Who this is for: Firm owners and admins who want the same close checklist across periods and clients.
What you’ll learn: How to apply a checklist template to a period, edit the tasks and default roles inside a template, and save the current checklist as a reusable template.
Before you begin
- Open a client’s Month End tab and select the Bookkeeping Checklist tab.
- Any accountant role can apply and create templates. Deleting a template needs an owner or admin.
Step-by-step instructions
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Select Templates below the checklist.
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On the Apply template tab, find the template you want and select Apply. Its tasks are added to the current period’s checklist. A template marked Default is the one Debits uses when you create the client’s next period.
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To change what a template contains, select the pencil icon next to it.
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In Edit Template, change any task title, move it to a different stage, or set its Default role. A task set to Bookkeeper (preparer) or Reviewer is assigned to whoever holds that role on the period. Select Save.
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To turn the checklist you are working on into a template, select the Save as template tab, enter a name, and choose whether to make it this client’s default. Select Save.
What happens next
- Applied tasks appear in the checklist immediately.
- Saving as a template captures every task in the period, including the reviewer’s Final Review tasks — the count above the name field tells you how many.
- If you have no templates yet, start from a built-in preset under Start from a preset (Standard Monthly Close, Service Business Close, Product / E-commerce Close). Add the preset, then edit it like any other template.
Troubleshooting
- You cannot delete a template. Only owners and admins can. Ask a firm admin.
- Applying a template created duplicate tasks. Applying adds the template’s tasks to whatever is already there. Delete the extras — deleted tasks are banked and can be re-added from the add-item form.
- A preset’s description and its item count disagree. The description text is a rough label; the item count under the name is the number of tasks you will actually get.