Almost half (47%) of the UK's smallest businesses will spend the Christmas break catching up on finance jobs they have not been able to complete during the year rather than enjoying the festivities, according to research from online accounting software provider Xero.

A survey of companies with between one and 25 employees found that over half (58%) feared they would be spending some time during the December holidays working from home, with 41% expecting to spend up to two days catching on tasks such as tax returns, invoicing and cash flow.

The research suggests that more female bosses (56%) expected to take time out from the turkey and festive activities to work on their finances over the break than their male counterparts (38%).

Xero managing director Gary Turner said: 'Owner-managers who use their holiday to catch up on finance tasks are not only sacrificing family time but may also miss out on the strategic benefits that a year-round perspective on their accounts can bring. For example, if they're leaving it to year-end to complete a tax return, it's probably too late to take advantage of tax breaks or act on invoicing or cash flow issues.'

Other seasonal headaches for small business bosses identified in the survey included the need to shut down (39%), covering sick leave (31%) and staff holidays (25%).