What should a client onboarding checklist for an accounting firm include?

Acceptance and conflict checks, a signed engagement letter, identity and AML checks, clearance from the previous accountant, authority to deal with the tax authority, access to the client’s ledger and bank feeds, and a plan for the first 90 days. The order matters: the letter and the identity checks come before any billable work.

What is a professional clearance letter?

A letter to the client’s existing accountant, sent with the client’s permission, asking whether there is any professional reason you should not take the appointment. The ethics codes in Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa expect it. US practice has no direct equivalent; you request the client’s records instead.

Do US CPA firms need to run KYC checks on new clients?

There is no general anti-money laundering due diligence regime for CPA firms in the US, as at October 2026. Verifying identity is still sensible: tax-related identity theft usually starts with someone posing as a client, and the IRS and FTC expect firms to safeguard client data.

How long should client onboarding take?

The paperwork (letter, identity checks, authorities) can be done in a week when the client is responsive. Settling in takes longer: plan on about 90 days before a new client runs like an established one, with a review meeting at the end to settle scope and fit.

Do Australian accountants have AML obligations when onboarding clients now?

From 1 July 2026, yes, if the firm provides AML/CTF designated services, such as certain work on company structures, trusts or property transactions. Routine tax returns and bookkeeping are not in themselves the trigger. Check the services you provide against AUSTRAC’s guidance, and see the AML risk assessment template.

Free template

Client onboarding checklist for accounting firms

The first month with a new client sets the tone for the next ten years: whether they send documents on time, whether they trust your numbers, whether they refer. This is the checklist we would run for every new client, with the country-specific steps labelled for Australia, the UK, the US, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa.

Updated 2 October 2026 · Editable Word document (.docx) · Free

How to use it

How to use this template

Cut it to your country once

Delete the country rows that do not apply to your practice in your master copy, so the team sees only the steps they actually run.
One copy per new client

Save a copy to the client file when the client says yes, fill in the header, and name one onboarding lead who owns it to the end.
Nothing billable before section 3

The engagement letter is signed and the identity checks are done before anyone starts chargeable work. That order protects you if the client turns out not to be who they said.
Build it into your practice management system

Turn the sections into a recurring job template in whatever you run (FYI, Xero Practice Manager, Karbon, TaxDome and Financial Cents all support job templates), so no step depends on memory.
Book the 90-day review on day one

Put the review meeting in the calendar while the client is still excited. It is the meeting where scope creep and fee questions get settled early.

The template

Client onboarding checklist: [Client name]

Replace everything in [square brackets].

Onboarding details

Item	Detail
Client	[Client name and entity type]
Country and tax registrations	[Country; tax identifiers recorded in the practice system, not here]
Services engaged	[From the engagement letter]
Responsible partner	[Name]
Onboarding lead	[Name]
Date accepted	[Date]
90-day review booked for	[Date]

1. Before you say yes: fit, conflicts and risk

The work the client wants is work we do well, at the depth they need.
Conflict check run against existing clients, related entities and the other side of any transaction or dispute.
We have the capacity to do the work on the timetable the client expects, including any overdue lodgements or filings.
Fee basis discussed and agreed in principle before the engagement letter goes out.
Initial risk rating recorded (low, medium or high) using the AML risk assessment template, with the reason.
Anything that makes us hesitate is written down and discussed with the responsible partner before we accept.

2. Engagement letter signed

Engagement letter issued, covering scope, what is out of scope, both sides’ responsibilities, fees, limitation of liability, data and AI use, and termination.
Signed by the client (every entity and individual it covers) and countersigned by the firm.
Privacy notice sent with it, explaining what personal information we hold and why.
Signed copy saved to the client file, and the services set up in the practice management system to match the letter.

Country	What the professional standard says (as at October 2026)
Australia	APES 305 Terms of Engagement (the 2024 version, effective 1 January 2025) requires members in public practice to document and communicate the terms of engagement to the client.
United Kingdom	ICAEW requires firms to tell every client in writing the basis on which fees are calculated and the complaints procedure, including the right to complain to ICAEW. ACCA, AAT and the other bodies have their own rules; check yours.
United States	AICPA standards require written terms for audits and for preparation, compilation and review engagements. For tax work an engagement letter is not mandated by the AICPA, but it is the standard defence when scope is disputed.
New Zealand	CA ANZ (NZICA) service engagement standards include example engagement letters; SES-2 covers compilation engagements.
Canada	CSRS 4200 requires the terms of a compilation engagement to be agreed in an engagement letter before the work starts.
South Africa	ISA 210 governs audit engagement terms for registered auditors (IRBA); SAICA and SAIPA members should follow their body’s guidance for other services.

