Messy books
Missing Receipts and Lost Records
Records lost to a move, a dead laptop, a closed account or simple neglect can usually be replaced from other sources. A few kinds of deduction need more than that, and it helps to know which.
What can be replaced, and from where
- Bank and credit card statements: reissued by the bank, including for closed accounts, usually going back several years
- Income reported to the IRS: wage and income transcripts show the forms third parties filed about you
- Past returns: IRS transcripts, or your previous preparer
- Supplier invoices: most suppliers can resend an account history
- Payroll records: the payroll provider keeps reports and copies of filings
- Sales records: point-of-sale systems, processors and sales platforms keep history
- Loan records: the lender’s statements and payoff letters
- Property and vehicle purchases: closing statements, bills of sale, dealer records and county records
Between them these cover nearly all of a normal business’s activity. A card statement showing a payment to a supplier, on a date that fits the work, supports that cost for most purposes.
Where a statement is not enough
For ordinary expenses, a reasonable reconstruction from other evidence is generally accepted when the original record is gone. For a few categories the tax rules ask for more, and an estimate will not do:
- Travel away from home
- Vehicle use: the business miles, dates and purposes
- Gifts
- Certain property used partly for personal purposes
For these, the record is expected to show the amount, the date, the place and the business reason, and to have been made at or near the time. Where no log exists, we look for what can stand in for one: calendars, job schedules, invoices showing where work was done, and fuel and service records.
How we reconstruct
- List what is missing, by account and by month, so the gaps are known up front
- Request reissued statements and transcripts straight away, since they take the longest
- Rebuild the books from the statements that are available while the rest arrive
- Support the larger and less usual items individually
- Write down the method used for anything estimated, so it can be explained later
- Leave out what cannot be supported, and tell you what that cost
The written method matters. A reconstructed figure with its reasoning attached is a very different thing from a round number with nothing behind it.
Records lost in a disaster
When records were destroyed by fire, flood or storm, the same sources apply, and the IRS publishes guidance on reconstructing records after a disaster. Keep anything that shows the loss itself, such as an insurance claim or a report, with the rebuilt records.
Frequently asked questions
Can I claim business expenses without receipts?
Often, yes. Bank and card statements, supplier records and other evidence can support ordinary business expenses when the receipt is gone. Travel, vehicle use and gifts are stricter and need records showing the amount, date, place and business purpose.
How far back can my bank reissue statements?
Most banks can reissue statements for several years, including for closed accounts, and some charge a fee per statement. Ask for all accounts at once, in PDF. What to gather covers how to make the request.
I did not keep a mileage log. Is the vehicle deduction lost?
Not necessarily, but it cannot be estimated from memory. Business miles have to be supported by records such as calendars, job addresses, invoices and service records that show where and when you drove for work. We tell you honestly whether what you have is enough.
How long should I keep records from now on?
Keep the records behind a return for at least as long as that return can be examined, and longer for payroll records and for anything about property you still own. Scanned copies are fine, and the notes behind any rebuilt figures should be kept with them.
Not the question you had? The full tax FAQ covers more ground, and our client reviews say what the work is actually like.
Related situations and guides
What to gather, and how to get it
The full document list, ranked by how much each item helps, and how to replace what is lost.
Learn moreA business that runs on cash
Cash sales and cash paid out, with deposits that tell only part of the story.
Learn moreAn IRS letter and no books
A letter asks how a number was arrived at and nobody can say. What to do before the response date.
Learn moreHow a cleanup works, step by step
The seven stages from first call to current books, and what each needs from you.
Learn moreCleanup Planner
Eight questions, then a plan: what comes first, what to gather, and which guides apply.
Part of Messy Books Help, alongside our catch-up bookkeeping service.
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