Treasurer at an association: tasks, pitfalls and helpful tools

What exactly does a treasurer do?

The treasurer is responsible for the financial management of the association. That involves much more than just paying invoices. A full set of duties:

• Preparing the budget: An annual, realistic budget for income and expenditure
• Collecting membership fees: Invoicing, processing payments and chasing arrears
• Maintaining accounting records: Recording income and expenditure, processing bank statements
• Paying invoices: Suppliers, rent, insurance and other fixed costs
• Processing expense claims: Reimbursing volunteers and board members for incurred expenses
• Preparing the annual accounts: Balance sheet and income statement for the AGM
• Working with the audit committee: Facilitating the annual audit
• Monitoring subsidies: Tracking conditions and submitting accountability reports

Responsibilities and liability

As treasurer you are a member of the board and thereby jointly responsible for the association's policies. In cases of mismanagement, such as failing to keep proper records or failing to remit taxes, board members can be held personally liable. This applies particularly if the association also employs staff (pay-as-you-earn) or is BTW-plichtig.

Therefore, ensure that you:

• Document all financial decisions
• Maintain a clear separation between association funds and private funds
• Never accept cash payments without a receipt

The budget: how do you prepare it?

A budget is an estimate of income and expenditure for the coming year. Start with the fixed items: rent, insurance, licences, fixed contracts. Then add variable items: activities, purchasing material, events. Include on the income side: membership fees (based on the expected number of members), sponsorship, subsidies and rental income.

Present the budget at the start of the season at the AGM. Members vote on the budget. This is how you share collective responsibility.

Common mistakes made by treasurers

Not keeping cash on hand

Events, canteen sales and small activities regularly generate cash. Maintain a cash book and count the cash regularly. A discrepancy between the accounts and the physical cash is a sign that something is not right.

Allowing expense claims to pile up

Volunteers waiting weeks for their reimbursements become frustrated. Establish a fixed expense-claim routine: process and pay out weekly or monthly.

Starting the annual accounts too late

The annual accounts don't get done in one evening. Start collecting documentation as early as December and close the books just after year-end.

No backups of the records

Always store financial data in the cloud, not on a single laptop. Use accounting software that automatically backs up.

Digital tools that make the work easier

A modern accounting program takes most of the manual work off your hands. Features to look for:

• Bank import: you upload the bank statement and transactions are automatically categorised
• Invoice management: create and send invoices as PDFs
• Expense claim management: volunteers upload receipts digitally
• Membership fee collection: integration with member administration and automatic reminders
• Reports: balance sheet, income statement and cash flow with one click

Handover to your successor

A good treasurer ensures that the handover runs smoothly. Create a "treasurer's handbook" with all login details (managed via a password manager), active contracts, periodic tasks and supplier contact details. Do not do the handover in one evening. Plan at least two to three working sessions together.