3. Identity, KYC and AML checks

Individuals: identity verified from an original or certified photo document, or the alternatives your regime allows.
Companies: registry extract obtained; directors and everyone who owns or controls the company identified.
Trusts: trust deed seen; trustees, appointor and beneficiaries (or the class of beneficiaries) identified.
Beneficial owners verified, not just named, wherever the risk or the law requires it.
Sanctions and politically exposed person (PEP) screening run on the client and its beneficial owners.
Where the risk is higher: source of funds and source of wealth asked about, and the answers recorded.
Risk rating confirmed or changed now that the checks are done, and signed off by the partner if it is high.
A record of what was checked, by whom and when, saved to the client file. Copies of identity documents kept only where your regime requires it.

Country	What applies (as at October 2026)
Australia	Registered tax and BAS agents must carry out proof of identity checks before providing services to a new client and keep a contemporaneous record for at least five years after the engagement ends (TPB(GS) 42/2022). From 1 July 2026, accountants providing AML/CTF designated services must also apply customer due diligence under their AML/CTF program (AUSTRAC).
United Kingdom	Customer due diligence under regulation 28 of the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 before the business relationship starts, including beneficial owners, at a level set by your risk assessment.
United States	No general AML customer due diligence regime applies to CPA firms. Verify identity anyway: it is your best defence against tax-refund identity theft, and the IRS (Publication 4557) and the FTC Safeguards Rule expect firms to protect client data.
New Zealand	Customer due diligence under the AML/CFT Act 2009 when the practice is a reporting entity for the work (supervised by the Department of Internal Affairs).
Canada	Identity verification under the PCMLTFA when you receive or pay funds, buy or sell securities, real property or business assets, or transfer funds for a client. Audit, review and compilation engagements are excluded (FINTRAC).
South Africa	Customer due diligence under the FIC Act where the firm is an accountable institution, for example when it provides trust and company services under Schedule 1, item 2.

4. Prior accountant clearance and handover

In Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa, the professional codes expect you to contact the existing accountant before you accept. With the client’s written permission, write asking whether there is any professional reason you should not act. A client who refuses permission is a reason to think hard before accepting.

Dear [Existing accountant], [Client name] has asked us to act as their accountants for [services] from [date], and has authorised you to discuss their affairs with us. Please let us know whether there is any professional reason we should not accept this appointment, and arrange to send the handover documents listed below. With thanks, [Name, firm].

Client’s written authority to contact the existing accountant on file.
Clearance letter sent and reply received (or follow-up recorded if no reply).
Prior years’ returns, assessments and financial statements received.
Ledger access transferred, or a full export received.
Fixed asset register, loan schedules, tax losses carried forward and depreciation schedules received.
Open matters with the tax authority (queries, audits, payment plans, objections) listed with their deadlines.
Lodgement or filing status confirmed for every tax: what is done, what is overdue, what is due next.

Country	Where the rule lives (as at October 2026)
Australia	APES 110 Code of Ethics, section 320 (professional appointments).
United Kingdom	The ICAEW and ACCA codes of ethics (professional appointment, section 320), plus each body’s professional clearance guidance.
New Zealand	The NZICA Code of Ethics, which follows the same international code structure.
Canada	Your provincial CPA rules of professional conduct on communicating with a predecessor; check your province’s wording.
South Africa	The SAICA Code of Professional Conduct (or SAIPA’s, for its members).
United States	There is no professional clearance letter in the same form. Ask the client to request their records from the prior preparer; Circular 230 (section 10.28) requires practitioners to return client records on request. For audits, AU-C 210 requires inquiry of the predecessor auditor.

