Bookkeeping engagement letter template for Australian BAS agents

This is an original engagement letter for an Australian bookkeeping practice providing BAS services, covering the client information required by section 45 of the TPB Code Determination 2024, the TPB's suggested letter contents, and APES 305 where the bookkeeper is a CPA Australia, CA ANZ or IPA member. Adapt it and have it reviewed before use.

Reviewed 23 October 2026

This is a starting point, not a finished legal document. Adapt it to your practice, your services and any professional body rules that apply to you, and have it reviewed (by a lawyer where needed) before use. General information only, not legal or tax advice. Reviewed 23 October 2026 against the Tax Agent Services (Code of Professional Conduct) Determination 2024 as compiled on 1 October 2026, the Tax Practitioners Board's letters of engagement guidance (last modified 30 April 2026), APES 305 (September 2024, effective 1 January 2025) and AUSTRAC's professional designated services guidance (last updated 25 September 2026).

Who this template is for

It is written for an Australian bookkeeping practice that is registered with the Tax Practitioners Board as a BAS agent (or a tax agent providing BAS services) and does some or all of the following for a business client: monthly or weekly bookkeeping, bank reconciliations, accounts payable and receivable, payroll and Single Touch Payroll reporting, superannuation processing, and preparing and lodging activity statements.

Three sets of rules shape it:

Rule	Applies to	What it means for the letter
Tax Agent Services (Code of Professional Conduct) Determination 2024, section 45	Every registered BAS and tax agent	Give current and prospective clients, in writing, the TPB register and complaints information, your obligations and theirs, and any disclosable events or registration conditions. The Determination names letters of engagement as one way to do it.
TPB letters of engagement guidance	Registered agents (guidance, not law)	The Board recommends a written agreement before you start BAS services, separate letters per client unless agreed otherwise, and review of recurring engagements, preferably annually.
APES 305 Terms of Engagement	Bookkeepers who are members of CPA Australia, CA ANZ or the IPA in public practice	Document and communicate the terms in an Engagement Document, including outsourcing details, and the scheme disclosure if you participate in a professional standards scheme.

If you are not a member of one of those three bodies, APES 305 does not bind you, but its structure is still a sound checklist. Your own association may publish its own rules, so check them.

What the TPB suggests a letter covers

The Tax Practitioners Board does not publish a template. Its guidance lists matters it considers particularly helpful for Code compliance, where relevant to the services. The template below covers each of them:

Bank feeds, payments and AML

Many bookkeepers have login or payment authority on a client's bank account. The letter should say exactly what that access is for and what it is not for.

From 1 July 2026, the AML/CTF reforms apply to some professional services, and newly regulated businesses had to enrol with AUSTRAC by 29 July 2026. Routine bookkeeping is generally outside them. AUSTRAC's guidance on professional designated services includes an example of a bookkeeping practice that pays payroll, suppliers, rent, loan repayments and GST and PAYG to the ATO on fixed client instructions, with no discretion to redirect funds. AUSTRAC says that practice is less likely to be managing the client's money under item 3, and that even if it were, the dealings would generally be reasonably incidental to bookkeeping and covered by the exception in paragraph 6(5C)(b), provided the practice provides no other designated services, such as a registered office address (item 9) or arranging for someone to act as a director or trustee (item 7).

That conclusion depends on the facts the letter records. Clause 6 below limits payments to fixed instructions and existing obligations and says you have no discretion over where money goes. If you also offer registered office addresses, company set-ups or restructures, or hold client funds for transactions, read the Tranche 2 AML guide before you rely on the exception.

How to use this template

Replace every item in [square brackets] and delete any clause marked [optional] that does not apply.
Complete Schedule 1 (services, frequency and fees) and Schedule 2 (systems, bank access and outsourcing) for this client.
Check clause 12 (TPB information) is current for your practice, including any disclosable events or registration conditions.
Keep clause 13 and the letterhead statement only if you participate in a professional standards scheme. Use the prescribed wording exactly.
If you lodge STP or activity statements, confirm the client has nominated you through the ATO's systems and that their software connection is set up.
Send for signature before work starts. Re-issue when scope, bank access, systems or fees change, and review it at least once a year.

For a tax return client, use the individual tax return template. For a family with several entities, use the family group template. The engagement letters guide explains the rules behind each clause.

Template

[Practice letterhead]
[Practice name] ABN [ABN]
Registered BAS agent number [number] [or registered tax agent number]
[Optional: membership of [professional body or association]]
[Only if you participate in a scheme: Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.]

[Date]

[Client legal name] ABN [ABN]
Attention: [Contact name and role]
[Address]

Dear [Contact first name],

Our bookkeeping and BAS services for [client legal name]

1. About this letter

This letter records the work you have asked us to do and the terms we will do it on. It covers [client legal name] only. If we also act for a related entity or for you personally, that will be under a separate letter unless we agree otherwise in writing. Please read it with the schedules and tell us before we start if anything is not what you expected.

