Free Client Onboarding Checklist for Accounting Firms
This client onboarding checklist covers the five phases every new accounting client should pass through: acceptance, engagement, information gathering, system setup and first delivery. Each item has an owner and a target day, with the full list on the page.
This client onboarding checklist covers the five phases every new accounting client should pass through: acceptance, engagement, information gathering, system setup and first delivery. Each item has an owner and a target day, with the full list on the page.
Last updated: September 2026
What is included in this template?
- Client acceptance and conflict checks before any work is promised
- Engagement letter and payment setup
- The full information and access request list
- Internal system setup, including recurring jobs and permissions
- A first-delivery checkpoint and a 30-day review
When should you use it?
- For every new client, including referrals from existing clients.
- When an existing client adds a materially different service.
- To retrofit onboarding for clients who were never properly set up.
Section-by-section explanation
What each part is for, and the mistakes that show up most often when it is written badly.
Acceptance first
The most expensive client is one you should have declined. Conflict check, identity, prior accountant contact and a look at the records happen before the letter goes out, not after.
Money before work
Payment method and the signed letter belong in phase 2. Firms that start work first spend the rest of the relationship negotiating from a weaker position.
One request list
Gather everything in a single structured request rather than a drip of emails. It is the difference between a two-week onboarding and a two-month one.
System setup
Create the client, the recurring services, the due dates and the permissions in one sitting, so the first job does not have to be built by hand.
Day 30 review
A short check-in at day 30 catches the mismatch between what the client thought they bought and what you thought you sold, while it is still cheap to correct.
The full template
The complete text is below so you can read it before downloading. Replace everything in square brackets with your own details.
CLIENT ONBOARDING CHECKLIST Client: [CLIENT NAME] Start date: [DATE] Owner: [NAME] PHASE 1 — ACCEPTANCE (target: days 1-3) [ ] Initial call logged, services discussed and summarized in writing [ ] Conflict of interest check completed [ ] Client identity and entity details verified ([EIN], formation state, entity type) [ ] Beneficial owners and authorized signatories identified [ ] Prior accountant contacted, where applicable, with client authorization [ ] Sample of prior-year records reviewed for condition and scope creep risk [ ] Risk assessment completed and accepted by [PARTNER] [ ] Fee agreed and internally approved Decision point: proceed / decline / proceed with conditions PHASE 2 — ENGAGEMENT (target: days 3-7) [ ] Engagement letter issued with scope, fee and period [ ] Engagement letter signed and saved to the client record [ ] Payment method captured (ACH or credit card) and billing schedule set [ ] Any deposit or first invoice issued [ ] Client portal invitation sent [ ] Primary and secondary client contacts recorded, with roles PHASE 3 — INFORMATION AND ACCESS (target: days 7-21) [ ] Single structured request list issued, with a return-by date [ ] Prior two years of returns received, where relevant [ ] Prior-year financial statements and trial balance received [ ] Chart of accounts reviewed [ ] Accounting software access granted at the correct permission level [ ] Bank and credit card statements or feed access confirmed [ ] Payroll provider and access confirmed, where applicable [ ] State registrations and filing obligations confirmed [ ] Open notices, examinations or unfiled periods disclosed in writing [ ] Outstanding items followed up on day 7 and day 14; escalated on day 21 PHASE 4 — SYSTEM SETUP (target: days 14-21) [ ] Client record created with entity type, fiscal year end and services [ ] Recurring services created for every engaged service [ ] Internal and external due dates set for the next 12 months [ ] Preparer, reviewer and relationship owner assigned [ ] Document folder structure created to the firm convention [ ] Recurring client requests scheduled with reminder cadence [ ] Permissions reviewed so only the engagement team has access [ ] Prior-year files uploaded and indexed PHASE 5 — FIRST DELIVERY AND REVIEW (target: days 21-45) [ ] Welcome email sent, naming the day-to-day contact and how to reach them [ ] Expectations confirmed in writing: what arrives, when, and what you need each period [ ] First deliverable produced and reviewed internally before release [ ] First deliverable delivered on the promised date [ ] Day 30 check-in call completed [ ] Scope compared against the engagement letter; addendum issued if it has already moved [ ] Onboarding closed and the client moved to standard recurring service HANDOVER SUMMARY (complete at close) Services engaged: [LIST] Fee and billing date: [DETAIL] Key deadlines in the next 12 months: [LIST] Known risks or quirks: [NOTES] Relationship owner: [NAME]
Download the editable copy
Enter your work email and the plain-text file downloads straight away. Have your own counsel review any engagement or disengagement letter before you send it to a client.
How Remindoo automates this
A template is a document. The reason firms still miss the thing the document describes is that nobody owns the follow-up. This is where software helps.
- Run onboarding as a job template so every new client passes through the same five phases with owners and target days.
- Trigger onboarding automatically when the engagement letter is signed rather than when someone remembers.
- Issue phase 3 as one automated request list with a built-in reminder cadence instead of a series of individual emails.
- Create the client's recurring services and twelve months of due dates as part of phase 4, so the first job already exists.
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Frequently asked questions
What should a client onboarding checklist include?
Five phases: acceptance and conflict checks, engagement letter and payment setup, a single structured information request, internal system setup with recurring jobs and permissions, and a first delivery followed by a day 30 review.
How long should onboarding an accounting client take?
Around three to six weeks from acceptance to first delivery for a typical small business client. Most of the elapsed time is waiting on information, which is why a single structured request beats a drip of emails.
What is the most commonly skipped step?
The day 30 review. It is also the cheapest place to correct a scope mismatch, before it has been repeated eleven more times at the original fee.
Should onboarding differ by service?
The phases stay the same; the information request changes. A monthly bookkeeping client needs feed access and a chart of accounts review; a 1040 client needs prior returns. Keep one checklist with a service-specific section in phase 3.
Stop maintaining templates by hand
Remindoo turns documents like this into recurring work with owners, internal due dates and automatic client follow-up. Per client, unlimited users.