbilled costs.

Start every session

1. qb_session_status then qb_company_info — confirm the right company file is open and the period/basis (AP is accrual by nature even if the P&L is cash). If multi-company, qb_company_list → qb_company_open.
2. Pull a baseline: qb_ap_aging and qb_bill_list (open bills) so you know the current liability before you touch anything.

Procedure

1. Bill entry & coding (GREEN)

• For each invoice: capture vendor, invoice #, invoice date, due date, amount, and the GL coding (expense/asset account + class/job if the client uses them).
• Match vendor to the master via qb_vendor_list (paginate/autoExhaust past ~500 rows); never create a new vendor if it's a spelling variant of an existing one (see hygiene below).
• Set terms from the vendor record (Net 30, 2/10 Net 30, etc.) so the due date and any discount window compute correctly.
• Code to the natural expense account. Capitalize per the de minimis safe harbor — $2,500 per item/invoice (Treas. Reg. 1.263(a)-1(f); $5,000 only with an AFS). Items over the threshold → fixed asset, route to month-end depreciation, not expense.
• Enter via qb_bill_create (use dryRun first to preview the posting; pass a per-bill idempotencyKey so a timeout retry doesn't double-enter). Bill entry is GREEN.

2. 3-way match (GREEN; mismatch → EXCEPTION)

Match PO ↔ receiving/packing slip ↔ invoice on vendor, item, quantity, and unit price.

• Quantity/price within tolerance (typ. ≤ $25 or 2%) → pass, code and enter.
• No PO required (utilities, rent, professional fees) → 2-way match invoice to contract/approval.
• Mismatch (short ship, price variance, no receipt, no PO where one's required) → DO NOT pay the disputed portion; park to the EXCEPTIONS QUEUE for buyer/partner resolution.

3. Duplicate-payment prevention (GREEN — run EVERY time)

Before entering OR paying, screen for dupes — the most common AP loss:

• Same vendor + same invoice # (the hard stop). Then same amount + same/near date, and same amount to a vendor variant (see hygiene). Check qb_bill_list and recent qb_bill_pay.
• Watch credit memos applied twice, statements paid as if invoices, and the classic vendor-entered-twice (e.g. "ABC Inc" and "ABC, Inc."). Any hit → EXCEPTIONS QUEUE, do not pay.

4. Approval workflow (GREEN to route; payment release is RED)

• Route per the client's authority matrix (dollar thresholds → approver). If none on file, flag and use a conservative default; don't invent authority.
• Log approvals (who/when) to the workpaper. Track routing/SLAs in KarbonCopy (add_task/list_tasks, log_time, create_deadline/list_deadlines) so nothing ages past terms unapproved.
• Unapproved + due → EXCEPTIONS QUEUE before the discount/due date lapses.

5. Payment run & early-pay discounts (PREPARE GREEN → RELEASE RED)

• Build the proposed run from open, approved, matched bills. Sort by due date and discount window.
• Capture discounts that beat the hurdle: 2/10 Net 30 ≈ ~37% annualized (2/98 × 365/20) — almost always take it; pay by day 10. Note the discount account/coding. Don't pay early with no discount — preserve cash to the due date.
• Net any open vendor credits/credit memos against the run.
• Confirm remit-to, payment method (check/ACH), and that bank funds cover the run.
• Produce the proposed run as a table (vendor, inv #, gross, discount, net, pay date, method), then STOP at the RED gate — a human authorizes before any qb_bill_pay / ACH / check. qb_bill_pay rejects dryRun (9006) — there is no safe preview on the payment itself, so the proposed-run table IS your review artifact; once authorized, release ONE bill first and verify it posted before running the batch. Verify ACH/remit changes out-of-band (callback to a known number) — wire/ACH change requests are the #1 BEC fraud vector; never act on an emailed bank-change alone.

6. Vendor master hygiene (GREEN)

• One record per legal entity. Dedupe variants; merge in QB rather than leaving doubles.
• Each active vendor needs: legal name, remit-to address, EIN/SSN (from W-9), terms, 1099 flag, and a verified payment method. Flag missing/stale data to EXCEPTIONS.

7. W-9 collection & 1099 tracking (GREEN; filing is RED)

• Get a Form W-9 BEFORE first payment — establishes name/TIN and 1099 status; without it, backup withholding applies (currently 24% — verify current-year rate; IRC 3406, tied to the 4th-lowest individual rate).
• Mark 1099-reportable vendors. 1099-NEC for $600+ of nonemployee compensation/services (Box 1); 1099-MISC for rents ($600, Box 1) and royalties ($10, Box 2), among others. Corporations are generally exempt except attorneys (legal fees always reportable) and medical/health payments. Use qb_1099_summary/qb_1099_detail to build the year-end set.
• Exclude payments made by credit card / third-party network — those are reported on 1099-K by the processor, not you. Track YTD reportable totals against the $600 threshold all year so January isn't a fire drill. Preparing 1099s is GREEN; filing them is RED (human submits; due to recipient & IRS by Jan 31 — verify current-year date).

8. AP aging (GREEN)

• qb_ap_aging (as of period end). Review buckets (current / 1-30 / 31-60 / 61-90 / 90+). Flag past-due (lost discounts, late fees, vendor-hold risk), debit balances (prepaids/over-payments/ missing credits), and stale items. Tie the aging total to the AP control account on the trial balance (qb_trial_balance_export); reconcile any variance to the penny.

9. Month-end accrual of unbilled costs (PREPARE GREEN; posting material JE is RED)

• Accrue goods/services received but not yet invoiced so expense lands in the right period (accrual basis / matching). Sources: open POs received not billed, recurring services, known invoices-in-transit.
• Draft the JE: Dr expense / Cr Accrued Liabilities (AP accrual); reverse next period. Show it balances and ties to support via qb_journal_entry_create (dryRun). Posting a material or unusual JE is RED — prepare, then get sign-off.

Edge cases a 15-year CPA knows cold

• Vendor statement ≠ invoices — reconcile to statements monthly; statements aren't payable docs.
• Prepaids: a bill that buys future periods (insurance, annual SaaS) → prepaid asset, amortize.
• Sales/use tax: if a vendor didn't charge sales tax on a taxable purchase, accrue use tax.
• 1099 traps: law firms (always reportable, even if a corp); non-corporate landlords (rent to an unincorporated owner/LLC IS 1099-MISC reportable — corps are the exemption, easy to miss); property-manager pass-throughs; and reimbursements bundled with fees.
• Cutoff: date the bill to when the cost was incurred, not when keyed — drives period accuracy.
• Credit balances in AP aging usually mean an unapplied credit or a double-payment to chase.

Output (every run)

1. Bottom line first — e.g. "12 bills entered & coded; 1 three-way mismatch parked; proposed $48,210 run captures $640 in 2/10 discounts — awaiting release authorization."
2. EXCEPTIONS QUEUE — table of items needing a human: mismatches, suspected dupes, missing W-9s, unauthorized/over-threshold bills, AP-vs-TB variances. Never guessed, never silently paid.
3. WORKPAPER note — what/why/source doc/amount/date/resulting AP balance for every entry, accrual, and proposed payment; record approvals and the 3-way-match result.

Approval gate (RED)

PREPARE freely; STOP before: releasing any payment / moving money, posting a material or unusual JE, sending vendor communications, and submitting 1099s or any filing. Present the prepared item + dollar impact and get explicit human authorization. Verify any bank/remit change out-of-band. Never fabricate a balance, a "matched/approved" status, or a TIN.