Every transaction gets categorized and entered using double-entry accounting. Entries are backed by source documents: receipts, invoices, bills, statements, and so on. Bank and credit card accounts are reconciled monthly against your statements, so every dollar in your books ties back to a real, confirmed transaction. Each month you receive a Profit & Loss statement and a Balance Sheet that reflect what actually happened, so you can make informed decisions for your business.

As a sole proprietor, you and your business are the same legal entity, but your books shouldn't be. Mixing personal and business transactions makes accurate financial statements much harder to produce, and makes it easier for legitimate business expenses to get lost, miscategorized, or missed at tax time. For that reason, a dedicated business bank account is part of working together, and it needs to be in place by the time onboarding is complete. Credit unions and banks offer varying options worth researching before you decide.

If business transactions are mixed in with personal ones on the same account or statement, the time I spend identifying them is billed hourly. During onboarding it's billed as part of onboarding, and afterwards as Catch-Up & Cleanup.

The question to ask is: what was the expense for? A professional membership or software subscription is a business expense. A personal purchase run through the business account is still personal. A coffee or meal with a client, referral source, or potential business contact is a business expense, while a coffee on your own is personal.

What counts as a business expense under CRA rules is ultimately your call. For items that could go either way, like meals or coffee, I'll categorize them as business expenses unless you tell me otherwise, and I won't ask you to justify them one by one. It's up to you to tell me when something was personal. Items that are more often personal, like a streaming subscription, I may decline to categorize as business unless there's a specific, credible business purpose. Otherwise they're recorded as personal.

The $150 receipt rule (see below) still applies to every transaction, meals included.

Partly. Whether your services are GST/PST-exempt, whether and when you need to register, and when you cross the registration threshold are questions for you and your CPA. I don't monitor thresholds or advise on registration. Once your CPA tells you how your revenue and expenses are classified (taxable, exempt, or zero-rated), I record GST/PST accurately in your books each month. I don't currently file GST/PST remittances.

• Statements for each bank and credit card account. Each month I need a PDF of the statement, plus an export file I can import (OFX if available, QFX if not, CSV as a last resort). I don't use automated bank feeds.
• Receipts and documentation for transactions, as described below.
• Your monthly summary report from whatever invoicing or practice management software you use.

During onboarding, we'll look at your statement cycles and set one monthly document deadline that works for all your accounts, along with the date your reports are delivered. If documents arrive after the deadline, I'll complete the work in my regular workflow, so your reports may arrive after the usual delivery date. If the work spills into the next month due to the delay, the extra hours are billed hourly as Catch-Up & Cleanup (1-hour minimum). The full details are in your engagement letter, and a breakdown of accepted formats is in your onboarding document.

All client data is handled under PIPA (BC's private-sector privacy law). In practice:

• I never ask for your banking login. You send statements directly, or set up view-only access through your own bank if it's offered and we've agreed to use it. You can revoke that access at any time.
• I only access billing, invoicing, and financial reporting functions in your practice management software (e.g., JaneApp). You send me the monthly reports directly, or through a staff or role login you set up, never your personal or admin login. I never access clinical notes, patient charts, or health information. If I need to check a specific patient payment against a bank deposit, you give me only the amount, date, and a generic reference, never the patient's name. You can revoke that access at any time.
• If a patient's name appears in a bank statement, I code the transaction to a generic contact and don't use the name beyond keeping the original statement.
• Any access credentials I hold are stored in a password manager with two-factor authentication where available.
• My accounting software is cloud-based and may store your business's financial data on servers outside Canada.
• My copies of your records are kept for 6 years, matching the CRA's general retention period, then securely destroyed.

Email is the main channel for everything. Keeping communication in one place gives us both a clear, up-to-date record. Phone or video calls are available for scheduled conversations, like your onboarding kickoff or a deeper walkthrough when needed.

Keep your receipts. They're what the CRA expects you to have if you're ever audited. This is for the rare time one goes missing. How much documentation I need then depends on the amount:

• Under $150: your written confirmation (an email or message) describing the business purpose is enough.
• $150 or more: I need a receipt or invoice. For recurring charges, a contract or agreement works. For payments to a vendor, an e-transfer or payment confirmation showing the amount, date, purpose, and payee works.

If a receipt is missing, the transaction doesn't get dropped. If it's still unresolved 10 business days after my request, it's recorded in a suspense account and flagged in your monthly report as pending documentation. Anything still unresolved at year-end is listed in the handoff to your CPA, so you and your CPA can decide how to treat it. That's a risk call for the two of you, not me.

Keep in mind that my written-confirmation rule is for categorizing transactions only. It doesn't replace the receipts the CRA requires you to keep for 6 years. Getting a copy of the real receipt is always the better outcome, and these days a large purchase's receipt can often be recovered with minimal effort.

• Monthly bookkeeping is billed on the 1st of each month, in advance, with payment due within 10 days.
• Onboarding is billed hourly at $85/hour. A 50% deposit of the estimate is due before work begins. A final invoice is issued once your books are current.
• Catch-Up & Cleanup is billed hourly once the work is complete, with a 1-hour minimum. Historical cleanup requested after onboarding requires a written estimate and a 50% deposit first.
• Payment is by e-transfer. Credit card may be accepted for Catch-Up & Cleanup only, if agreed in writing in advance, with a processing fee.

Tax return preparation or filing, GST/PST remittance filing, payroll, audit or review engagements, tax or legal advice, accounts receivable and payable management (issuing or chasing invoices, scheduling vendor payments), appointment scheduling or other administrative work, forensic accounting, and communication with the CRA on your behalf. Some of these may become available as additional services, quoted in writing before any work begins.

The engagement is month to month. Either of us can end it with 30 days' written notice (email is fine). Termination takes effect at the end of the month in which the notice period ends. When we finish, I'll provide an export of your general ledger and securely delete the data I no longer need to keep.