Building on our commitment to Singapore small businesses and partners‍

We recently announced the introduction of localised billing for our subscribers in Singapore, as part of our commitment to helping small businesses and their advisors in the region.

From July, customers and partners in Singapore will enjoy a seamless, transparent billing experience when paying for their subscriptions. This will remove the need for customers to consider fluctuations in the USD/SGD currency exchange every month.

It’s one of many enhancements to be announced this year, and part of our continued growth in the region.‍

Since opening our Singapore office in 2016, Xero has invested in enhancing our product suite for local customers. Some of the work we’ve done to bolster our offering in Singapore includes:

To support Xero partners, we have added:

• Singapore Report Templates, making it easy for partners to generate financial statements that are compliant with Singapore financial reporting standards
• Singapore Chart of Accounts templates, saving partners time when onboarding new clients into Xero 
  

Small businesses are the backbone of Singapore and the future of the economy. We’re continuing to work closely with the small business community, advisors and the Singapore Government to remove friction, create new opportunities and enable our subscribers to grow and thrive.

Global

Upload COA templates in CSV format to Xero HQ

We’ve made it even easier for accountants and bookkeepers to customise their Chart of Accounts (COA) templates in Xero HQ. They can now upload an existing COA template in a CSV format to their template library. The template will be automatically mapped to Xero account codes, helping onboard new clients faster, without creating a new COA template from scratch.

Making reports more beautiful in Xero HQ

We’ve given the Report Styles page in Xero HQ a facelift. This makes it easier for accountants or bookkeepers to upload their practice logo and choose the title colour that will appear on new published reports.

View all bank rules in one place

Setting up bank rules helps businesses reconcile some of their more frequent transactions, such as ‘Parking’. Now, they can view the details of each rule (such as ‘Payee contains Parking’) in one bank rules list, rather than having to click edit.‍

Securing accounts with Multi-Factor Authentication

To make sure we continue to keep Xero accounts secure, we’re making Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) mandatory for all Xero customers globally in the year ahead. Businesses can set up MFA on their account by downloading our new authenticator app called Xero Verify, which only takes a few minutes to set up and sends a push notification when they log in.‍

Display and sort reports by account code

Reporting in Xero now displays and sorts Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet reports by account codes. Businesses can select ‘show account codes’ in the options menu in reporting to get a better understanding of the chart of accounts within reports.

Share receipts with Xero Expenses

Submitting expense claims on the go is now easier than ever. Businesses can simply open a receipt on their mobile from an email, photo or folder, tap share and select the Xero Expenses app. This automatically creates an expense claim with the information on the receipt and gives businesses a notification when the claim is ready to be submitted.

Enjoy a new GoCardless experience in Xero

We’ve released a new GoCardless integration that makes it easy to set up direct debits (automatic bank-to-bank payments). Businesses can set up one-off and recurring payments via the payment services screen, or from an invoice.

Aus/NZ

Register to receive e-invoices‍

Last year, we offered the ability for Xero customers in Australia and New Zealand to send e-invoices directly from the Xero platform. This allowed them to benefit from both governments’ commitment to faster payment times. We’ve now launched the ability to receive e-invoices. Once customers register, incoming e-invoices will be delivered directly into Xero, pre-populated as a draft bill.

Australia

Manage activity statements in Xero Tax

Automatic activity statements in Xero Tax and Xero Practice Manager are a huge time saver for accountants, but we know that some businesses prefer to lodge activity statements themselves. That’s why we’re now giving accountants the option to select which clients manage their own logements, in the client record. They can also select which period activity statements should be created for other clients.

Save time and energy with document packs

Document packs in Xero HQ are now available to all Xero partners in Australia. Document packs combines tax returns from Xero Tax, reports from a client’s Xero organisation, and PDFs from a local device in one single pack. Advisors can add signature lines, upload to a secure online portal, and invite their clients to sign using Xero Sign powered by Adobe Sign.

New Zealand

Stay updated on payroll changes for EOFY‍

New Zealand employers have a number of changes to payroll to keep on top of this year, from increased minimum wages to new tax rates. We’ve made it as easy as possible for them to manage EOFY tasks in Xero Payroll, with many of the changes automatically applied, so they can pay employees correctly and stay compliant.

UK

Manage off-payroll workers in Xero Payroll‍

We’ve made it fast and easy to onboard, manage and process off-payroll workers in Xero Payroll. The required reporting is sent via RTI filings, so businesses can feel confident that they’ll remain compliant with HMRC legislation. These changes are in line with the IR35 legislation that will come into effect on 6 April 2021.

US 

Xero and Bookkeeper360 collaborate to help US small businesses‍

We are pleased to announce a new collaboration with Bookkeeper360, a Xero platinum partner and accounting platform for startups and growth-stage businesses. Through the Bookkeeper360 app, which integrates with Xero, small businesses can view their finances, track business goals and access accounting expertise all in one place.‍

Stay compliant with updated 1099 reports‍

Setting up separate 1099 rules for each account code can be a hassle. That’s why we’ve introduced a new feature that allows businesses to select multiple accounts when setting up rules. We’ve also given them more visibility, so they can see which bank account a transaction was paid from and which credit card transactions were automatically excluded. Our latest 1099 reports also reflect the new regulatory changes from the IRS, to help businesses stay compliant in 2021.

Xero business update...

‍An update on Xerocon 2021‍

As the pandemic continues to disrupt travel and large gatherings, with countries moved in and out of lockdowns, we’ve come to the tough decision that there is just too much uncertainty to go ahead with a Xerocon event in 2021.

We’re working behind the scenes to explore how we can continue to connect in meaningful ways, stay inspired, and share the latest product and technology innovations with our customers, partners and communities.
‍

Xero invited to UK small business taskforce

The UK’s Small Business Minister has invited Xero to become the only software member of a government-led small business taskforce. Gary Turner, managing director of Xero UK & EMEA, will now join regular engagements and advise the government on policies to support small businesses in the UK.

The taskforce is made up of a range of business leaders and industry experts who represent small businesses across the UK. Its aim is to provide the UK Government with external advice on the priorities and issues impacting small business owners.

Xero recognised as one of ANZ’s Best Places to Work

We’re thrilled that Xero has been recognised as one of Australia and New Zealand’s Best Places to Work.

The prestigious annual list, published by The Australian Financial Review and BOSS Magazine, is based on a rigorous assessment process that’s backed by behavioural science research.

Xero ranked #4 on the technology industry list, from around 1000 nominated organisations across all categories. Our inclusion is a result of our achievements and innovative practices in three core areas: flexible working, diversity and inclusion, and employee wellbeing.

Xero is now certified carbon neutral

Xero has been certified carbon neutral for our owned and operated businesses in Australia and internationally, including New Zealand, the United States, Canada, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Asia.

Our certification, issued by the Australian Government’s Climate Active program, makes Xero one of the first SaaS companies to achieve Climate Active certification.

Our certification recognises our commitment to offsetting 100% of our carbon emissions as part of our Net Zero @ Xero program, which we began in 2019. The program has since grown to encompass a number of carbon abatement and offset projects across New Zealand, Indonesia and India.