5. Authorities with the tax authority

Country	What to set up (as at October 2026)
Australia	Businesses with an ABN (other than sole traders) must nominate you in Online services for business (client-to-agent linking); you then have 28 days to add them before the nomination expires. Individuals: add them to your client list in Online services for agents once you hold their authority.
United Kingdom	Get authorised through your agent services account (online agent authorisation) for each tax you will handle, including Making Tax Digital services. Use form 64-8 only where HMRC still needs the paper form.
United States	Form 8821 (tax information authorization) to see transcripts and notices; Form 2848 (power of attorney) to represent the client. Tax Pro Account sends the request to the client’s IRS Online Account and records it immediately once they approve; you need a CAF number in good standing.
New Zealand	Link the client to your tax agent client list with Inland Revenue (check IR’s current myIR process for intermediaries).
Canada	Request authorization through the CRA’s Represent a Client service (or Form AUT-01), at the level of access the work needs.
South Africa	Add the client to your tax practitioner profile on SARS eFiling, with the client’s mandate on file.

Authority in place for every tax and every entity in the engagement, and recorded in the practice system.
Tax authority mail and notices redirected or copied to us where the client agrees.
Upcoming lodgement and payment deadlines added to the firm’s compliance calendar.

6. Data and software access

Client record set up in the practice management system: contacts, entities, services, deadlines and the partner and manager on the account.
Advisor or accountant access to the ledger, with the right role; never the client’s own login.
Bank feeds checked: every account, card and loan connected and current.
Payroll, payment platform and receipt capture access granted where we use them.
Client portal invitation sent; the client knows where to upload documents and sign.
Passwords and identifiers never sent or accepted by email; the client knows the secure route.
Multi-factor authentication on every shared system.
The client’s preference on AI tools in their work recorded (see the AI policy template).
Document request list sent: one list, with dates, not a series of emails.

7. The first 90 days

When	What happens	Owner
Week 1	Welcome call: who does what at the firm, how to reach us, how documents and questions will flow, the first deadlines.	[Onboarding lead]
Days 1 to 30	Overdue and urgent compliance cleared. Opening balances agreed to the prior accountant’s figures. First month-end close done (see the month-end close checklist).	[Name]
Days 31 to 60	First full cycle of the recurring work delivered on time. Questions list down to the genuinely open items.	[Name]
Days 61 to 90	Ninety-day review meeting: what is working, what the client still needs, anything out of scope, and whether the fee still fits the work.	[Responsible partner]
Day 90	Onboarding closed: checklist signed off and the client moved to business as usual.	[Responsible partner]

Sign-off

Stage	Name	Date
Accepted (sections 1 to 3)	Blank	Blank
Authorities and access complete (sections 4 to 6)	Blank	Blank
Onboarding closed (section 7)	Blank	Blank

Country references checked as at October 2026. Rules and forms change; confirm each one with the regulator or professional body before you rely on it.

This template is a starting point, not legal advice. Your obligations depend on where you practise, your professional body and your clients; take advice on anything you are unsure of.

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

What should a client onboarding checklist for an accounting firm include?: Acceptance and conflict checks, a signed engagement letter, identity and AML checks, clearance from the previous accountant, authority to deal with the tax authority, access to the client’s ledger and bank feeds, and a plan for the first 90 days. The order matters: the letter and the identity checks come before any billable work.
What is a professional clearance letter?: A letter to the client’s existing accountant, sent with the client’s permission, asking whether there is any professional reason you should not take the appointment. The ethics codes in Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa expect it. US practice has no direct equivalent; you request the client’s records instead.
Do US CPA firms need to run KYC checks on new clients?: There is no general anti-money laundering due diligence regime for CPA firms in the US, as at October 2026. Verifying identity is still sensible: tax-related identity theft usually starts with someone posing as a client, and the IRS and FTC expect firms to safeguard client data.
How long should client onboarding take?: The paperwork (letter, identity checks, authorities) can be done in a week when the client is responsive. Settling in takes longer: plan on about 90 days before a new client runs like an established one, with a review meeting at the end to settle scope and fit.
Do Australian accountants have AML obligations when onboarding clients now?: From 1 July 2026, yes, if the firm provides AML/CTF designated services, such as certain work on company structures, trusts or property transactions. Routine tax returns and bookkeeping are not in themselves the trigger. Check the services you provide against AUSTRAC’s guidance, and see the AML risk assessment template.

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