What Documents Are Needed for a Business Valuation?
A business valuation needs financial statements for the last three years plus the current year to date, the records that support them, operational information about customers, staff and assets, and the documents that show who owns the business. Purpose-specific items depend on why the valuation is being done. Documents are uploaded through a secure client portal after the online intake, and a missing document is usually handled by a question or a stated assumption.
- The core pack is a profit and loss statement and balance sheet for three years plus the current year to date, with the records that support them.
- Trade businesses also need revenue by stream, a customer list, contracts, licences, and job and asset records.
- A constitution, shareholders agreement, trust deed or partnership agreement sets who owns what and on what terms.
- Purpose-specific items depend on whether the valuation is for a sale, CGT, a shareholder transfer, a dispute or estate planning.
- Documents are uploaded through the secure client portal after intake, and the typical turnaround is 3 to 7 business days once all required information has been received.
What is in the core financial pack?
The core pack lets a valuer establish what the business has earned, what it owns and owes, and how reliable those figures are. We usually ask for three years of results plus the current year to date, because one year can mislead and a trend needs at least three points.
Exports from your accounting software are fine, and they do not need to be reformatted. What matters is that the figures reconcile to the returns and to each other. A year to date that runs to a recent month end is also more useful than one that stops months earlier, because a balance sheet from nine months ago says little about today’s working capital and debt.
| Document | Why it matters | If you do not have it |
|---|---|---|
| Profit and loss statements: three years plus the current year to date | The starting point for maintainable earnings, before normalisation | Ask your accountant for an export from the accounting software. If only annual statements exist, tell us and we will work from those and note the limit |
| Balance sheets for the same dates | Show working capital, debt, assets, and amounts owed to or by the owner | Ask your accountant to produce them as at each year end and the latest month end |
| Tax returns for the entity and, where relevant, the owners | Reconcile the statements to what was lodged, and show owner income and distributions | Tell us which returns are not yet lodged, and ask your accountant for a summary of the position |
| Payroll summaries and superannuation records | Show wages, headcount, and whether pay is at market rates | Export a payroll summary by employee from your payroll system |
| Owner remuneration breakdown | Lets us replace the owner’s actual pay with a market cost for the role | A simple schedule of salary, drawings, dividends, super and loan movements is enough |
| Loan and finance statements | Show debt owing, repayments, interest and security | Request statements from the lender, or ask your accountant for the schedule |
| Asset register and depreciation schedule | Identify the plant, vehicles and equipment needed to earn the profit | List each item with its year, condition, owner and finance owing |
| Debtor and creditor ageing at each balance date | Show collection risk and how the business pays its own bills | Export from the accounting system as at each balance date |
What operational documents do trade businesses need?
Financial statements show what happened. The operational pack shows why, and whether it will continue. In trade businesses it matters more than in most, because so much of the value sits in people, licences and customer relationships.
| Document | Why it matters | If you do not have it |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue by stream for three years | Service, maintenance and project work carry different risk | Estimate from invoices and say how you did it |
| Customer list with first invoice date and revenue by year | Shows tenure, retention and customer concentration | Export invoices by customer from the accounting system, and add start dates marked as estimates |
| Contracts, agreements and panel arrangements | Show term, renewal, pricing and assignment terms | List verbal arrangements as verbal, with how long each has run |
| Licence and insurance register | Shows who holds each licence and whether work can continue without the owner | Send the licence numbers and holders, and we will ask for copies where they matter |
| Employee and subcontractor list | Shows the labour model, tenure, wages and apprentice pipeline | A payroll export plus a list of subcontractors and annual spend |
| Work in progress, retentions and warranty or defect obligations | Show cash tied up in jobs and liabilities that remain after completion | A schedule of open jobs with value, stage and amounts held back |
| Job management reports | Show job counts, average values, utilisation and lead sources | Export what the system holds, or send a summary built from invoices |
| Notes on personal expenses and one-off items | Allow us to normalise earnings with evidence | A short schedule with the date, amount and reason for each item |
Our guide on preparing a trade business for valuation explains how to build these items and why each matters.
Which documents matter most if time is short?
You do not have to gather everything before you start. If you can send only a few items first, send these five, so that the work can begin while the rest is collected.
- Profit and loss statements for three years plus the current year to date.
