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ABL reporting checklist: monthly borrowing base package

An asset-based lending package is more than the certificate. Lenders expect a consistent set of schedules every month, built on data that has been checked before the eligibility math runs. This checklist covers the package contents, the data quality gate, the ineligible categories to test every cycle, and the tie-outs that keep the review quiet.

Who this is for

Controllers responsible for the monthly ABL package
AR and credit managers who feed the ineligible calculations
Treasury teams managing availability and draws
CFOs signing the borrowing base certificate

What it includes

A table of the standard monthly package documents with purpose and frequency
A pre-certificate data quality checklist
The eight ineligible categories to test every cycle
Tie-out and review steps before signature

The monthly package contents

Exact contents vary by agreement, but a receivables-heavy ABL package usually contains the following. Frequencies shown are the most common defaults; trigger periods often accelerate everything to weekly.

STANDARD ABL PACKAGE
Document	Purpose	Common frequency
Borrowing base certificate	The signed availability calculation	Monthly, within 15 to 20 days of month end
AR aging (invoice detail)	Supports gross AR and the aging-based ineligibles	Monthly, with the certificate
AR roll-forward	Ties beginning AR to ending AR through sales, collections, and dilution	Monthly
Ineligibles detail by category	Shows the invoices behind each ineligible line	Monthly
AP aging	Supports contra netting and payables tests	Monthly
Inventory report	Supports the inventory component if the facility includes one	Monthly
Sales and collections journal	Backs the roll-forward at transaction level	Monthly, weekly if requested
Covenant compliance certificate	Certifies financial covenants alongside the base	Monthly or quarterly per the agreement
Customer concentration schedule	Shows top obligors against concentration limits	Monthly

Data quality checks before the certificate

AR subledger reconciles to the general ledger control account, with reconciling items listed and explained
Aging total equals the subledger balance to the dollar before any eligibility logic runs
Every invoice has an obligor, invoice date, due date, and open amount; rows with missing fields are resolved, not dropped
Credit memos and unapplied cash appear as negative amounts and are aged on the basis your agreement specifies
Customer parent groupings are current so concentration is tested at the obligor group level
FX balances are translated at a documented rate and date, consistent with prior periods
Duplicate invoice numbers and stale zero-balance rows are cleared from the extract

Ineligible categories to test every cycle

Run every category every month, even when last month's balance was zero. A category that was empty in March can be the largest deduction in April.

Past due over threshold: invoices beyond the aging limit, commonly 90 days from invoice date or 60 days from due date
Cross-aged obligors: all invoices of any customer whose past due share exceeds the trigger, commonly 25 or 50 percent
Concentration excess: obligor group exposure above the cap, commonly 10 to 20 percent of eligible AR
Intercompany and affiliate receivables: balances owed by related parties
Foreign receivables: obligors outside approved jurisdictions, unless carved in by the agreement or covered by credit insurance
Contra accounts: customers who are also suppliers, ineligible up to the payable balance
Disputed invoices: anything carrying a dispute or short-pay flag
Unapplied cash: receipts not yet matched to specific invoices, deducted until applied

Tie-out and review steps

Beginning AR on the roll-forward equals the ending AR on last month's certificate
Ending AR on the roll-forward equals the aging total and the gross AR line on the certificate
Each ineligible category total on the certificate matches its supporting detail schedule
Advance rate, sublimits, and reserve formulas match the current credit agreement, including amendments
Availability change versus prior month is explained in one or two sentences per driver
A reviewer other than the preparer has walked the package and initialed it
The signed certificate and every supporting file are archived together for the field exam

Get the working checklist and package tracker

Olycor is in early access. Sign up and we will send you this checklist as a working spreadsheet, including a package tracker tab for the monthly cycle, and show you how the platform computes each ineligible category from your invoice data with full traceability.

Get early access

What this resource does not replace

Your credit agreement's definitions, thresholds, and reporting exhibits
Legal or accounting advice on your facility
Your lender's review and field examination process

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between this and a field exam?+

The monthly package is self-reported. A field exam is the lender's periodic on-site or remote audit, typically annual or semiannual, where examiners retrace your certificates back to source documents. A clean monthly process is the best field exam preparation there is, because the examiners test exactly these ties.

Do I really need invoice-level detail behind every ineligible?+

Yes. Lenders and field examiners sample ineligibles at the invoice level. If your cross-aged deduction is a top-side estimate rather than a list of invoices, it will not survive an exam, and you may be over- or under-reporting availability every month.

How do trigger periods change the reporting cadence?+

Most agreements define a trigger, often availability falling below a set percentage of the commitment, that moves reporting from monthly to weekly and sometimes adds daily collateral updates. Build your process so the same package can run weekly before you need it to.