Catering chart of accounts
Catering work is booked and partly paid for well before the day, and much of what an event needs is hired or brought in just for it. These accounts add event deposits and the costs that belong to particular events to the general chart of accounts.
- By Book Keeping Pros
- Sources checked 15 Oct 2026
What this industry adds
- Many clients pay a deposit to hold their date well ahead of the event. Event deposits received keeps track of those payments against each booking.
- Much of what an event needs is brought in for that day alone: linen, glassware and marquees from a hire company, waiting and bar staff from an agency, and extras such as a coffee cart. Event equipment hire, Agency event staff and Subcontracted event services give each of those costs an account, so they can be totalled booking by booking.
- Getting food to the venue costs money too. Disposable serveware and containers holds the platters, lids and plates that don't come back, and Refrigerated van fuel and tolls holds the running costs of the vans.
- Food business licence fees holds the fees for the business's food licence or registration, which belong to the business as a whole rather than to any one event.
Download the chart
The general accounts and this industry's accounts in one CSV file, in code order, which opens in any spreadsheet program.
Download the CSV fileThe accounts this chart adds
| Code | Account name | Type | What goes in it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-1300 | Event deposits received | Liability | Money clients have paid to hold a date for weddings, parties and corporate functions not yet catered |
| 5-1100 | Event equipment hire | Expense | Crockery, glassware, linen, furniture, marquees and portable cool rooms hired in for a particular event |
| 5-1200 | Agency event staff | Expense | What labour hire agencies bill for the chefs, waiting staff and bar staff they supply to work at events |
| 5-1300 | Subcontracted event services | Expense | Coffee carts, mobile bars and other services booked from another business to supply part of a client's event |
| 6-2100 | Disposable serveware and containers | Expense | Disposable plates, cutlery, napkins, platters and lidded containers used to serve or deliver food |
| 6-2110 | Refrigerated van fuel and tolls | Expense | Fuel for the refrigerated vans that carry food to venues, with the tolls and parking along the way |
| 6-2120 | Food business licence fees | Expense | The cost of the food business licence or registration covering the catering kitchen, from application to renewal |
Illustrative example only: these rows show the method and are not sourced data.
What goes in each column
- Code: A number that sorts the account into its group: 1 for assets, 2 for liabilities, 3 for equity, 4 for income, and 5 and 6 for expenses.
- Account name: The name that appears in your books and reports.
- Type: Asset, Liability, Equity, Income or Expense, which decides whether the account appears on the balance sheet or the profit and loss statement.
- What goes in it: The transactions to record against the account.
How to use it
- Give each booking its own tracking category or job code, so equipment hire, agency staff and bought-in services can be read event by event.
- Post a client's deposit to Event deposits received with the booking reference, and note any change in guest numbers or any cancellation against that same booking.
- When the final invoice for an event goes out, check it against the deposit already received, and ask your accountant how the deposit balance should be cleared.
- Code the vans' fuel, tolls and parking to Refrigerated van fuel and tolls. Servicing and repairs to the vans and their fridge units belong in Repairs and maintenance.
- The chart is limited to money the catering business earns and spends for itself. Your accountant can suggest other accounts as the business grows.
The chart is a CSV file, which opens in a spreadsheet program. It is not set up for importing directly into any particular accounting software, so check the format your software expects before you load the accounts into it.
Related pages
Related terms
Sources
- Key financial terms
business.gov.au, Australian Government. Current at 15 October 2026, released 9 July 2024. Checked 15 October 2026.
© Commonwealth of Australia 2020, licensed under CC BY 3.0 AU. Licence: CC BY 3.0 AU.
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