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Glossary

Key terms about receipts, expenses, bookkeeping, and tax — explained simply.

A

Accounts Payable

Accounting

Money owed by a business to its suppliers and vendors for goods or services received.

Audit Trail

Compliance

A chronological record of financial transactions that provides documentary evidence of activities.

B

Bookkeeping

Accounting

The systematic recording of financial transactions for a business or individual.

Business Expense

Accounting

A cost incurred in the ordinary course of running a business that can typically be deducted from revenue.

D

Digital Receipt

Documents

An electronic record of a purchase transaction, typically sent via email or stored in an app.

E

Email Receipt

Documents

A digital receipt sent directly to a customer's email inbox after a purchase or subscription payment.

Expense Report

Documents

A document summarizing business expenses for a specific period, used for reimbursement or accounting.

Expense Tracking

Accounting

The process of recording, categorizing, and monitoring business expenditures for financial management and tax purposes.

I

Invoice vs Receipt

Documents

An invoice requests payment before a transaction; a receipt confirms payment after a transaction.

M

Mileage Tracking

Expenses

Recording business-related travel distances for tax deduction or reimbursement purposes.

P

Petty Cash

Accounting

A small fund of cash kept on hand for minor business expenses and incidentals.

Proof of Purchase

Documents

Documentation that verifies a transaction occurred, typically required for returns, warranties, or tax purposes.

R

Receipt Extraction

Technology

The automated process of pulling key data (amount, date, vendor) from receipt images or emails.

Receipt Management

Process

The systematic organization, storage, and retrieval of receipts for accounting and tax purposes.

Receipt OCR

Technology

Optical Character Recognition technology that automatically extracts text and data from paper or digital receipts.

Receipt Retention

Compliance

The practice of keeping receipts for a specified period as required by tax authorities.

Receipt Scanning

Technology

The process of converting physical paper receipts into digital format using cameras or scanners.

Reimbursement

Accounting

Repayment to an employee or individual for out-of-pocket business expenses.

T

Tax Deduction

Tax

An expense that can be subtracted from taxable income, reducing the total amount of tax owed.

V

VAT Receipt

Tax

A receipt that includes Value Added Tax information, required for VAT reclaim in many countries.