Best Time and Billing Software for Accountants

Xero Partner Hub + Practice Management is the best time and billing software for Australian accountants. It connects time and work in progress to progress or final invoices, with Xero Tax alongside the job.

Top Time and Billing Tools for Accountants

1. Xero Partner Hub + Practice Management

Xero Partner Hub + Practice Management is best for a practice that wants billing beside its Xero Tax work. Staff record time on jobs, and managers can see the value of work in progress (WIP). That is work recorded against a job that still needs a billing decision.

Its Australian product page describes fixed-price billing and invoices calculated from rates and markups. You can raise progress or final invoices and sync them with the practice’s Xero accounts. The connection between jobs and tax returns gives it first place for a tax practice choosing its billing system.

The deciding condition is your existing tax software. A practice using another tax product must assess the client and job handover separately. A Xero accounting connection does not establish a connection to every tax product. Set the practice’s time-entry rules and payment terms before staff start recording work. Keep invoice approval with the staff responsible for the agreed fee.

2. FYI Elite

FYI Elite is best for practices that want time, WIP and billing in FYI. Its time and billing tools bring the recorded work into the same environment as the documents staff use. FYI also describes automated recurring invoice approval. It ranks second because it suits that working arrangement, while its invoice setup needs a deliberate change of ownership.

FYI’s invoicing guide restricts the workflow to Elite with FYI selected as the practice management source. Invoice permissions distinguish creating a bill from approving it. Progress bills can leave work for later, while final bills deal with the remaining WIP. These choices suit a manager reviewing a job before issuing the bill.

The limitation is that another practice manager syncing clients to FYI does not activate this billing workflow. The practice must use FYI as its billing owner and connect its Xero accounts. FYI also warns that changing an invoice amount in Xero does not update the underlying WIP values. Review those allocations when correcting a bill.

Approval in FYI also needs a handover to Xero. FYI’s guide shows an approved invoice arriving as a draft in Xero before its final approval there. Assign responsibility for that last step so a manager’s approval does not leave a client bill unsent.

3. Intertec TimePro

Intertec TimePro is best for a practice keeping its existing software and adding dedicated time recording. Staff record work against projects and tasks. Managers can authorise timesheets at staff or project level, and reports show time and cost against budgets.

Its optional Xero module uses a software connection to create sales invoices from recorded time. It imports customer and accounting codes, then sends summary or detailed invoice data to Xero. Optional MYOB and QuickBooks modules are also listed. These are accounting connections, so assess your tax software handover separately.

It ranks third because approved timesheets and invoice transfer solve a narrower job than a practice WIP and billing system. Use it when hourly time capture is the missing part. If you need progress billing and formal WIP write-offs, make those outcomes acceptance requirements before choosing this route.

TimePro works through a browser on your desktop or phone. Its compact interface supports mobile time entry. It is a fit when your missing task is recording hours against the right work. Keep the client job reference consistent between TimePro and the software that holds the bill.

How Time Becomes a Client Bill

Time becomes a client bill when a manager decides which recorded work is chargeable and how it matches the agreed fee. A time entry alone does not authorise an extra charge.

Consider an illustrative company tax job. A staff member records two hours preparing the return and another staff member records half an hour reviewing it. Each entry carries the client, job, task and work description. The manager checks that the work belongs to that job before the billing review.

The preparation entry might belong to the company, while a director’s personal return needs a separate job. Correct that allocation before billing. A clear description also lets the reviewer distinguish preparation from an extra advice request.

Under an hourly engagement, approved chargeable hours contribute to the bill at the agreed rates. Under a fixed fee, the bill follows the agreed amount. Time records still show the effort spent and help the practice identify work outside scope.

For this fictional job, suppose the manager approves two hours for billing and carries the remaining half-hour forward. The next review must still show that half-hour against the job. If the practice absorbs it instead, record the write-off so it cannot reappear on a later bill.

A WIP write-off reduces unbilled work. A credit note changes an invoice already raised. Keep those decisions separate when a client queries a bill, or the invoice can change while the underlying job balance remains wrong.

Step on the same company job	Xero Partner Hub + Practice Management	FYI Elite	Intertec TimePro
Allocate staff time	Time on the job	Time and WIP in FYI	Project and task time records
Review before billing	Job WIP and billing decision	Submitted work and invoice approval permissions	Manager timesheet authorisation
Raise the bill	Progress or final invoice	Progress, interim or final invoice	Invoice handover through an accounting module
Keep tax work connected	Jobs connect to Xero Tax	Establish the chosen tax connection separately	Establish the chosen tax connection separately

A scope change needs client agreement before you bill for the extra work. Keep the added work separate from the original job’s agreed fee. A write-off needs its own manager decision so unbilled work does not remain indefinitely in WIP.

For recurring charges, compare the bill period with the service period. Make sure a scheduled bill and a WIP-based bill cannot charge for the same work twice. Keep the recurring-job setup in the practice’s job system.

FYI makes this distinction explicit through invoice types. A progress invoice can bill selected WIP and leave the rest active. An interim invoice uses a negative time entry without allocating existing WIP. A final invoice deals with the job’s remaining WIP. Use the type that matches the billing decision instead of relying on the amount alone.

Dedicated Billing Tool or Practice Suite

Use billing inside your existing practice suite when it already records time, manages WIP and raises the bills you need. Adding a second tool creates another handover for staff to maintain.

Xero’s practice management tools cover those steps beside Xero Tax. FYI Elite covers them when FYI owns practice management and Xero holds the practice’s accounts. Keeping FYI only for documents is a different arrangement and does not carry the same invoicing capability.

