“Bookkeeping” can mean very different things depending on who’s offering it. Here’s what a monthly bookkeeping service should include — and what it typically doesn’t.
What it should include
- Reconciliation of every account. Bank accounts, credit cards, loans and payment platforms, matched to their statements every month.
- Categorization. Every transaction assigned to the right account in a chart of accounts that fits your business.
- Payables and receivables. A clear view of what you owe and what you’re owed.
- Review. Someone looking for things that don’t make sense — duplicates, unusual amounts, personal spending.
- Questions, batched. One organized list each month instead of a stream of emails.
- Reports. A profit and loss and balance sheet, ideally with a short note on what changed.
What it usually doesn’t include
- Tax returns. Bookkeeping produces the records; the T2, T1 and GST/HST returns are separate work — though often handled by the same team.
- Catch-up. If prior months are missing, that’s a separate project.
- Paying bills. Most bookkeepers record payments rather than make them.
- Assurance. Audit, review and compilation engagements are performed by licensed public accountants.
How to tell if it’s working
Good monthly bookkeeping has a simple test: at any point in the year, you could hand your books to a tax preparer and they could start work without asking you to fix anything first.
This article is general information, not accounting advice for your specific situation.