6 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Bookkeeper or Accounting Firm in Canada

What to Have Ready Before Hiring a Bookkeeper 

A firm can only give you a fair quote if you can answer a few basics. Gather these before your first call:

• Last year’s financial statements and tax return
• A list of every bank account, credit card, and loan the business uses
• An estimate of your monthly business transactions, based on your recent bank statements and other financial records
• Whether you are registered for GST/HST and how often you file
• How many employees do you pay, and how often
• The accounting software you currently use and whether any monthly bookkeeping records are incomplete or overdue

With this list, firms can quote accurately, and you can compare quotes side by side. 

Questions to Ask a Bookkeeper about their Experience

Q1: Who Actually Does My Books—and Who Reviews Their Work? 

Always ask for specific names: identify your bookkeeper and the person responsible for independently reviewing their work. “Our team handles the books” is not an acceptable answer.

In Canada, the title “bookkeeper” alone does not establish a person’s professional qualifications. Ask about their training, experience, and relevant credentials. A bookkeeper may hold a professional designation such as the Certified Professional Bookkeeper (CPB) designation from CPB Canada. You should also ask who performs the firm’s internal quality review and what qualifications that reviewer has. Ask how many clients the firm serves in your industry and whether it has experience working with businesses similar to yours.

Q2: What Is Your Monthly Close Timeline – and, If Payroll Is Included, Your Response Time During T4 Season? 

Ask the firm when your monthly accounts will be finalized and when you can expect to receive your reports. Having a fixed date helps you know when your financial information will be ready.

You should also ask how the firm manages T4 filing during February.

Canadian employers generally need to file T4 information returns and provide employees with their T4 slips by the last day of February. If the deadline falls on a weekend or public holiday, the CRA’s deadline rules determine the applicable filing date. For 2027, the deadline is March 1, as February 28 falls on a Sunday.

Late T4 filings can lead to CRA penalties. This is determined by the number of late filings submitted and the penalty regulations.

A service level agreement (SLA) specifies the service levels the firm agrees to meet, which can include response time. Inquire how soon the firm intends to respond to any questions you raise in February and who will manage your account if the contact person is unavailable.

Always ask for a closure date, a response time, and an alternate contact.

Q3: If Your Work Leads to a CRA Error or Penalty – What Is Your Liability Policy?

Your business remains responsible for meeting its CRA obligations, even when you outsource your bookkeeping. For T4 returns, the CRA says that if a service bureau files for you, you are still responsible for the accuracy of the information, any balance owing, and filing on time (CRA).

So ask what the firm does if its mistake causes a penalty or interest:

• Does it carry professional liability (errors and omissions) insurance?
• Will it pay the penalty and interest, or only fix the error?
• Does the contract limit how much the firm must pay if its mistake causes you a loss? For example, is its responsibility limited to the fees you paid?

Get the answers in writing. You want a clear policy that explains what happens, step by step. A vague promise to “look into it” is not enough. This is general information, not legal advice, so have a lawyer review any contract before you sign.

Q4: What Exactly Is Included in My Fixed Fee, and What Triggers an Extra Charge? 

A fixed fee is useful only when you and the firm clearly understand which services are included and which may cost extra. Ask for a written list of what is included, such as: 

• The bank accounts and credit cards reconciled each month
• the number of transactions covered
• whether payroll, GST/HST support, month-end reporting, and year-end support are included 
• year-end support and replies to CRA letters

Always ask the firm about any additional fees for their services. Additional fees may apply when the actual scope exceeds the original agreement—for example, when transaction volumes or account numbers are higher than expected, records require cleanup, information is missing, or urgent work is requested. 

Always inquire before signing the contract to understand what the additional charges are and the amount involved. If the firm tells you that no additional fees are required since all services are covered by the fixed fee, inquire about the services.

Q5: How Do You Protect Personal Information and Meet Applicable Canadian Privacy Requirements?  

Bookkeeping and payroll records contain sensitive information such as Social Insurance Number (SIN), banking information, and employees’ salaries.

PIPEDA is the federal privacy legislation that governs the private sector in Canada. According to the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s website, outsourcing is allowed; organizations need to take reasonable steps to ensure that their service providers handle the data, whether the data is processed in Canada or abroad.
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner specifically says outsourcing itself is not prohibited under PIPEDA, but organizations remain responsible for protecting personal information handled by third-party processors. 

Ask the firm the following questions to understand how it protects your information:

• Who will have access to my files, and how is that access controlled?
• Is my information encrypted, and is multi-factor authentication used?
• Where are my files stored and processed?
• What happens if there is a security incident, and how soon will I be informed?

If your data is stored or processed outside Canada, ask the firm where it is held and what safeguards are in place. Foreign laws may allow authorities to access personal information in certain circumstances, even when contractual protections exist.

Look for a clear-cut answer with specifics in writing, like a signed confidentiality agreement and specific security controls. “Don’t worry, it is all secure,” is not an answer.

Q6: What Software Stack Do You Use, and Who Owns the Data?

Find out what software solutions the company uses for accounting, receipt, and payroll, for instance, QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Sage. What matters is not the software but who controls it.

Your business should be able to obtain complete copies or exports of its accounting records when needed, even when a third-party firm maintains those records on your behalf. Make sure that you know who is in charge of your software login, who can access the records, and how you will be able to get your records if you want to go elsewhere.

The Canada Revenue Agency typically expects businesses to keep accounting records for at least six years following the last tax year to which they relate. Before hiring any firm, find out if they can download/export your financial records as you like and if there are any costs associated with this process.

It would be ideal if you maintained control over the administrative access to your accounting software and could easily obtain your financial records. If the firm has the only login to your software or charges an unexpected fee to release your records, this needs to be clarified.

Conclusion: How to Choose an Accounting Firm in Canada

Hiring a bookkeeper gets easier when you ask the same six questions of two or three firms and write down the answers. Clear, specific, written answers are a good sign. Vague ones are not.

Use this list as your guide to how to choose an accounting firm in Canada that you can trust with your CRA filings and your data. If you are still weighing up outsourcing, see the pros and cons of outsourcing accounting and bookkeeping.

Aone Outsourcing Canada offers outsourcing accounting services, bookkeeping services, payroll, and GST/HST reconciliation for Canadian small businesses and CPA firms as part of our accounting services.