Accounting Services Agreement

What are contract accounting services?

A contract for accounting services is a legally binding agreement that defines the terms and conditions under which accounting-related services shall be provided. Having a solid accounting services agreement allows to clearly set mutual expectations and duties of the parties involved, as well as to define fees, timelines, and confidentiality obligations.

A standard contract for the provision of accounting services template has a structure similar to the general services agreement. This template usually includes:

• identification details of the parties involved;
• scope of accounting services to be provided;
• accountant’s disclaimers;
• accountant’s limitation of liability;
• payment provisions;
• protection of confidential information; and
• governing law and dispute resolution.

Parties involved in a sample agreement for accounting services are a client and an accountant. A client is an individual or business that needs professional accounting services for personal or commercial needs. An accountant is a service provider that has the necessary experience and expertise to provide the requested services in exchange for remuneration. Usually an accountant is a professional accounting, consulting, or audit firm.

Who shall use this accounting services agreement?

Having a solid accounting services contract agreement is suitable for

• certified accountant who needs a well-written standard template to engage new clients;
• accounting and tax advisory firms that want to establish new client relations;
• small and medium-sized businesses that plan to outsource accounting to third-party professionals;
• startups that look for reliable accounting providers to start working together, etc.

What to include in this accounting services agreement?

Neither federal nor state laws define the precise structure an accounting services contract agreement must have. At the same time, there are certain mandatory legal components without which a document template cannot become a complete legal document. Below we made a summary of all key elements a solid accounting services agreement must have.

Scope of Services

Parties should think well in advance about the detailed list of services an accountant must perform. This is essential, as failure to define the scope of services properly helps to avoid the “scope creep.” On top of that, it allows to define properly both parties’ mutual expectations regarding the final deliverables under this agreement.

Besides that, the parties to this agreement must answer the following additional questions:

• If an accountant can engage subcontractors?
• Is an accountant required to provide services using specific employees or key staff?
• What will be the duration of the provided services (e.g., indefinite period of time, until a specific date, for a specified period of time)?

Accountant’s Disclaimers

Every sample agreement for accounting services shall also define a list of legal disclaimers provided by an accountant. Legal disclaimers are an accountant’s representations and warranties regarding the provided services.

Usually, an accountant warrants that:

• Services shall be provided in accordance with standard practices and requirements defined in state and federal law.
• Services shall not include provision of any tax, legal, or financial advice;
• An accountant does not guarantee the absence of any mistakes or errors in final reports or statements;
• An accountant does not guarantee acceptance of statements or reports by the IRS.
• An accountant fully relies on the information provided by a client.

Payments for Services

Another important pillar for every consulting agreement for accounting services is the inclusion of clear payment terms. Thus, the parties have to agree on:

• type of payment (e.g., a fixed one-time fee, annual fee, monthly fee, hourly rate, etc.);
• invoicing period (e.g., every month, every week);
• payment method (e.g., cash, direct debit);
• late fees (i.e., additional penalty for not paying fees on time); and
• compensation of additional expenses (e.g., transportation, printing costs).

Confidentiality Clause

In the course of the provision of accounting services, an accountant gets access to a client’s sensitive commercial, financial, marketing, and other types of business information. Therefore, it is important to make sure that the present consulting agreement for accounting services fully protects such information from unauthorized disclosure. Inclusion of a confidentiality clause is a must-have for contracts like the present one.

As a rule of thumb, an accountant undertakes to not disclose obtained confidential information for the whole duration of this agreement, as well as for the period of at least three years after the contract’s termination.

Termination

Each party should be able to end this accounting services contract agreement at any time. To do so, either party must end this contract by sending the other party a prior written notice. A notice period could be of any duration—from several days to several weeks. For example, if an accountant provides services for the period of several years, normally a standard notice period would be 30 days or more. However, for short-term contracts, the notice period could be between 7 and 14 days.

Once services are completed, this agreement ends automatically.

Despite the reason for termination, a client must pay for all actual services provided.

How to customize a contract template at FasterDraft?

To get a fully customized legal document template, follow the instructions given below:

1. Click the “Create Document” button.
2. Answer simple questions in the form.
3. Select a template’s format—accounting services agreement PDF or Word.
4. Make a payment.
5. Download, print, and make both parties sign this contract for accounting services.