Tanzania Petty Cash Voucher Template

Petty cash — small money, big audit risk

Petty cash is the cash float kept on hand for small day-to-day payments — fuel for a courier, refreshments for a meeting, taxi for a delivery. It looks trivial but is the #1 source of unsupported expense findings in Tanzanian SMB audits. Every disbursement needs a petty cash voucher backed by the underlying receipt.

The imprest system

Best practice is to use the imprest system: set a fixed float (e.g. TZS 200,000), and at month-end top it up by exactly the amount spent. Vouchers + receipts + remaining cash should always equal the float.

What a voucher must show

• Sequential voucher number.
• Date.
• Payee name.
• Amount in words and figures.
• Particulars / purpose of the expense.
• Account / cost centre code.
• Three signatures: payee, cashier, approver.

Common pitfalls — and the audit fix

• Round-figure expenses without receipts — replace with itemised receipts; staff can use mobile money screenshots if no paper receipt exists.
• Same person preparing and approving — segregation of duties; the cashier and the approver must be different people.
• "IOU" notes — replace with a short-term staff advance form, not a petty cash voucher.

Combine with the Receipt Book Template and the Invoice Template. Tawala's accounting module tracks petty cash floats per outlet with auto-reconciliation.