2. The work

We will provide the services listed in Schedule 1 from [start date]. This is an ongoing engagement. It continues on these terms until either of us ends it under clause 15 or we send you new terms. We will review it with you at least once a year.

Our work is bookkeeping and BAS services based on the information and access you give us. We do not audit or review your records and we do not give any assurance on them. Unless we agree otherwise in writing, our work cannot be relied on to find fraud, theft, other illegal acts or errors, by your staff or anyone else.

3. What is not included

Unless listed in Schedule 1, the following are not included: income tax returns, financial statements, tax or legal advice, advice on employee entitlements or award interpretation, ATO audits and reviews, objections, debt negotiation with the ATO, and catching up periods before [date]. We can help with these, or refer you to someone who can, under a written variation.

Where payroll is included, we will process pay from the rates, hours, classifications and entitlements you approve. You remain responsible as the employer for deciding what each employee is entitled to under the law, their award or agreement, and their contract.

4. What we need from you

Complete and accurate source documents, invoices, receipts and employee information by the dates in Schedule 1.
Answers to our queries within [number] business days.
Prompt notice of changes, such as new employees, new bank accounts, finance, asset purchases or sales, changes in business structure, or contact from the ATO.
Review and approval of each activity statement and each pay run before we lodge or finalise it.

You are responsible for keeping the records the tax and employment laws require, for the completeness and accuracy of what you give us, and for paying amounts owed to the ATO, employees and super funds. If you knowingly give us false or misleading information, we may not be able to continue acting for you.

5. What we will do

We will provide the services competently and on time, act honestly and in your best interests, keep you informed about matters within the scope of this engagement that affect your obligations, and tell you if we cannot meet a deadline. We will only lodge an activity statement or STP report after you have approved it, or in line with a standing approval you have given us in writing in Schedule 1.

6. Access to your systems and bank accounts

Schedule 2 lists the software, bank feeds, bank accounts and ATO access we will use, and the level of access for each (view only, prepare, or authorise payments).

[Optional, only if you will make payments:] Where you give us authority to make payments, we will only pay amounts that you have approved, or that arise under your existing obligations to suppliers, employees, lenders, super funds and the ATO, in line with the standing instructions in Schedule 2. We will not decide who is paid or redirect funds, and we will not hold your money in our own accounts. You can change or withdraw our access at any time by telling us in writing.

You remain responsible for your bank accounts, for reviewing statements, and for reporting unauthorised transactions to your bank. Please tell us straight away if you suspect any account or login has been compromised.

7. Fees and payment

Our fees are set out in Schedule 1. [Fixed monthly fee: The fee covers the services and volumes in Schedule 1. If volumes change by more than [percentage] for [number] months, we will discuss a revised fee with you before applying it.] [Time-based: We charge by time spent at the rates in Schedule 1.] We will quote additional work before we start and will not proceed until you agree.

We invoice [monthly in advance / monthly in arrears / on completion]. Payment is due within [number] days. [Optional: Payment is by direct debit under the authority you give us separately.]

[Optional: We [do / do not] receive commissions or referral fees from software or service providers we recommend. Where we do, we will tell you the details before you decide.]

8. How we communicate

We will send reports, queries and activity statements for approval by [email / our client portal]. Reports we prepare are for your use in managing your business and meeting your obligations. They are not prepared for anyone else to rely on, such as a lender or buyer, unless we agree in writing.

9. Other people involved

Schedule 2 lists any outsourced service provider who works on your file, where they do the work and what they do, and the cloud software where your information is stored and where it is hosted. We will tell you before we change any of these.

10. Confidentiality and privacy

We will keep your information, and your employees' information, confidential. We will only disclose it with your consent or where the law or our professional duties require or permit it, and we will ask for your informed consent before passing it to any third party not listed in Schedule 2. We handle tax file numbers under the Privacy (Tax File Number) Rule 2015. [Our privacy policy is at [link].]

[Optional, if you are a member of a professional body:] Our files may be selected for review under [professional body]'s quality review program. Reviewers are bound by confidentiality.

11. Records

Your accounting records and source documents belong to you. Our working files belong to us. We keep records of the BAS services we provide for at least five years after the service. When the engagement ends, we will help hand over access to your records to you or your new adviser.

