Holded runs the books. Mandato runs the firm
Two tools that are good at different things, joined where it makes sense: the invoice you raise in Mandato reaches the accounts you keep in Holded.
What it does
Holded is good accounting and business-management software. It reconciles bank accounts, keeps the books, prepares tax filing and gives a firm the financial view that legal software has no particular reason to give. We are not going to build a worse version of that so we can claim we do everything.
Mandato does something else. It runs matters, procedural deadlines, client communications, KYC and VeriFactu-compliant invoicing. It knows which matter generated which invoice, which lawyer booked which hours, and which client still hasn't paid the second milestone.
The integration joins the two: invoicing born in the matter is exported to Holded, where the accounting lives. Each tool does what it was built for.
How it works in Mandato
Invoices are born in the matter that justifies them. Mandato raises retainer requests, proforma invoices and fixed monthly fees from the time recorded and the matter's billing model — hourly, fixed-fee, hybrid or pro bono.
What Mandato does not do is accounting. It does not compute VAT, reconcile bank accounts or file tax forms: that logic lives in the accounting software, which is the source of truth. It is a design decision, not a gap we are papering over.
So the invoice is exported to Holded, where it gets its accounting treatment and where compliance — VeriFactu included — is resolved. The firm stops typing the same invoice into two systems, and the adviser stops chasing the data by email.
The split also survives an audit. When a tax inspection asks where a figure came from, the invoice points back to the matter that generated it and the accounting treatment points back to Holded — one chain, two systems, no reconciliation between them done from memory.
For a firm already on Holded the practical reading is simple: you don't change your accounting to use Mandato, and you don't change your practice management to stay on Holded.
Mandato does not reconcile bank accounts and does not file tax forms. Holded does. That is precisely why we export to Holded instead of rebuilding a mediocre accounting module inside legal software.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need Holded to use Mandato?
No. Mandato invoices on its own, with chained records and a QR as standard — ready for VeriFactu. Holded comes in if you want to keep the firm's books there.
Does Mandato do bank reconciliation?
No. Holded does, and does it better than a module bolted onto legal software ever would.
What exactly gets exported?
Invoices raised in Mandato — retainer requests, proformas and fixed monthly fees — with their client and matter data, for accounting treatment and tax compliance in Holded.
And VeriFactu?
Mandato's invoicing generates chained records and a QR as standard; AEAT submission with your certificate is in the approval phase. If you keep the firm's books in Holded, you can also resolve compliance there.