When you switch accountants, you need your last two to three years of financial statements and tax returns, your BAS lodgement history, the balances that carry forward (such as depreciation schedules, loan accounts and tax losses), and entity documents like trust deeds and company registers. Your new accountant usually requests all of this for you through a professional clearance letter, so you rarely have to chase it yourself.
A Practical Checklist of Records to Transfer Between Accountants
Start with what has been lodged. That means the last two to three years of financial statements and tax returns for every entity, including the business, any trust or company, and usually the owners personally, along with ATO notices of assessment and your BAS and IAS history. Much of this is also visible to your new registered tax agent through the ATO’s online services, which is why your history isn’t lost when you move.
The records that matter most are the ones that carry forward, because they can’t be rebuilt from the ATO portal. These include the fixed asset and depreciation schedule, shareholder and beneficiary loan accounts, any Division 7A loan agreements (the rules that treat certain company loans to owners as taxable income), carried-forward tax losses, capital gains cost base records, and the company’s franking account balance.
Next come the entity documents: trust deeds and any variations, company constitutions, ASIC registers and annual statements, minutes, and each year’s trust distribution resolutions. If you have a self-managed super fund, add the trust deed, investment strategy, member statements and the most recent audit report.
If your books are in Xero or MYOB, ask for the subscription and adviser access to be transferred rather than exported, so the full transaction history stays intact. Payroll records, Single Touch Payroll history and superannuation payment records should come across as well.
Your old accountant’s own working papers generally stay with them; what transfers are your records and the documents needed to keep your affairs running. If any fees are outstanding, it’s worth settling or discussing them early, as that can slow the release of documents.
Want the Records Handover Handled for You?
When you switch accountants with us, we send the professional letter to your current accountant, request your records and update your ATO nominations, so you have one conversation instead of several. MYC Partners Accountants will explain what’s coming across and why, and you can get in touch any time to get started.