There is no such thing as a “one size fits all” accountant. So you need to make your choice wisely. We have found that there are five most important criteria to take into account:
- Location (where you will be doing business)
- Cost of living (what it will cost you, and what it will cost the accountant to work for you)
- Quality of services and experience (if they are good enough for the company, they should be good enough for you)
- Flexibility of hours (if you need to work late, or on weekends)
- Accountability (how accountable they are to their clients and staff, and how they treat their staff)
But before we go further, here is an overview on what information we look at when choosing our accountant:
- What is your business?
- Do you know what the tax implications are for your business?
- Is there someone else who can help with this?
- What sort of accounting services do you want?
- What does the accountant do when things go wrong?
- Do they keep a full accounting file in case something goes wrong or if there’s a problem with returns or payments or invoices etc. ?
- What kind of price do they charge – staff fees or invoicing fees ?
- Do they provide tax advice and prepare annual financial statements ?
- Do they deal with payroll issues such as: budgeting, pay stubs, payroll mistakes etc?
- If yes, then what kind of service do they provide ?
- Does the accountant have any experience working with small businesses in Perth in particular?
In short: A good accountant can save money for any business at any stage in its life cycle; from starting up through expansion to failure. It should also be able to help handle some complicated accounting issues like payroll and taxes that don’t require years’ experience. Below is our list of tips on how to choose an Accountant in Perth . If you have already decided on where to
What to look for when choosing an accountant
The choice of accountant is a critical element in the success or failure of your business. While you should set aside time to interview several accountants on a broad range of topics, the role itself is actually quite simple: It’s you who must make the first move and make sure that you get what you are seeking.
Our goal is to help entrepreneurs decide which person(s) will be most helpful in their business, which ones they can afford to live with and which ones they should steer clear of.
The following points will help you narrow down your choices:
What are your goals? Are you looking for someone who will help you grow your business, or someone who can audit your financial statements? This may sound like an obvious question, but there are people out there.
How long has your accountant been working for you? Some people don’t want to work with a long-term client as this may mean that they will become their friend (and therefore might expect something from them), while others may welcome the chance to get back into their own businesses.
Do you already have an accountant? If so, how long has he/she been with you? How many clients does he/she have under him/her? What types of clients does he/she have experience with? (e.g., medium sized businesses vs large businesses). In other words: what kind of client base are you looking for?
What is his/her reputation in his/her field? Are people recommending him/her to their friends and family members as well as customers? Is he/she well known among other accountants too?
How much experience does he/she have in his field (i.e., accounting)? If it’s very much needed, perhaps it’s worth spending a little more time on this aspect of choosing an accountant instead of just making a quick decision.
If all goes well, then eventually one or two minutes after asking these questions we end up at the point where we need our accountant – for example when planning our financial statements or discussing tax issues with our accountant.
But be aware that if you get stuck on those initial steps and end up asking for help again later in the process (after being asked by another entrepreneur or after realising some mistake), then it’s possible that sooner rather than later it’ll be too late because even if someone agrees to help now (and
The importance of qualifications and experience
We like to talk about “qualifications”, but what does that even mean?
To be honest, we don’t always know — and for the most part we don’t need to. We just know that every accountant needs to have at least a basic understanding of bookkeeping in order to do their job well. So why not choose one with qualifications that are relevant to your specific needs?
For example, there are two types of bookkeeping qualifications: those which relate directly to accounting and those which relate to general business management.
Accounting Qualifications (or APQs) usually include knowledge of the following topics:
- Financial reporting (books, accounts, balance sheet etc.)
- Fiscal reporting (payroll taxes, payroll tax returns etc.)
- Tax accounting procedures
General Business Management Qualifications (or GBMQs) typically include knowledge of the following topics:
- Organisational structure and functions
- Organisational budgeting and controls
In either case you should look for an accountant with at least a Bachelor Degree in Accounting or Business Management or equivalent qualifications. There is no set level of education required; this will depend on the particular area of accounting and business management chosen.
For example if you are looking for an accountant who will balance your books it may be necessary for them to have a degree in Accounting or Business Management, but there is no reason that they could not also be qualified as an Accountant or auditing professional. If you are seeking an accountant who will help you with tax preparation you would want them to have a degree in Accounting or Business Management as well as tax preparation skills.
In either case however it is important that they have adequate training/expertise in accounting techniques/concepts/methods; without this they cannot effectively perform their role. If this is not clear from the link provided above then please refer back to our introductory post on what qualification means so that we can both better understand your requirements and find someone who meets them here .
The importance of accreditation
Accreditation is a big deal. It is a sign of trust in a business.
It means that the accountant has passed the annual time and work requirements and has a detailed understanding of Australia’s accounting laws and regulations.
If you are thinking about using an accountant then it might be worthwhile to do some research into what accreditation means. If you are looking for an accountant in Perth, then you probably will not qualify for accreditation anyway, so there is no reason to even think about getting one.
However, if you are thinking about adopting policies that require accreditation then it would be worth checking out some of the other options on this page (such as our page on relevant local legislations).
The importance of references
They should have an extensive network of accountants providing a wide range of services including:
- Double entry bookkeeping
- Accounting software
- Tax planning
- Business structuring
- Accounts receivable management
- Contract management (Working capital)
Please ask any questions from the various accountants you meet, before you make a decision on the service you need.
The importance of fees
In a small business, there are many different factors that will affect how much money you make. For example, the amount of time that you spend on your business will be an important factor.
If you have a busy schedule and spend a lot of time on your business, then being an accountant in Perth can help you earn more money.
On the other hand, if you have a less busy schedule and do not spend as much time on your business, then an accountant in Perth might not be necessary. The best way to determine whether or not it is necessary is to ask yourself these questions:
- Will I use my accountant regularly? If so, then it is likely that I would need an accountant.
- How much money do I expect to spend over the course of the year? If so, then you are probably not going to be able to save enough for your accountant in perth fees.
What should be considered when choosing an accountant in Perth? It all depends on several factors: • Who will do the bookkeeping for me? Some people can do their own bookkeeping while some people prefer someone else to help them with their book keeping and advice on tax payments etc. • How much money am I expecting to pay them on average? • How long do they hold onto my records and what happens if they stop holding onto them?
It’s important that everyone who does bookkeeping for their businesses has up-to-date accounting software which allows you to track expenses using different accounting software like Quicken or Xero (or even Google Sheets). Keep checking back here as we update this page with new listings from around Australia!
Conclusion
When you have a business, you should know and understand your accountant. What kind of accountant do you need? How much does it cost to have an accountant? What is the maximum you can spend on an accountant?
It’s very important that you choose an accountant who is good at what he does. Lawyers tend to be the best in this field, but the other side of this coin is that there are many services that charge for their services.
One of the things to consider when choosing an accountant is how much money they will take out on your behalf. You should probably weigh up how much money you are able to save each year and work out which accountant would be better suited to help you save money.