CPA firm outsourcing best practices

Each guide covers one question, with the primary rule text it relies on listed at the foot of the page.

• Outsourcing for CPA firms: the complete guideOutsourcing · complete guide
• Offshore vs onshore tax preparation outsourcingOutsourcing · location
• IRC 7216 consent rules when outsourcing tax returnsOutsourcing · IRC 7216
• AICPA confidentiality rules for outsourced workOutsourcing · AICPA Code
• The FTC Safeguards Rule for accountants and outsourcing vendorsOutsourcing · FTC Safeguards Rule
• IRS Publication 4557 checklist for outsourced teamsOutsourcing · IRS Pub 4557
• Outsourced bookkeeping for CPA firmsOutsourcing · bookkeeping
• Outsourced tax preparation cost: the pricing modelsOutsourcing · pricing models
• How to choose an accounting outsourcing partner: 25 questionsOutsourcing · vendor selection
• Outsourcing SLAs and turnaround times for tax seasonOutsourcing · service levels
• How to review outsourced tax returnsOutsourcing · quality review
• Data security for offshore accounting teamsOutsourcing · data security

Firms often pick a provider first and then try to fit compliance around the contract. It works better the other way round: settle what your consent forms, security plan and review process need, then ask each provider to show how it meets them.

Three sets of rules do most of the work. Section 7216 and its regulations govern disclosure of tax return information. The FTC Safeguards Rule treats tax preparation firms as financial institutions and sets duties for overseeing service providers. Circular 230 and the AICPA Code set professional duties that do not move to the vendor.

When the outsourced team and your staff post into the same HelloBooks ledger, there is no export to email and no second copy of the client file to secure. AI categorisation with a review queue also shrinks the routine coding that firms usually send out, so the outsourced hours go to work that needs a person.