Guide · Onboarding
Bookkeeping client onboarding checklist for QuickBooks Online and Xero
A new client's first month sets the pattern for every month after it. This checklist covers what to agree, what to collect, how to get access to their QuickBooks Online or Xero file, and what to check before you close the first month.
Why a standard onboarding pays off
Without a checklist, every new client is set up a little differently, and the gaps show up months later as missing accounts, messy categories and repeated questions. A standard onboarding takes the same steps every time, so nothing depends on memory and anyone on the team can pick it up.
Before you start the work
Sign the engagement letter.
Set out the scope, the fee, what the client sends and by when, and what happens when documents arrive late.
Send the welcome email.
Include the document checklist, your due dates, where to send things and how to reach you.
Collect the basics.
Legal name, entity type, fiscal year end, who you deal with day to day and who approves the books.
List every account.
Every bank account, credit card, loan, payment processor and payroll provider, with who at the client can grant access to each.
Find out what came before.
The previous bookkeeper's last closed month, open questions and any known clean-up work.
Get access to the client's books
QuickBooks Online: the client invites your firm
A primary admin or company admin at the client goes to Settings, then Manage users, then the Accountants or Accounting Firms tab, selects Invite firm, enters your email address or your firm's user ID and sends the invitation. You accept it from QuickBooks Online Accountant. On the client's Manage users page your status changes from Invited to Active once you accept. Accountant users added this way don't count toward the client's user limit.
Xero: the client adds you as a user
A user at the client with the edit users permission clicks the organisation name, selects Settings, then Users under General, and clicks New user. They enter your name and email address, choose your user role, and select Send invite. Invites expire if they aren't accepted in time, and the client can resend them from the same screen. If your firm is on a Xero partner plan, staff access may be managed from Xero's partner tools instead.
Use your own login, not the client's
Ask to be invited as your own user. Shared logins hide who changed what and are hard to switch off when the engagement ends.
Set up the file before the first close
Connect bank feeds.
Connect a feed for every bank and card account on your list, and note any account that has to be uploaded by hand.
Review the chart of accounts.
Merge duplicates and inactive accounts before you start categorizing, not after.
Set opening balances.
Agree them to the last closed month or the prior year's accounts.
Add bank rules.
Create rules for transactions that are always coded the same way, such as rent and subscriptions.
Set up receipt capture.
Give the client the receipt-forwarding address or app their software provides.
Record recurring items.
Save recurring bills and journal entries as recurring transactions.
Close the first month carefully
Reconcile every account to its statement.
Card, loan and clearing accounts as well as the bank account.
Collect your questions in one message.
Send the client one list instead of a string of emails.
Review the reports with the client.
Walk through the first profit and loss and balance sheet, and agree what they want to see each month.
Write down what you learned.
Note the client's quirks, contacts and any recurring issues in the client file, so the next close is faster.
Common mistakes
Starting work before the letter is signed.
Scope and due dates are much harder to agree once the work has started.
Asking for documents one at a time.
One checklist at the start saves weeks of follow-up.
Skipping the chart of accounts review.
Every month you categorize into a messy chart makes the cleanup bigger.
Not pricing the onboarding.
Setting up a new client is real work. Quote it on its own or build it into the first months' fee.
Questions
How long should onboarding take?
It depends on how quickly the client grants access and sends documents, and on the state of their books. Track your own times by client type, then quote and schedule from them.
Should I charge for onboarding?
That is a pricing decision for your firm. You can quote a separate setup fee or build it into the first months' fee. Either way, make it visible so the client sees it as part of the service.
What if the books are behind or a mess?
Treat it as catch-up or cleanup work: scope it and price it separately from the monthly service.
Want a standard onboarding set up for you?
The Standard onboarding workflow and checklist Fix Pack sets up a checklist and welcome sequence your team can reuse for every new client.
See how much time onboarding takes your firm.
The free Snapshot takes about 3 minutes and works from your own answers.