Bookkeeping Engagement Letter: Template and Fees

A bookkeeping engagement letter records the work you’ll do, the client’s responsibilities and how you’ll charge. Use numbered clauses with a separate services schedule. Identify BAS services explicitly, then choose an hourly rate, monthly package or transaction fee that matches the agreed workload.

Bookkeeping Engagement Letter Template

Use this adaptable wording for an Australian small business client. Complete the services schedule for each client and have the final terms settled against your professional body’s template or by a lawyer.

The clauses below use “we” for the bookkeeper and “you” for the business client. They are sample contractual wording, separate from the explanatory guidance.

1. Parties. This engagement is between the service provider identified in the services schedule and the business entity identified there. The schedule records each party’s legal name, ABN, contact details and authorised representative.
2. Services included. We will perform the tasks listed in the services schedule for the periods specified there. The schedule states each task’s frequency and the output you receive.
3. Services excluded. Income tax returns, audits and legal advice are excluded. Catch-up work, historical corrections and additional reports require a separate written agreement unless the schedule expressly includes them.
4. Frequency and deadlines. We will follow the timetable in the schedule when you provide complete records by its agreed cutoff. If information arrives late, we will agree a revised timetable and any additional fee before proceeding.
5. BAS agent services. We will provide only the BAS services expressly listed in the schedule, within our registration and any conditions. Our registration details and client information notice accompany this engagement.
6. Payroll and STP. The schedule identifies payroll frequency, employee limits and included Single Touch Payroll (STP) work. You approve pay inputs and tell us about employment changes before each pay run.
7. Software and access. You provide named-user access to the agreed accounting file and supporting services. The schedule identifies who pays each subscription, who owns the file and the access arrangements when this engagement ends.
8. Client responsibilities. You provide complete source records and answer our questions within the agreed time. You approve statements and payments where the schedule requires approval. We remain responsible for our professional duties.
9. Fees. The attached fee schedule states our fee basis, GST treatment and billing cycle. It also states payment terms and how additional work is approved. Any direct debit requires a separate authority.
10. Catch-up work. Historical work starts only after you accept a written quote identifying its periods and limits. We will seek approval before exceeding an agreed cap.
11. Records. You retain your business source records for the periods required by law. We retain our service records under the requirements applying to us. The schedule states any agreed storage service and handover arrangements.
12. Confidentiality. We protect your information and use it to perform the agreed services. Any proposed disclosure to an external provider is described separately, including its purpose and the consent required.
13. Ending the engagement. Either party may give the written notice specified in the schedule. We will identify unfinished work and approaching deadlines, agree the handover and remove access when the handover is complete.
14. Acceptance. Your authorised representative accepts this letter and its attached schedules by signing and recording their role and the signature date. We provide you with a copy of the accepted documents.

Attach a services schedule with the client’s identity, commencement period and contacts above the task table. This fictional schedule shows the level of detail to use.

Task	Frequency and limit	Client input	Output
Bank reconciliation	Weekly, two bank accounts	Bank feeds and explanations for unmatched items	Reconciled accounts and query list
BAS preparation and lodgment	Quarterly, one entity, registered agent only	Complete records and approval	BAS lodged after approval
Payroll and STP	Fortnightly, up to five employees	Approved hours and changes	Payroll reports and included STP reporting
Management report	Monthly, standard report set	Answers to outstanding queries	Profit and loss and balance sheet

Add the records cutoff, expected turnaround after complete records and the fee schedule. Keep the standard letter stable while changing the client-specific schedule and any terms their circumstances require.

The TPB engagement guidance strongly encourages engagement letters, although the TASA Code does not specifically require a letter. APES 305 requires covered members to document and communicate terms. Before-start communication and written acceptance are preferable under that standard. Adopt signing before work as your practice’s policy.

Scope Clauses That Stop Scope Creep

Describe each service as a task with a frequency and limit. “Weekly reconciliation of two bank accounts” tells a client more than “bookkeeping”. Specify whether the monthly report includes a meeting and how long that meeting lasts.

