Courier for Tax Advisors – Receipts and Annual Accounts Moved Securely
Receipt binders in the office before the tenth, bound annual accounts to the client for signature, original receipts back after a mandate ends: Maxmove drives confidential documents as a direct drive – with live tracking and digital proof of delivery.
- Instant price before booking
- Live tracking on every drive
- Insured transports
What travels back and forth between firm and client
Even in firms with digital receipt exchange, paper remains. Many clients still collect their receipts in a binder that shuttles to the firm every month, annual financial statements are bound and signed in the original, and taking on or handing over a mandate means moving boxes full of original records. Add loan documents for the client's bank and papers for the notary.
The time pressure comes from the tax calendar. VAT pre-returns must be submitted by the tenth day after the end of the return period (Section 18(1) of the German VAT Act), or one month later with a permanent extension (Section 46 of the VAT Implementing Ordinance). If the binder is still with the client on the fifth, bookkeeping gets tight. At the same time, the confidentiality duty under Section 57 of the Tax Advisory Act applies to everything that leaves the firm – a binder in a parcel shop or on a shared round with transloading does not fit well with that.
Maxmove runs every shipment as a direct drive: one vehicle, one route, no other customers' goods in the load space. You see the instant price before booking, follow the drive live and receive a proof of delivery with timestamp, signature and photos. We set up monthly receipt rounds as fixed routes; book single runs when an original has to move today.
What firms have us carry
Documents travelling between the firm, clients, banks and notaries.
- Binders with monthly receipts
- Cash books and bank statements
- Payroll records and timesheets
- Bound annual financial statements
- Powers of attorney and approvals
- Loan documents for the client's bank
- Original receipts for return
- Archive boxes when mandates change
- Documents for the notary appointment
Typical firm runs in Münster, Dortmund and Bochum
How tax firms use direct drives in their monthly and annual rhythm.
Münster: receipt round before the tenth
A firm in central Münster has a fixed round run to trade businesses and practices in Hiltrup, Gievenbeck and Handorf in the first working days of every month. The driver collects the sealed receipt binders and returns the previous month's binders. A car is enough, and within the city centre the cargo bike too. Bookkeeping sees in the proof of delivery which binder arrived when and can plan the VAT pre-returns instead of chasing clients by phone.
Dortmund: annual accounts for signature
The annual financial statements of a limited company in Dortmund's Technologiepark are ready. Under Section 245 of the German Commercial Code they must be signed and dated, and under Section 147 of the Fiscal Code they may not be kept as a scan only. The firm in the city centre sends the bound copy by direct drive to the managing directors; once signed, the client's office books the return run. Handover is only to the named persons, and both handovers are timed in the proof of delivery.
Bochum: records when a client changes firms
A Bochum construction company is changing tax advisors. Under Section 66(2) of the Tax Advisory Act, the previous advisor must hand over on request the documents received from the client. At the client's request, twelve archive boxes of receipts and contracts therefore go from a firm in Wattenscheid straight to the new firm in central Bochum. The compact van is enough, and the boxes are numbered and sealed. Both firms receive the proof of delivery with photos of the seals.
What firms need to observe when sending documents
Responsibility for client data stays with the firm. These rules determine how documents should be packed, handed over and documented.
Confidentiality and Section 62a of the Tax Advisory Act
Your duty of confidentiality under Section 57(1) of the Tax Advisory Act covers everything that has become known to you in the course of your profession. If a service provider gains access to such facts, Section 62a requires careful selection and a contract in text form obliging the provider to confidentiality. Under Section 203(4) of the German Criminal Code, anyone who fails to arrange that obligation is liable if the provider discloses something. In practice: the driver should not be able to read anything – sealed binder boxes or courier bags, labelled outside only with client number and recipient.
Originals and retention periods
Under Section 147 of the Fiscal Code, books and annual financial statements must be kept for ten years, accounting vouchers for eight years and business letters for six years; annual financial statements may not be kept as scans only. The retention duty lies with the client, while the firm keeps its case files for ten years under Section 66 of the Tax Advisory Act. For transport, this means originals cannot be replaced. Count binders and boxes before pickup, note the number in the order and have the handover countersigned.
Deadlines in the tax calendar
VAT pre-returns must be submitted by the tenth day after the end of the return period (Section 18(1) of the VAT Act); with a permanent extension the deadline moves by one month (Section 46 of the VAT Implementing Ordinance). If receipts still arrive on paper, they need to be at the firm in the first days of the following month. Schedule the receipt round so there is enough bookkeeping time between pickup and deadline, and collect latecomers with a single direct drive.
Data protection at handover
Article 32 GDPR requires appropriate technical and organisational measures – for transport, that means sealed containers, named recipients and a documented handover. The German Data Protection Conference does not classify letter transport by postal services as processing on behalf in its Short Paper No. 13; how to classify courier transport is something to clarify with your data protection officer. Record at booking who may accept the delivery, and do not let binders be left at a reception desk where visitors pass by.
Which vehicle for which firm run
The cargo bike takes envelopes and single binders through central Münster or Dortmund. The car is the vehicle for receipt rounds with several binders and for runs to clients in other cities. You need the compact van when archive boxes with original receipts change hands at a change of mandate or at year end.
| Vehicle | Maks. masa | Palety europejskie | Maks. wymiary ładunku | Price | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CarZmieści się np. Moving boxes, small furniture, classifieds pickups | 100 kg | – | 100 × 70 × 50 cm | from €79.86Base fare €18.90 | Book |
| Small VanZmieści się np. Washing machine, armchair, moving boxes | 400 kg | 1–2 | 160 × 120 × 120 cm | from €94.05Base fare €29.90 | Book |
Published examples for Köln → Düsseldorf, weekdays at 10:00 (Berlin time). The binding price for your addresses is shown before booking.
Bigger, open-bed or heavier than 3 t? On request as a special run
How a firm run works
- 01
Book
Choose pickup at the client, destination firm, bank or notary, the named recipient and the vehicle. You see the instant price before booking.
- 02
Collection
The driver takes over the sealed binder boxes or courier bags at the client and photographs them with their seals. Nothing is opened or repacked.
- 03
Direct drive
Straight to the firm without a depot or stopovers. You follow the drive live and know when the receipts will be on your desk.
- 04
Handover with proof
Handover only to the named person against signature. The proof of delivery with timestamp and photos can go straight into the case file.
Why Maxmove for Tax advisors
Receipt rounds in a monthly rhythm
Fixed routes to your clients in the first days of the month, so the receipts are at the firm in time for the VAT pre-return. Once set up, the round runs as a recurring order – no more errands for trainees or partners.
Confidential from door to door
Every shipment runs as a direct drive without transloading and without other goods. Handover is only to the person you name at booking; photos show that box and seal arrived intact.
Proof for the case file
Timestamp, signature and photos document every handover – to clients, banks or the successor firm. Billing is by invoice, on request as a monthly collective invoice for all runs.