12. Information the Tax Practitioners Board requires us to give you

The Tax Practitioners Board keeps a public register of registered tax and BAS agents. You can check our registration at [link to our entry on the TPB register].
If you are unhappy with our service, please contact [name, email]. We will respond within [number] business days. You can also complain to the Tax Practitioners Board at [link to the TPB complaints page].
Our rights, responsibilities and obligations as a registered BAS agent, and your obligations to us, are set out in clauses 4 to 6 and in [the Board's factsheet for clients, attached / our website at [link]].
[State either: "In the last five years none of the events the Board requires us to disclose have occurred, and our registration is not subject to conditions or suspended." or give the details the Code requires.]

13. Limitation of liability [optional]

[Only if you participate in a professional standards scheme:] Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

[Any contractual limitation of liability must be reviewed by a lawyer before use, including against the unfair contract terms rules for small business and consumer contracts.]

14. Professional indemnity insurance

We hold professional indemnity insurance [describe cover, including any professional body requirements]. Details are available on request.

15. Ending the engagement

Either of us can end this engagement by giving [number] days' written notice. We may end it sooner if we are required to by law or our professional obligations. You will pay for work done up to the end date. We will tell you of any lodgements due in the following [number] days so they are not missed.

16. Agreement

Please sign below, or accept electronically, to confirm you agree to these terms on behalf of [client legal name]. If you continue to give us instructions after receiving this letter, we will treat that as acceptance.

Yours sincerely,
[Name]
[Practice name]

Signed for and on behalf of [client legal name] by a person authorised to do so:
Name: ____________ Position: ____________
Signature: ____________ Date: ____________

Schedule 1: Services and fees

Service	Frequency	Information due from you	Fee
Bank reconciliation and coding	[Weekly / monthly]	[Receipts uploaded by day X]	[Fee]
Accounts payable [and payment runs]	[Weekly]	[Approved bills by day X]	[Fee]
Accounts receivable and debtor follow-up	[Monthly]	[Sales data]	[Fee]
Payroll processing and STP reporting	[Pay cycle]	[Timesheets and changes by day X]	[Fee per pay run or per employee]
Super contributions processing	[Each pay cycle]	[Approval of payment]	[Fee]
Activity statement preparation and lodgement	[Monthly / quarterly]	[All period documents by day X]	[Fee]
Monthly management report	[Monthly]	[None]	[Fee]

Standing approvals (if any): [describe, for example "Pay runs under $[amount] that match the approved roster may be finalised without separate approval."]

Schedule 2: Systems, bank access and outsourcing

System or account	Access level	Purpose and standing instructions
[Accounting software]	[Adviser / standard user]	[Bookkeeping and reporting]
[Bank, account name, BSB ending]	[View only / prepare / authorise]	[e.g. payroll, approved supplier bills, ATO and super]
ATO Online services for agents	[BAS agent nomination]	[Activity statements, STP, account queries]
[Payroll software]	[Access level]	[Pay runs and STP]

Outsourced providers: [name, location where the work is done, what they do, or "None"].
Cloud storage: [provider, hosting location, how information is protected].

Common mistakes to avoid

One letter for the business and the owner's personal work. The TPB suggests separate letters for each client unless agreed otherwise.
Bank access granted informally and never written down. Record the access level and the instructions, and update it when either changes.
Payroll scope that implies award advice. Say who decides entitlements.
No standing approval process, so lodgements wait on the client every period. Agree it in writing or get approval each time.
Letters that are never reviewed. The TPB recommends reviewing recurring engagements, preferably annually, and re-issuing when the scope, law, client circumstances or third-party recipients change.

Nagaris keeps engagement letters, e-signing, AML checks and client queries on one client file. See e-signatures and client onboarding.

Questions

Do bookkeepers need an engagement letter in Australia?

The TPB recommends a written agreement before you start BAS services, and section 45 of the Code Determination requires registered BAS agents to give clients certain information in writing, which a letter can carry. Members of CPA Australia, CA ANZ or the IPA in public practice must also document terms under APES 305.

Does APES 305 apply to bookkeepers?

APES 305 applies to members of CPA Australia, CA ANZ and the IPA in public practice. A bookkeeper who is not a member of one of those bodies is not bound by it, though it is still a useful checklist.

Do bookkeepers have AML/CTF obligations from 1 July 2026?

Generally not for routine bookkeeping. AUSTRAC's guidance says a bookkeeper making routine payments on fixed instructions without discretion is less likely to be managing money under item 3, and incidental dealings are generally covered by an exception, but only if no other designated service, such as a registered office address, is provided.

Should the business and the owner have separate letters?

The TPB suggests separate letters for each client unless agreed otherwise, for example for a company and its directors where you act for them separately.

How often should a bookkeeping engagement letter be updated?

The TPB recommends reviewing recurring engagements regularly, preferably annually, and issuing a new letter when the client's circumstances, the law, the scope or third-party recipients of client information change.

Can I use this template as is?

No. It is general information and a starting point. Adapt it to your practice and have it reviewed before use.

Sources

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