--- title: "Running QuickBooks Without an Accountant? | EverStone CPA" url: https://www.everstonecpa.com/quickbooks-but-no-accountant description: "QuickBooks keeps books; it does not file T2s, plan owner pay, or answer CRA letters. See what a CPA adds on top of the software you already run." type: service-or-info updated: 2026-10-08 faq_count: 4 publisher: EverStone CPA Inc., a Chartered Professional Accountant firm registered with CPA British Columbia and CPA Alberta service_area: British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba language: en-CA contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online --- [Home](https://www.everstonecpa.com/) [Partners](https://www.everstonecpa.com/partners) QuickBooks, no accountant Working together # Running QuickBooks Without an Accountant? Updated 8 October 2026 **Quick answer:** QuickBooks, or Wave, or Xero — keeps the ledger, and if it is reconciled you have done the hard part. What software does not do: file the [T2](https://www.everstonecpa.com/tax-services), prepare [statements a lender accepts](https://www.everstonecpa.com/financial-statement-preparation-canada), decide [how to pay yourself](https://www.everstonecpa.com/salary-vs-dividends-calculator), or answer [the CRA’s letters](https://www.everstonecpa.com/cra-letter-t2-review). We work on top of the software you already run — you keep the books, we do the CPA layer. What this covers, at a glance. ## What you already have, and what is missing Software-run books fail in two spots, reliably. First, the judgement entries software will not make alone — [asset treatment](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/capital-cost-allowance-cca-classes-canada), the [shareholder loan](https://www.everstonecpa.com/shareholder-loan-tracker), accruals at year-end. Second, everything that is a filing rather than a ledger: the T2, the slips on [the slip clock](https://www.everstonecpa.com/t-slip-deadlines), elections with deadlines. The monthly record can be excellent while the corporation quietly misses things software never claimed to watch. ## How the arrangement works - **You keep doing what works.** Accountant access to your file — no migration, no new subscription, no re-keying. - **We review and adjust at year-end**, post the entries back properly, and produce the statements and T2 from books we have actually examined. - **In-year, you get answers** — the “can I deduct this” and “what does this letter mean” questions land with a CPA instead of a forum. [Fixed fees](https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing), so asking costs nothing. - **If the file is behind or messy**, [catch-up](https://www.everstonecpa.com/behind-on-bookkeeping) is scoped once, separately, before anything starts. ## The honest version of “do I even need this?” A sole proprietor with simple affairs may genuinely not — software plus a diligent owner covers a lot. The line moves at incorporation: a corporation has filings, deadlines and owner-compensation mechanics where [the software-only setup starts leaking money](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/just-incorporated-now-what-canada-checklist), usually invisibly. If you are incorporated and software-only, [an enquiry](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) is us looking at your actual file and telling you which side of that line you are on. If the returns themselves are outstanding rather than only the bookkeeping, that is a defined job with its own page. See [bringing unfiled returns current](https://www.everstonecpa.com/behind-on-taxes-catch-up). ## Common questions about quickBooks, no accountant **Do I have to move my books to you?** No — the point of this page is the opposite. You grant accountant access to the software you already use; the books stay yours and stay where they are. [Ask about your case →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **My QuickBooks is a mess. Does that disqualify me?** It makes you normal. The file gets assessed on the first call, and any cleanup is quoted once as a separate one-time job — the catch-up page describes exactly how that works. **Can you just answer questions without taking the year-end?** The engagement that works is year-end plus in-year access — advice divorced from the file it concerns is guesswork. If you only want a second opinion on something specific, the second-opinion service exists for that. **Which software do you support?** The mainstream packages — QuickBooks, Xero, Wave and their peers. The workflow is the same: access, review, adjust, file. If you run something unusual, ask; the answer is usually still yes. ## Keep the software. Add the CPA. Send an enquiry about your actual file — and get a straight answer about whether you need us at all. [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form)info@everstonecpa.com ★★★★★ “…He is very knowledgeable and has saved me tons in taxes by restructuring my group of companies — the best accountant I've worked with in the last 10 years, after switching from three different firms.” Matt Hildebrandt · Google review ### Starting fees Every fee is fixed in writing before any work begins. - **Monthly bookkeeping, sales tax filing included** from $325 a month - **Payroll, remittances, T4s and ROEs** included in monthly bookkeeping - **Books, payroll and the year-end T2 together** $500–$700 a month - **Corporate year-end and T2 return** fixed fee, quoted in writing - **Personal tax return (T1)** from $125; self-employed or rental $275–$500 - **Catch-up bookkeeping** from $2,200 per year of records - **Controller or CFO support** controller from $1,650, CFO from $2,750 a month - **One-off advice call with a CPA** $225 plus applicable tax [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) --- Source: https://www.everstonecpa.com/quickbooks-but-no-accountant Prices: https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing · Contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online