Referral partners
Reviewed by EverStone CPA · July 2026
For the lawyers, lenders, mortgage brokers and bookkeepers whose clients need a CPA. Here is exactly how we handle a referral — and what we will never do with it.
In short: Send us a client who needs corporate tax, bookkeeping or year-end statements. They stay your client for everything you do. We take the accounting work, keep you in the loop where the client wants us to, and send business back the other way when our clients need a lawyer, a lender or a broker. No fee splits, no cross-selling into your lane.
Who this is for
- Lawyers — incorporations, reorganizations, purchase and sale, estate work needing a CPA on the numbers.
- Lenders and mortgage brokers — self-employed and incorporated applicants who need clean, timely financial statements and current filings.
- Bookkeepers — you keep the monthly books; we take the year-end, the T2 and the tax questions you would rather not answer.
- Financial advisors and insurance advisors — clients whose corporate structure and tax position need a CPA before a plan makes sense.
| If you are a… | What stays yours | What we take |
|---|---|---|
| Lawyer | Incorporations, reorganizations, purchase and sale, estate work | The numbers underneath it — corporate tax and financial statements |
| Lender or mortgage broker | The lending relationship and the application | Clean, timely financial statements and current filings for the file |
| Bookkeeper | The monthly books — we do not pitch your client our bookkeeping | The year-end, the T2, and the tax questions you would rather not answer |
| Financial or insurance advisor | The plan and the products | The corporate structure and tax position the plan has to sit on |
How a referral actually works
- You introduce us — an email intro is enough. No forms, no portal.
- Free consult within a few business days. If we are not the right fit, we say so and point them somewhere better rather than taking the work.
- Written fixed-fee quote before anything starts. Your client is never surprised by an invoice, which protects your relationship as much as ours.
- You stay informed if the client wants that. With their consent we will copy you on the things that matter to your file — statements for a lender, numbers for a lawyer.
- Turnaround you can quote. For a standard year-end with clean records we work to a defined timeline agreed at the outset; for lender deadlines, tell us the date up front and we will confirm in writing whether we can meet it before your client commits to anything.
What we do not do
This is the part that matters most to a referrer, so it is stated plainly.
- We do not poach adjacent services. If you are the client’s bookkeeper, we do not pitch them our bookkeeping. If you are their lawyer, we do not opine on their legal work. We take the accounting scope we were sent and stay in it.
- We do not pay or accept referral fees. Fee-sharing between professional advisors carries real regulatory and independence implications, and it changes whose interest the referral serves. Our relationships are reciprocal, not transactional — you refer because the work gets done properly, and so do we.
- We do not go around you. Your client remains yours. We will not solicit the services you already provide, now or later.
What comes back the other way
Our clients regularly need what you do — incorporations and reorganizations, shareholder agreements, purchase-and-sale support, commercial lending, mortgages for self-employed borrowers, and bookkeeping when we are engaged only for the year-end. We keep a short list of professionals we trust in each of those lanes and refer to them by name. That list is built on how the work came back, not on any arrangement.
Co-marketing, if it suits you
We are happy to co-host a practical session for your clients — a short webinar or online session on year-end planning for incorporated owners, what lenders actually need from a self-employed applicant, or the CRA issues that catch small businesses. You bring the audience and the questions; we bring the content and the CPA. No pitch, no pressure, and you keep the recording to reuse.
Common questions
Will you take my client away from me?+
Who is this arrangement for?+
What does a referral actually involve?+
Can we run something jointly for our clients?+
Start a conversation
Email info@everstonecpa.com or call (604) 832-1743 and we will set up a short call to see whether our client bases actually overlap — and be honest if they do not. You can also read more about the firm or see what we charge before you send anyone our way.
Prepared and reviewed by a Chartered Professional Accountant at EverStone CPA, an Abbotsford CPA firm working with small businesses and incorporated contractors across the Fraser Valley and Canada. About the firm · Book a free consult
Have clients who need a CPA?
Let us show you how we handle a referral before you send one.
Referring a client who is unsure what they need? The difference between a bookkeeper, an accountant and a CPA explains it plainly.
