The Sdn Bhd owner's monthly closing checklist: what to finish by the 15th and by month end

This is very common. There are not many monthly tasks, but the dates are spread out and fall in the middle of your busiest days.

First, one term. Monthly closing: the fixed routine at the end of each month of recording that month's documents, reconciling the bank and producing reports. The simplest way to handle it is to split it into two groups: payments due by the 15th, and tidying up by month end.

What does a Sdn Bhd need to pay by the 15th of each month?

Five items are due by the 15th of each month: EPF, SOCSO, EIS, PCB and the CP204 estimated tax instalment. They all relate to employees and tax, and late payment may bring penalties or surcharges, so they come first.

• EPF: employee 11%, employer 13% (monthly wages of RM5,000 or less) or 12% (monthly wages above RM5,000). For foreign workers, from October 2025, 2% each from employer and employee.
• SOCSO: first category, employer about 1.75% and employee about 0.5%, wage ceiling RM6,000.
• EIS: 0.2% each from employer and employee, wage ceiling RM6,000.
• PCB (MTD): the monthly tax deduction, personal income tax the employer withholds from employees' salaries each month and pays to LHDN (Inland Revenue Board, LHDN/IRBM) on their behalf.
• CP204 estimated tax instalments: monthly instalments of company income tax paid in advance, based on estimated profit.

EPF, SOCSO, EIS and PCB above all relate to the previous month's salaries. If your company is in an industry covered by HRD Corp and has 10 or more Malaysian employees, you must also pay the 1% human resources development levy.

For payroll and statutory contribution details, see our payroll and EPF/SOCSO/EIS/PCB service. If you are about to hire your first employee, read payroll duties before your first hire first.

Sources: KWSP (EPF), PERKESO (SOCSO / EIS), LHDN (PCB, CP204)

How far should the books be tidied up by month end?

By month end, your books should be in a state where you can name three numbers: how much you made this month, how much cash you have, and who still owes you money. The checklist below is designed to get you there.

Month-end closing checklist

• Collect all sales invoices for the month and check the numbering runs in sequence, with none missing.
• Collect all purchase documents, supplier invoices and receipts for the month, and photograph or scan them for upload.
• Download the month's statements for all bank accounts, including credit card and e-wallet accounts.
• Match every bank movement to a document. Where there is no document, write down the reason.
• Reconcile the bank balance: the balance in your accounting software must match the bank statement.
• Check receivables and list customers who have not paid after 30, 60 and 90 days.
• Check payables and schedule which suppliers to pay next month.
• Record company expenses paid personally by the owner, or personal expenses paid by the company, as separate entries.
• Confirm the month's payroll has been recorded and matches the EPF, SOCSO, EIS and PCB amounts.
• Produce the month's profit and loss statement and balance sheet, and look through them for anything odd.

Reconciling the bank means the bank balance in your accounting software is exactly the same as the balance on the bank statement, and any difference can be explained.

Which filings need extra attention in which months of the year?

Pay special attention to the end of February (EA form), 31 March (Form E), the 6th, 9th and 11th months of the financial year (CP204A), and within 7 months after the financial year end (Form C). Put them in the same calendar as your fixed monthly tasks so nothing slips through.

SST-02: the return SST-registered companies file every two months. For a 31 December year end, the Form C deadline for FYE 31 December 2025 is 31 July 2026, with an e-Filing grace period to 31 August 2026. For tax filing support, see our tax filing support service; for SST filing, see our SST filing service.

Sources: LHDN (Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia), MySST (Royal Malaysian Customs Department)

Should e-Invoice be part of your monthly closing routine?

If your company still has to issue e-Invoices, yes. If you meet the RM3 million exemption conditions and have decided to stop, no. e-Invoice: a validated electronic invoice issued through LHDN's MyInvois system.

Phase 4 businesses with annual revenue of RM5 million and below started on 1 January 2026, with a grace period until 31 December 2027, during which consolidated e-Invoices can be used. The exemption threshold has been raised from RM1 million to RM3 million, effective 1 September 2026.

If you still need to issue them, add one more check at month end: have all e-Invoices for the month been issued, and were any rejected? For a detailed assessment, see the e-Invoice RM3 million exemption.

Sources: LHDN e-Invoice

How should the owner and the bookkeeping team split the monthly closing work?

The smoothest split: the owner sends documents and makes payments; the bookkeeping team calculates, records, reconciles and sends reminders. Back to the owner in Kluang: he made one small change. Every Friday afternoon, he sets aside 30 minutes to photograph and upload that week's documents.

At month end, the bookkeeping team reconciles the bank and produces the reports. For payroll, the team calculates salaries and statutory deductions, prepares payslips, prepares the EPF, SOCSO, EIS and PCB contribution files, and reminds him before the deadlines. He logs in to the KWSP, PERKESO and LHDN systems himself to pay. A few months later, the late-payment notices had stopped completely.

After monthly closing, what are the minimum numbers the owner should look at?

At least three: net profit, bank balance and overdue receivables. If the reports go straight into a drawer, half the work is wasted.

1. Did you make or lose money this month?

   Look at net profit on the last line of the profit and loss statement. If you make losses for several months in a row, find out why: is the gross margin too low or are expenses too high?

2. How much cash is left?

   Look at the bank balance on the balance sheet and compare it with next month's salaries, rent and supplier payments.

3. Who has not paid yet?

   Look at the receivables listing and start chasing customers who are more than 60 days overdue. When the books show a profit but cash is tight, this is often where the problem lies.

If you read this checklist and realise the past few months have not been done, don't panic. Catch up on the backlog first, then start the monthly routine. See what to do when your books are years behind, or read about our monthly bookkeeping service.

Sources: KWSP (EPF), PERKESO (SOCSO / EIS), LHDN (Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia), LHDN e-Invoice, MySST (Royal Malaysian Customs Department), SSM