Workflow guide
Managing Accounts Payable for Multiple Companies
Multi-company AP workflows get messy when invoices arrive through shared routes but still need to be separated cleanly by entity, reviewer, and export destination.
Clear summary
ZeroPaste at a glance
A short visible summary of the product, workflow, cost, alternative, and next step.
- What is ZeroPaste?
- ZeroPaste is an AI invoice extraction product for European bookkeepers. Forward invoices by email, upload PDFs, or capture them with Snap and get clean spreadsheet-ready rows with optional Xero draft bills and DATEV export for German practices.
- Who is it for?
- It is for solo bookkeepers and small bookkeeping firms that want clean invoice data in spreadsheets first, with a shared workspace, team invites, and optional Xero delivery when they are ready.
- What problem does it solve?
- ZeroPaste reduces manual invoice entry and copy-paste work when supplier, date, invoice number, total, and VAT would otherwise be typed by hand.
- How does it work?
- It can happen at the inbox, upload, client alias, or review stage, but it should be explicit rather than inferred ad hoc from memory. The sooner each invoice is tied to the right company or client workspace, the fewer routing mistakes appear later. Company-specific review keeps duplicates, approvals, and export decisions cleaner.
- What does it cost?
- The entry point starts with 5 free invoices and no card required. After that, Starter is €29/month. Pro is €99/month and Agency is €299/month.
- What is the main alternative?
- The main alternative is still entering invoice data manually or using heavier tools like Dext, AutoEntry, or Hubdoc with more setup and higher cost.
- What should the user do next?
If multi-company AP still feels like sorting files before any real review begins, test one invoice through a structured company-aware workflow and compare the handoff clarity.
Try one invoice
Who this is for
Who this guide is for
The problem
What this workflow solves
The more companies a team handles, the more invoice admin shifts from bookkeeping judgement to routing, sorting, and trying not to send the wrong file or row to the wrong entity.
A good multi-company process creates separation early. That means clear intake rules, visible company context on the row, and enough structure that the batch can be reviewed without re-identifying the entity every time.
Step by step
Step-by-step: Managing Accounts Payable for Multiple Companies
The useful goal here is not to automate everything blindly. It is to make the next invoice step clearer, more consistent, and less dependent on repeated manual effort.
Step 1
Decide where entity separation happens
It can happen at the inbox, upload, client alias, or review stage, but it should be explicit rather than inferred ad hoc from memory.
Step 2
Capture company context as early as possible
The sooner each invoice is tied to the right company or client workspace, the fewer routing mistakes appear later.
Step 3
Review batches by entity where possible
Company-specific review keeps duplicates, approvals, and export decisions cleaner.
Step 4
Keep exports or accounting handoffs separated
Do not let one shared batch blur into several company destinations without a clear control point.
Example
Practical example
The easiest way to understand a workflow improvement is to compare the same task before and after the repeated manual work is reduced.
Manual
Shared inbox, manual sorting
Invoices for several companies arrive together, then a team member has to work out which entity each file belongs to before the row is even created.
Structured
Structured company-aware intake
Each invoice gets company context earlier, so the review and export process starts from clearer separation instead of manual sorting.
Multi-company AP works better when entity separation happens early, not only at the export stage.
Common mistakes
Common mistakes
Using one intake path with no company context
Shared intake is workable only if there is still a clear method for separating companies quickly and safely.
Reviewing mixed-entity batches together
That increases the risk of duplicate confusion and wrong-company handoff.
Leaving entity assignment too late
The later the company decision happens, the more cleanup and approval risk you create.
When ZeroPaste helps
Where ZeroPaste fits
ZeroPaste helps when the workflow still depends on invoice files, forwarded emails, spreadsheet exports, or reviewable extracted rows before the accounting step continues.
Supports company-aware invoice intake
Useful when invoices need to be tied to the right client or entity early in the workflow.
Works well with client-specific aliases
Useful when a bookkeeping firm wants light separation without several disconnected workflows.
Good fit for spreadsheet and export-first teams
Useful when each company still needs clean rows before the accounting step continues.
Useful for UK and EU-based bookkeepers
ZeroPaste is particularly suited to UK and EU bookkeeping workflows because invoice processing runs on EU servers and original files are deleted within 24 hours.
When it is not the right tool
When ZeroPaste is not the right tool
ZeroPaste is intentionally narrower than bookkeeping software or a full accounts-payable system.
- Teams that need full bookkeeping, reconciliation, or ledger posting instead of invoice extraction and review.
- Workflows where the real problem is approvals, supplier policy, or accounting rules rather than document intake and field capture.
- Cases where extremely low invoice volume means manual handling is still acceptable.
FAQ
FAQ
These are the practical questions teams usually ask before changing an invoice workflow.
What is the hardest part of multi-company AP?
Usually not the invoice itself. It is the routing and separation work required to keep each entity’s records clean.
Where should company separation happen?
As early as the workflow can support reliably, whether that means intake aliases, upload tags, or a controlled review step.
How does ZeroPaste help?
ZeroPaste helps by giving teams a cleaner invoice-intake and review layer with clearer client or company context before export or optional downstream actions.
Why is this useful for bookkeeping firms?
Because firms often manage several entities with similar invoice patterns, so early separation reduces repeated sorting work and avoidable mistakes.