Entity & business documents
Formation papers, EIN letter, registrations, and a note with the legal name and fiscal-year end.
Accountant handoff · Onboarding
Records to gather when you onboard a new accountant
When you hire an accountant for the first time, their opening request is a long list of historical records — prior-year income and expenses, bank and card statements, contracts, and your entity paperwork. Sending it piecemeal over weeks slows everyone down. Cash Workspace gives you one place to organize those records into fiscal-year folders so onboarding starts with a clean, complete set instead of a scavenger hunt.
The problem
Why first-time onboarding stalls
A new accountant can't start until they understand your history, and most owners assemble that history reactively, one email at a time.
- The accountant asks for prior-year records you've never gathered in one place.
- Entity documents — formation papers, EIN letter — are filed somewhere you can't find.
- Income and expense records exist but aren't separated by year.
- Bank and card statements are spread across logins and inboxes.
- You answer the same "can you also send…" email five times over two weeks.
The workflow
Assemble your onboarding records
Work through the records a new accountant usually requests and file each into the right fiscal-year folder.
- 1
Pull entity documents
Gather your formation papers, EIN/tax-ID letter, and any registrations into one entity folder that doesn't change year to year.
- 2
Organize prior-year income
Record prior-year invoices with their amounts and statuses, and file them under that fiscal year.
- 3
Organize prior-year expenses
Record expenses by category, date, vendor, and amount, with receipts attached, in the same fiscal-year folder.
- 4
Collect statements
Upload the monthly bank and card statement documents the accountant will reconcile against.
- 5
Add contracts
File client and vendor contracts so the accountant understands recurring relationships.
- 6
Review and export
Walk the folders top to bottom, then export the set as your onboarding handoff.
Record structure
What a new accountant usually requests
These are the record types to have organized before the first onboarding meeting.
- Entity documents
- Formation papers, EIN/tax-ID letter, and business registrations.
- Prior-year invoices
- Income records with amounts, dates, and statuses for the most recent completed year.
- Prior-year expense records
- Expenses by category, date, vendor, and amount, with receipts attached.
- Bank statements
- Monthly statement documents you upload for each account and period.
- Card statements
- Monthly credit-card statements for any business cards.
- Contracts
- Client and vendor agreements that define recurring revenue and spend.
- Prior tax filings
- Any prior return documents you already have, attached for reference.
- Owner details
- A short note with the legal business name, address, and fiscal-year end.
Example setup
An example onboarding folder setup
One way to lay out onboarding records for a brand-new accountant relationship.
Prior year — income
Recorded invoices with amounts, dates, and statuses, plus the invoice documents.
Prior year — expenses
Categorized expense records with receipts attached, grouped by category.
Statements
Monthly bank and card statement documents, named by account and month.
Contracts
Active client and vendor agreements for context.
Common mistakes
Mistakes to avoid
- Sending records one email at a time instead of one organized set.
- Skipping entity documents because they feel separate from the numbers.
- Mixing two fiscal years in a single income or expense folder.
- Leaving statements behind because they live in a separate login.
- Recording expenses without attaching the receipts behind them.
How it helps
How Cash Workspace helps
Fiscal-year folders
Separate prior-year income, expenses, and statements into folders a new accountant can open and understand.
Records plus documents
Record invoices and expenses, then attach the underlying invoice, receipt, or statement so each number has its source.
One export to onboard
Export the organized set so onboarding starts from a complete handoff instead of scattered files.
Related
Related onboarding workflows
CPA document checklist
The documents a CPA typically asks for, organized.
Switching accountants
What to assemble when moving from one accountant to another.
First-time handoff guide
A beginner walkthrough for your very first handoff.
Accountant document checklist
A general checklist of records to hand over.
All finance workflows
Browse the full Cash Workspace workflow library.
FAQ
New accountant onboarding FAQ
- What does an accountant need from a new client first?
- Usually prior-year income and expense records, bank and card statements, entity documents, and contracts. Organizing these into fiscal-year folders before the first meeting speeds onboarding.
- How far back should I gather records?
- Most accountants start with the most recent completed fiscal year, sometimes more. Keep each year in its own folder so you can add earlier years if they're requested.
- Does Cash Workspace file my taxes or give tax guidance?
- No. It is an organizing workspace. It keeps your invoices, expenses, statements, and documents in fiscal-year folders for review and export; your accountant handles the filing and advice.
Organizing help — not tax, accounting, or legal guidance
Cash Workspace is a free workspace for organizing invoices, expenses, receipts, clients, and documents. This page is organizing guidance only — not tax, accounting, legal, or bookkeeping guidance. Cash Workspace does not connect to your bank, does not scan or read your receipts for you, and does not move or collect payments. Whether an expense is deductible depends on your situation, so confirm it with a qualified accountant or tax professional.
Start your accountant relationship organized
Start a free workspace and gather the prior-year records, statements, and entity documents your new accountant requests into clean fiscal-year folders before the first meeting.