- Balance sheets for the same dates.
- A breakdown of what the owner is paid and how.
- A customer list with revenue by year.
- A list of every entity involved and who owns it.
These let us form a first view of the earnings, the owner’s role, the customer base and the ownership. They also show which of the other documents will matter most for your business.
Which entity and ownership documents are needed?
A valuation has to be of a specific interest in a specific entity, and the ownership documents define it. They also often contain terms that affect value, such as pre-emption rights, restrictions on transfer and agreed valuation methods.
If more than one entity is involved, such as a trading company, a family trust that owns the shares and a separate property entity, send the documents for each and a simple chart of how they connect. Multiple entities can place a matter within our Complex Valuations scope, which starts from $2,995 + GST.
| Document | Why it matters | If you do not have it |
|---|---|---|
| Company constitution and a current company extract | Show who owns the shares, the classes of shares and the rights attached | Ask your accountant or lawyer for a current extract, and tell us if the company has no constitution |
| Shareholders agreement | May set how a transfer is priced, who can buy and the exit terms | If there is none, say so, and the valuation will state that no agreement was provided |
| Trust deed and any variations | Shows who controls the trust, who can benefit and what it owns | Ask the trustee or your accountant, because the deed is needed to value a trust interest |
| Partnership agreement | Sets profit shares, capital accounts, goodwill and exit terms | If there is none, say so, and ask your lawyer what that means for your position |
| Option, loan or security agreements over the business | Show claims on the shares or assets that sit ahead of the value | List any you know of and ask your lawyer or accountant to confirm |
What purpose-specific documents might be requested?
The purpose of the valuation shapes what else we need. Typical examples are the following.
- Business sale. The draft listing information, any offers or heads of agreement, and a broker’s appraisal if you have one.
- CGT. The valuation date your tax adviser has specified, acquisition dates and cost base records, and any earlier restructure or valuation documents. Our guide on business valuations for CGT explains when market value matters.
- Shareholder transfer or partnership exit. The proposed terms, correspondence about price and the agreement that governs the exit.
- Restructure or succession. The proposed structure, the people involved and the timeline.
- Dispute. The correspondence or pleadings that set out what is in issue, any earlier valuations and the instructions from the lawyers.
- Estate planning. The entities and interests involved, and any existing estate documents your adviser considers relevant.
Your adviser or lawyer can tell you what applies to your matter, and we confirm it at intake. The pages on business sale, CGT and shareholder transfer valuations describe what each purpose involves.
How does a valuer use these documents?
The documents are used in a set order. First, the statements are reconciled to the tax returns and payroll records, so we know the figures can be relied on. Second, earnings are normalised: private expenses, one-offs and the owner’s pay are adjusted using the schedules you provide.
Third, the operational documents are read for risk: the customers, contracts, licences, workforce and assets that decide how likely those earnings are to continue. Finally, the ownership documents fix exactly what interest is being valued and on what terms. Gaps at any step are reported in the draft rather than hidden, which is why you see the draft before the report is finalised.
What if some documents do not exist or are incomplete?
Many trade businesses have gaps, and gaps do not stop a valuation. What matters is that they are stated.
- If a document does not exist, say so. We note the assumption or limitation in the report rather than guess silently.
- If a figure is an estimate, mark it as one and say how it was made.
- If bookkeeping is behind, bring it up to date first or tell us where it is incomplete, because a valuation needs reasonably current figures.
- Do not create documents after the event to fill a gap. Backdated paperwork is worse than a stated gap.
Missing information can lengthen the process, because the typical turnaround of 3 to 7 business days runs from receipt of all required information.
How do you send the documents?
Intake starts online at our start page, where you give us the basics about the business and the purpose. After intake, documents are uploaded through a secure client portal, so sensitive records do not need to travel by email. Green Standard works Australia-wide and remotely and has no physical offices, so there is nothing to post or deliver.
We provide a draft report before the report is finalised, so you can check the facts. Turnaround is typically 3 to 7 business days from receipt of everything we need, and complex matters can take longer. The how it works page describes the steps and the pricing page lists the fees. Accountants who refer clients can see how we work on the accountants page.
This guide is general information, not legal, taxation or financial advice. Examples are illustrative. The appropriate valuation approach depends on the circumstances and purpose of each engagement.