Onboard an accountant client with clear documents and access

Good client onboarding establishes a shared understanding of the file before a busy reporting deadline. The firm needs business context and reliable evidence; the owner needs an understandable list of tasks. Start by deciding who does what, which period is being reviewed, and where documents will be available.

This checklist concerns the document bridge between a small business and its accountant. It does not replace the firm's engagement letter, professional identity checks, accounting setup, or other obligations. Use those existing procedures alongside the portal rather than treating an accepted invitation as a complete onboarding process.

Establish the business and period

Confirm the business's name, activities, reporting period, and the contact who can explain purchases. Ask whether more than one business or tax registration is involved. Identify the invoices the owner creates in Just Invoice and the financial records maintained elsewhere. This prevents a report from being mistaken for the complete books of a larger operation.

For a new consulting client, you might agree to collect customer invoices and supplier receipts for a calendar year, while bank statements and loan records follow the firm's usual channel. Write that scope in plain language and list any known missing months.

Assign responsibilities before granting access

Accountant access in Just Invoice is scoped reading and review access. It does not authorize the accountant to change the customer's invoices or delete their receipts. Explain that boundary before someone tries to use the portal as a remote desktop for the owner's account.

Choose access and billing separately

A customer who already pays can invite an accountant without buying another firm seat. Alternatively, a firm may sponsor a customer's subscription using paid seat capacity. Sponsorship still requires the customer's acceptance and does not transfer ownership of their identity or documents.

Ask about an existing subscription before proposing sponsorship. The acceptance flow prevents conflicting subscriptions, so a billing transition must be resolved rather than assumed. Record who will handle future changes and what the client should do if the relationship ends.

Validate the first document together

Use one synthetic or appropriate sample receipt. Check its purchase date, description, image quality, and successful upload. Let the accountant open the original and save a private review note. Then test an invoice PDF and the corresponding report row. This short exercise reveals misunderstanding earlier than a year-end package does.

Finish with a concise follow-up: the period to complete, documents still needed, the agreed communication channel, and the next review date. Use the receipt collection guide for customer instructions and the permission matrix for access boundaries.