Use wording such as “Catch-up bookkeeping for earlier periods is excluded from the monthly package. We quote it separately after reviewing the records.” Apply the same approach to correcting a previous bookkeeper’s file.

For accountant-requested year-end adjustments, state “We quote year-end adjustment work separately unless the services schedule includes it.” For an ad hoc report, record its purpose and agreed fee before work starts.

A late-records clause can say “If records arrive after the agreed cutoff, the original timetable may no longer be achievable. We will tell you the revised timing.” Add “Any extra work or urgent-work fee requires your written approval.”

Avoid promising an unconditional lodgment date when the client controls when records arrive. Set an input deadline and explain what happens if it is missed. A client-responsibility clause cannot remove the registered agent’s own duties.

Use the BAS preparation checklist to define the records needed each period before setting that cutoff.

BAS Agent Services and What the Letter Must Say

A BAS service involves determining or advising on obligations or entitlements under BAS provisions, or representing the client, where reliance on the service is reasonably expected. The TPB’s BAS service examples include GST interpretation, activity statement figures and payroll work that applies taxation law.

Clerical data entry without interpreting BAS provisions differs from determining a GST treatment. Software setup can also cross the boundary when you choose client-specific GST codes. Identify the actual work, including payroll and STP, before describing it as ordinary bookkeeping.

Independent businesses providing BAS services for a fee or reward generally need BAS or tax agent registration, unless an exemption applies. Supervised work performed on a registered agent’s behalf has separate rules. Keep those arrangements explicit. The BAS services guide explains the task boundary in more detail.

Put the registered provider’s legal name, registration number and any scope-limiting conditions beside the BAS services in the schedule. Include a prominent written client information notice with the letter.

Under the TPB client information requirements, that notice must cover access to the public register and the complaints process. It must also explain general rights and responsibilities, plus applicable prescribed events and registration conditions. Give the general information on engagement or re-engagement and when the client makes a relevant request. Relevant events and conditions have their own notification timing.

An unregistered independent bookkeeper can use “Our services are limited to the clerical tasks listed in the schedule. BAS advice, preparation and lodgment are excluded.” Identify the client’s separately engaged registered agent as responsible for those services. Ensure the work you actually perform stays within the stated boundary.

Setting Bookkeeping Fees in the Letter

Choose the fee basis after assessing the file and agreeing the scope. Each model needs a billing cycle, GST basis and payment terms, even when the proposal already states a price.

Fee model	Useful when	Wording to adapt
Hourly	Historical records or unresolved work make effort uncertain	We bill actual time at the hourly rate in the fee schedule, monthly in arrears. We obtain approval before exceeding the agreed cap.
Fixed monthly package	Recurring work has measurable limits	The monthly fee covers the listed tasks and limits. Extra work requires an accepted quote or the agreed excess fee.
Per transaction	Transactions have a consistent definition and workload	We charge the scheduled fee per qualifying transaction, counted under the definition in the schedule. Payroll and BAS work are charged as listed separately.

Define a transaction precisely. State how transfers, refunds, split entries and duplicate imports count. A bank-feed line and an invoice can represent the same underlying transaction.

Attach a fee schedule naming each service and its fee or calculation method. Include hourly work, the recurring package and any agreed excess charge. State whether amounts include GST and when invoices fall due. If direct debit is used, explain the payment authority and give the client the debit arrangements before collection.

A fee-review clause can say “We review fees annually and when your agreed workload changes. We give 30 days’ written notice of proposed changes.” Add “The notice identifies the new fee and its start date. We agree any scope change in writing.” Have the final variation and termination terms settled with the rest of the letter.

A package limit must have a consequence. Specify whether you quote extra work, apply an agreed excess fee or move the client to a revised package by agreement. The accounting firm pricing guide covers wider practice pricing decisions.

Bookkeeper Hourly Rates and Packages in Australia

A contracted bookkeeper’s hourly rate pays for the service business as well as the time spent on the client. Compare written quotes with the same inclusions. Check GST treatment, software costs and whether BAS preparation, lodgment or payroll review is included.

