Digital bookkeeping – forward receipts by email

Digitizing your bookkeeping is more important for businesses today than ever before. If you still collect your receipts on paper, you lose valuable time and increase the risk of errors. One simple and efficient solution is submitting your receipts by email.

With this method, you can send your invoices, receipts, and other documents straight to your bookkeeping system — without the hassle of paperwork. But how exactly does it work? What benefits does digital receipt management offer, and what do you need to watch out for? In this article, you'll learn everything you need to know about submitting your receipts by email and taking your bookkeeping to the next level.

1. Why digitize your receipts?

Digitizing receipt capture brings many benefits, both for the self-employed and for small and medium-sized businesses. Here are some of the most important reasons why you should manage your receipts digitally:

Save time and money

Instead of laboriously sorting receipts, filing them away, and later entering them into your bookkeeping by hand, you can forward them by email with just a few clicks. Automated capture reduces the administrative workload and saves valuable time.

Less paperwork, more efficiency

Stacks of paper and overflowing binders are a thing of the past. Digital receipt capture keeps things organized and makes it easy to find documents quickly.

Integration with digital bookkeeping systems

Many modern bookkeeping solutions offer a direct interface for receipts submitted by email. This means invoices and receipts are automatically captured, categorized, and integrated into the system.

2. Forwarding receipts by email — simple and efficient

Many businesses and self-employed people receive invoices directly by email — whether from suppliers, service providers, or online stores. Instead of laboriously downloading, printing, or manually sorting them, you can forward them to your bookkeeping system with a single click.

Here's how it works:

1. Receive the invoice by email

• Suppliers, software subscriptions, or service providers send invoices directly to your inbox.
• In most cases, these invoices come as a PDF attachment.

2. Simply forward the email

• Forward the invoice to the appropriate bookkeeping address.
• You'll find the relevant email address directly in the Buchführungsheld app. There you'll find separate addresses for different receipt types, e.g.:
• Incoming invoices (accounts payable)
• Outgoing invoices (accounts receivable)
• Cash receipts

3. Done — no more manual work!

• Your invoice is automatically saved in your bookkeeping system.
• You no longer have to upload or sort it yourself.

With this method, you save an enormous amount of time and always have your receipts neatly filed digitally — with no extra effort.

3. Step-by-step guide: sending receipts by email

Forwarding receipts by email couldn't be simpler. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to capture your invoices digitally, quickly, and efficiently.

Step 1: Find the invoices in your email inbox

• Search your inbox for new invoices you've received from suppliers or service providers.
• If you want to forward several receipts at once, you can combine them into a single email.

Step 2: Use the right email address

• In the Buchführungsheld app, you'll find the appropriate email addresses for your receipts.
• Use the correct address so that your receipts are assigned properly:
• Incoming invoices (accounts payable): the address for invoices you receive from suppliers.
• Outgoing invoices (accounts receivable): the address for invoices you issue to customers.
• Cash receipts: the address for receipts and cash payments.
• Other documents: for anything that doesn't fit the other categories.

Step 3: Forward the email and receive confirmation

• Simply forward the email with the invoice — done!
• After sending, you'll receive confirmation that your receipt was successfully captured.

With this simple method, you'll never have to upload or file receipts manually again.

4. Benefits of digital receipt capture by email

Digital bookkeeping with automated receipt capture brings many benefits:

✅ Less paper chaos

No more overflowing binders or misplaced receipts — everything is stored digitally.

✅ Save time and money

Forwarding receipts automatically saves valuable time and reduces the manual bookkeeping workload.

✅ Access from anywhere

Whether on your laptop, tablet, or smartphone — your receipts are available at any time.

✅ No more tedious scanning

When you receive invoices by email, you no longer need to scan them or upload them by hand.

Using the Buchführungsheld app makes the entire bookkeeping process faster, more efficient, and more secure.

5. Outsourcing your bookkeeping: the smart alternative

Many self-employed people and business owners have little time for bookkeeping. One efficient solution is to outsource your bookkeeping in whole or in part.

Why outsource your bookkeeping?

• Less administrative work: no time wasted on manual entries.
• Professional support: tax regulations are complied with correctly.
• Focus on your core business: more time for your business, less stress with the bookkeeping.

By combining digital receipt capture by email with an external bookkeeping service, you can fully optimize your financial management.