Engaging an accountant is a simple process, usually a handful of steps. You make contact and describe your situation, they send an engagement letter setting out the work and the fee, and you sign it. You prove who you are, and if you run a business you nominate them as your agent with the ATO. You send your records, they prepare your return and come back with any questions, you review and approve it, and they lodge it with the ATO. The refund or notice of assessment then follows in the usual timeframe. The whole thing can happen in a week or two, and much of it is now done online.
Step 1: Make contact and describe your situation
It starts with a call, an email, or a form on the accountant’s website. Tell them briefly who you are and what you need, a personal return, a business, a rental property, whatever applies, so they can tell you whether they are a good fit and roughly what it will cost. This first conversation is also your chance to ask your own questions, about their registration, experience, and fees, before you commit to anything.
Step 2: The engagement letter
Once you decide to proceed, the accountant sends an engagement letter. This is the document that sets out what they will do, what it will cost, and the terms of the arrangement, including what they need from you and what you are responsible for. Read it, check the scope and fee match what you discussed, and sign it. The engagement letter protects both sides by making the arrangement clear, and no reputable accountant works without one.
Step 3: Proving who you are, and linking for business
Registered tax agents are required to confirm your identity before acting for you, so as a new client you will usually be asked for proof of identity, such as a driver licence or passport. If you run a business with an ABN, other than a sole trader, there is an extra step called client-to-agent linking: you nominate your accountant as your agent through ATO online services, using your myID, and they accept the nomination within 28 days. Your accountant will walk you through it, but it is worth knowing it exists, because they cannot start until it is done. Sole traders and individuals do not need the linking step.
What to send your accountant
Next you send your records. For an individual, that is your income details, records of deductions, and bank or investment statements. For a business, it is your financial records or software access, income and expenses, BAS, payroll, and asset details. The more complete and organised what you send, the faster and cheaper the job. Our guide to tax return documents and deadlines lists what to gather, and most accountants will give you a checklist tailored to your situation.
Step 4: They prepare your return
With your information in hand, the accountant prepares the return. Behind the scenes they reconcile your figures, cross-check them against the data the ATO already holds, identify the deductions you are entitled to, and apply the current rules to your situation. If anything is missing or unclear, they come back to you with questions, so a quick reply keeps things moving. This is the stage where their experience earns its keep, because it is where deductions are found and mistakes are caught before they reach the ATO.
Step 5: You review and approve
Before anything is lodged, the accountant sends you the return to review. They explain the result, what you owe or are owed, and how it was worked out. Check it, ask about anything you do not understand, and approve it once you are satisfied. This step matters because, even though the accountant prepared it, the return is lodged in your name and you are responsible for its accuracy, so it is worth reading properly rather than rubber-stamping.
Step 6: They lodge it, and the outcome follows
Once you approve, the accountant lodges the return electronically with the ATO. From there the ATO takes over: most returns lodged online are processed within about two weeks, and any refund is paid to your bank a few business days after that. You can have your accountant lodge your return and follow it through to the outcome, so you are not left wondering where it is.
What it costs and how long it takes
For a straightforward individual return, the whole process from first contact to lodgement can happen in a single appointment or within a few days, and the fee is often a fixed amount agreed up front. More complex returns and businesses take longer and cost more, depending on the work involved. Our guide to what an accountant costs sets out the typical ranges, and remember the fee is tax deductible the following year.
Can you do it all online?
Increasingly, yes. Many accountants now handle the whole engagement remotely: you enquire online, sign the engagement letter electronically, verify your identity digitally, and send your documents through a secure portal or by email. For a simple return you may never need to visit an office. In-person still suits people who prefer to talk things through or who have a complex year, but distance is no longer a barrier to engaging a good accountant. Either way, the steps are the same.
After the first job
Engaging an accountant is usually the start of an ongoing relationship, not a one-off. Once you are set up as their client, future years are faster, because they already hold your history and details. A good accountant also stays in touch through the year, not just at tax time, to help you plan ahead rather than only report what has happened. That ongoing relationship is where a lot of the value sits.