Registration affects the work an independent provider can undertake and the responsibility they carry. An unregistered clerical-service quote and a registered BAS agent’s full-service quote cover different jobs. Payroll complexity, transaction volume and the condition of the accounting file also change the effort. Location affects travel and onsite availability.

For monthly bookkeeping packages, set limits by transaction volume and employee count. Include the number of bank accounts, payroll frequency and reporting requirements. Price catch-up work separately so an inherited backlog does not consume the recurring fee.

The following calculation uses invented figures, excluding GST. It is a worked quote for a fictional small business, not a market-rate estimate.

Included work	Estimated monthly effort	Invented calculation
Reconciliation and coding, up to 100 transactions	3 hours	3 × $80 = $240
Fortnightly payroll, up to five employees	2 hours	2 × $80 = $160
Quarterly BAS work, averaged monthly	1 hour	1 × $100 = $100
Standard reports and client queries	1 hour	1 × $80 = $80
Total monthly package	7 hours	$580 excluding GST

The calculation spreads quarterly BAS effort across the monthly fee. The schedule must explain that allocation and what happens if the engagement ends partway through a BAS period. Subscription charges and historical cleanup are excluded from this invented example.

An outsourced provider’s invoice is a subcontractor cost to your business. Your client fee must also cover supervision, review and client communication. For an offshore arrangement, compare the same tasks and review requirements before calculating any saving.

The letter must identify who receives client information, where outsourced work happens and which services the provider performs. APES 305 requires these outsourcing details for covered members. Obtain any required client consent and retain responsibility for the services you provide.

Employing a casual bookkeeper creates a different cost calculation. Check the applicable award and classification, casual loading, minimum engagement rules, superannuation and other entitlements. Include payroll administration, workers compensation and supervision when comparing employment with a contracted service. The Fair Work casual employment guidance explains the employment starting point. A wage figure cannot substitute for a client-service fee.

Software Access and Client Records

Ask for named-user access to the accounting file in Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks, as applicable. List bank feeds, payroll and receipt capture separately. Use the client’s authorisation for any Australian Taxation Office (ATO) access. Keep personal passwords out of the engagement letter.

Record whether the client or your business owns and pays for each software subscription. State who owns the accounting file and how the client obtains their data at the end. Where you manage the subscription, describe transfer arrangements and any handover work before the client accepts.

The client’s source-record duty and your service-record duty are separate. Explain who stores invoices and receipts, how the client can retrieve them and whether record storage is an agreed service.

Registered BAS agents must keep proper service records for at least five years after the service is completed under the TPB record requirements. This includes services provided on their behalf. Preserve the engagement terms and records explaining the work. Longer requirements can apply to particular records.

At handover, identify unfinished reconciliations and lodgments, deliver the agreed data and revoke access after transfer. Record who takes responsibility for the next payroll run or BAS period.

From Proposal to Signed Letter at Onboarding

A bookkeeping proposal explains the package and helps the client choose it. The engagement letter records the accepted scope and terms. The proposed package and signed schedule must agree on limits and exclusions.

Use this practical order for a new client.

1. Send the proposal with the package, exclusions and fee basis.
2. Record the client’s acceptance of the proposal.
3. Settle the engagement letter and obtain the authorised signature.
4. Complete the required identity and authority checks before acting.
5. Arrange named-user access to the agreed files and services.
6. Complete applicable agent nomination and linking before BAS access and lodgment.

Collect the legal business name, ABN and GST registration through a guided client form. Transfer those details into the letter and confirm the signing person’s authority. Keep the fee decision and services schedule tied to the same entity.

The Australian Bookkeepers Network describes agreement letters and other templates among its member resources. Use your professional body’s applicable wording when settling the final document. For a broader tax and accounting engagement, use the accountant engagement letter guide.

Once the letter is signed, the bookkeeping client onboarding checklist helps you assign access and first-job responsibilities. Before starting recurring work, confirm that the signed schedule, software permissions and first records cutoff all match the accepted quote.