The questions worth asking an accountant fall into five areas: their qualifications, their experience with businesses like yours, how they charge, exactly which services are included, and how they will communicate with you through the year. Confirm they are a registered tax agent, ask which accounting software they use and whether it matches yours, ask how their fees are structured, and ask how they will help you plan ahead rather than only lodge returns after the fact.
Below is the checklist I give people who call our Melbourne practice after a bad experience elsewhere. The pattern is almost always the same: the previous accountant was cheap, hard to reach, and only ever looked backwards. These questions surface that early.
What Questions Should You Ask an Accountant in the First Meeting?
Treat the first meeting as an interview. A good accountant expects it and answers plainly. Ask these:
- Are you a registered tax agent, and what is your registration number?
- Have you worked with businesses in my industry and at my size?
- Which accounting software do you use, and is it compatible with mine (Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks)?
- Who actually does my work, you or a junior, and who reviews it?
- How do you charge, and what is included in that fee?
- How often will we speak, and how quickly do you reply to emails?
- Beyond lodging returns, how will you help me reduce tax and plan ahead?
Software compatibility matters more than people expect. If your books live in Xero and your accountant works only in a desktop system, every handover becomes a manual re-entry job that you often pay for. On communication, agree on a rhythm in writing. For most small businesses a quarterly catch-up around each BAS, plus availability for one-off questions, is a healthy baseline. Our own checklist for this sits in top questions to ask your accountant before tax season starts.
What Qualifications and Experience Should a Good Accountant Have?
At a minimum, anyone lodging your return for a fee must be registered with the Tax Practitioners Board. Registration is not optional and is easy to check. Beyond that, the letters after their name tell you the depth of training. A Chartered Accountant (CA) or CPA has completed a postgraduate professional program plus supervised experience, which matters for advisory work, structuring, and complex tax. A bookkeeper handles day-to-day records and payroll but is not qualified to give tax or structuring advice.
So the choice between a CPA, a Chartered Accountant, or a bookkeeper depends on the job. Use a bookkeeper for data entry and BAS preparation, and a CA or CPA when you need tax planning, business advice, or an audit-ready position. You can verify credentials in minutes:
- Registered tax agent status: search the TPB public register.
- CA status: check the Chartered Accountants ANZ member directory.
- CPA status: check the CPA Australia find-a-CPA directory.
Ask how many years they have advised businesses at your stage and whether they carry professional indemnity insurance. For a fuller explanation of when specialist tax advice is worth it, see what a chartered tax advisor actually does and when you need one.
How Much Does an Accountant Cost, and How Do They Charge?
In Australia, cost depends on complexity, not just the hours. A simple individual return often runs a few hundred dollars, while ongoing small business accounting is usually quoted as an annual or monthly package. The more useful question is how they charge, because the model shapes your behaviour.
| Charging model | Typical use | Watch for |
| Hourly rate | One-off or unpredictable work | Bills grow with every phone call, which discourages questions |
| Fixed fee per job | A defined return or set of accounts | Scope creep, so confirm what is and is not included |
| Monthly retainer | Ongoing bookkeeping plus advisory | Check what happens at year end and whether tax planning is included |
A fixed or monthly fee usually suits businesses best because you can pick up the phone without watching the clock. Always ask for the fee in writing and ask what triggers an extra charge. We break down real figures for a common case in how much an accountant costs for a tax return in Australia.
How Do You Know If an Accountant Is Right for Your Business?
The right accountant answers three things clearly: what services they provide, whether they understand your situation, and how they add value beyond compliance. Ask for the full service list. Good firms cover taxation, bookkeeping and payroll, SMSF, and business advisory, so you are not stitching together three providers.
On the local versus online question, both can work, and the honest answer depends on how you like to work. Online-only services are cheap and fast for straightforward returns. A local accountant earns their keep when your affairs get complex, when you want someone who knows your industry, and when you value a face-to-face review. We wrote an even-handed comparison in online tax services versus local accountants, and a practical local guide in how Melbourne small business owners find the right accountant.
Yes, an accountant can legally lower your tax bill. That comes from claiming every legitimate deduction, using the right business structure, timing income and expenses, and applying concessions such as superannuation strategies and small business CGT relief. Legal tax planning is proactive and documented. If an adviser suggests hiding income or inventing expenses, that is evasion, and it is the fastest way to an audit.
Warning Signs of the Wrong Accountant
Some red flags show up before you sign. Watch for an accountant who is not a registered tax agent, who promises a suspiciously large refund before seeing your records, or who cannot explain their fees. In our experience the most common real-world warning sign is silence: slow replies, missed deadlines, and no contact until the return is due. Others include vague answers about who does the work, pressure to sign quickly, no engagement letter, and a refusal to explain their reasoning in plain English. Any accountant who discourages you from asking questions is the wrong one. For more on avoiding this, see how to choose a tax accountant near you without getting burned.
Documents to Prepare Before Your First Meeting
Arriving prepared gets you a sharper meeting and a more accurate quote. Bring or have ready:
- Photo ID and your tax file number.
- Last one or two years of tax returns and financial statements.
- Business structure details (ABN, company or trust documents, GST registration).
- Access to your accounting software or a set of current records.
- Bank, loan, and credit card statements for the period.
- Payroll and superannuation records if you employ staff.
- A short list of your goals and questions.
That last point matters most. The clearer you are about what you want, growth, cleaner books, less tax, or simply fewer surprises, the better any accountant can tell you whether they are the right fit.
About the author: Ravinder Paul Singh is a Chartered Accountant and registered tax agent, and the founder and principal of RPS Accountants in Melbourne. He advises individuals and businesses across personal and corporate tax, and works fluently in modern cloud accounting platforms to streamline small business workflows.
