Retainer Liability Application Bridge

Trace a customer retainer from opening liability through receipts and documented invoice applications. Preparation only, not an account action.

What to provide

Customer/retainer IDs; opening liability; deposit receipts; signed application amounts; reversals/refunds; currency; accountant policy.

How it works

1. Match retainer/customer and currency before summing.
2. Build opening plus deposits minus documented applications minus refunds, with reversal signs explicit.
3. Tie applications to invoices without counting the same cash again.
4. Reconcile to supplied closing liability; ask accountant about policy or treatment gaps; no ledger posting.

The output

retainer | currency | opening | receipts | applied | refunded | reversal | expected_close | ledger_difference

Worked fictional example

Fictional opening 500, deposit 200, application 150, refund 50 gives closing 500 in one currency. Missing application invoice leaves 150 held. Deposits are not automatically earned revenue.

Checks and limits

Keep source versions and original values. Unknowns stay unknown. Use qualified review for regulated, legal or hiring decisions. No live account compatibility test, send, share, schedule, ledger change or payment is authorized.

More bookkeepers workflows · How-to guides

Method: reviewed source. Demand lead: Oct8 live GSC through Oct5: marketing copilot 37 impressions, Planable/Claude 33 and Planable/ChatGPT 23, campaign brief 12 and reports 11. Marketing/social topics follow these parent-query leads; other professions follow method-source workflow needs, not exact query measurements. Exact monthly volume is unmeasured. Checked October 8, 2026.