When a Separate Time Tool Fits

A dedicated tool fits when staff need better time capture without replacing their job system. TimePro’s manager-authorised timesheets and accounting modules support that route. The practice must still decide where unbilled work, write-offs and billing approvals live.

For a practice using tax software outside Xero, an accounting connection can still receive invoices. It does not establish a tax connection or carry every job field. Decide which product owns the job number and which holds the approved bill before adding a separate time tool.

A free invoice generator can produce the bill document when the practice already knows what to charge. That answers a narrower need than accounting firm time tracking. Choose from this shortlist when staff also need job time records and a manager’s WIP decision. A desktop invoice template alone leaves those decisions in separate records.

Compare the full cost of setup and daily use. Include staff licences, required modules and migration work, plus the time spent resolving failed transfers. A tool with a narrower role can require more staff handovers even when its subscription is smaller.

Client-record creation and recurring jobs affect billing, but they are broader suite decisions. Compare those in the practice management software guide once the time and billing requirements are clear.

From the Agreed Fee to the First Bill

The first bill must use the client entity and fee basis agreed in the engagement letter. Carry those details into the billing job before staff record work.

The job needs the legal client entity, service scope and agreed fee basis. Add the billing contact, invoice terms, tax treatment and any agreed recurring schedule. Where different staff rates apply, record which work attracts each rate.

Use the company as the billed entity when the agreed work is its company return. Confirm the person receiving the invoice separately. A director’s contact details do not change who owes the fee. Keep the signed engagement letter accessible from the job so a billing reviewer can compare the scope before approving the first invoice.

Tax Genie drafts the engagement letter from the client’s answers and keeps the signed letter. Approved client details can go into Xero Practice Manager after a field-by-field review, and Tax Genie creates jobs there. Staff must enter or confirm the billing terms in the chosen billing tool. Job creation does not establish automatic transfer of fee rules.

After a scope change, carry the revised agreement into the job before the next billing review. Note who confirmed it and whether it replaces the original fee or adds a separate service. For a recurring charge, carry the start event and stopping condition as well as the amount and billing interval.

For another billing product, copy the reviewed terms into its job record. If a vendor proposes a connection, establish which fields it sends and which product owns later changes. Include the client entity, job reference and fee basis in that check. Establish what staff do if a transfer fails or repeats, so retrying it cannot create a second invoice.

Compare the engagement letter tools for the letter itself. Use the accounting firm pricing guide when deciding the fee before recording it.

What to Check Before Choosing

Choose the billing tool that handles your typical job through to an accurate bill in your existing software. Use the same illustrative company job for each candidate’s demonstration.

1. Create the client and job with the agreed fixed fee or hourly rates. Confirm Australian availability and the exact tax software connection.
2. Enter preparation and review time as different staff members. Confirm that staff can record work without gaining invoice approval rights.
3. Review the unbilled work. Carry part forward, record a write-off and confirm that the remaining WIP has the expected balance.
4. Raise a bill and change the scope. Confirm how the approved adjustment changes both the invoice and the job’s unbilled work.
5. Follow the invoice into the practice’s accounts. Compare its entity, tax treatment and total with the approved bill.
6. Add a recurring charge and a partial payment. Confirm that the billing and collection records remain consistent.

Ask for a demonstration of those specific outcomes. A generic invoice screen does not prove WIP allocation or a tax software connection. For TimePro, include the optional accounting module in the demonstration. For FYI, use Elite with FYI selected as the practice management source.

Keep a simple acceptance record with the expected hours, WIP remaining and invoice total. Compare the approved bill with the invoice actually received in the practice’s accounts. A correct preview does not prove the completed transfer.

Include one correction after approval. In FYI, changing the amount in Xero can leave the WIP values unchanged, so compare both balances. For a separate time tool, check how staff identify work already transferred before repeating an invoice transfer.

From the Bill to Client Payment

Record client payments against the invoice in the practice’s accounts, then use the billing tool’s payment status to organise collection work. Invoice creation and bank reconciliation are separate steps.

Xero Partner Hub + Practice Management shows invoices as paid when they are marked paid in Xero. The staff member responsible for accounts receivable can manage unpaid invoices in the practice’s Xero accounts. Its Australian invoicing tools show overdue status and support automated payment reminders. Agree who reviews disputed bills before reminders continue.

FYI receives paid status and paid amounts from Xero. Its invoice lists let authorised staff filter invoices and view unpaid balances. FYI’s sync guide also states that Xero prepayments do not sync as prepayments. Apply them through the documented credit or payment route for the relevant invoice, with the accounts staff reviewing the treatment.

With TimePro’s Xero module, the invoice reaches Xero for collection and reconciliation. Give accounts staff responsibility for the unpaid invoice list there. Keep invoice numbers with the time record so staff can answer a client’s query without recreating the bill.

Billing arrangement	Where staff record and match the payment	Where staff follow up unpaid bills
Xero Partner Hub + Practice Management	The practice’s Xero accounts, with paid status returned to Partner Hub	Xero invoice and overdue views
FYI Elite with Xero	The practice’s Xero accounts, with paid amounts and status returned to FYI	FYI invoice lists and the practice’s Xero accounts
TimePro with its Xero module	Xero after the invoice transfer	The practice’s Xero accounts

Xero’s bank reconciliation tools match bank transactions with invoices. Accounts staff must still resolve a receipt with the wrong reference or an amount covering several bills. An approved time entry says nothing about whether the client has paid.

For the fictional company job, a partial payment leaves a balance for collection. Check that the invoice shows the amount received and that staff chase only the balance. If a client disputes part of the bill, keep that query with the invoice and assign a staff member to resolve it.

Before switching, assign one person to resolve unmatched payments and failed invoice transfers. Retain the old unpaid invoice list until every opening balance has a destination in the new arrangement.