ShareAndGoShareAndGo

Guide

Onboarding a new accounting client without the email chase.

A new client brings a burst of paperwork: identity documents for anti-money laundering checks, an engagement letter, past financial statements and returns, Inland Revenue details, and often a handover from their previous accountant. Most New Zealand practices still collect it by email, which means attachments in personal inboxes and a long thread of reminders.

This guide sets out what is usually needed and a cleaner way to gather it.

What a practice usually collects

Identity and engagement

  • Identity documents and proof of address for individuals and beneficial owners, as your customer due diligence procedures require.
  • Company or trust details: Companies Office extract, NZBN, trust deed and the list of trustees.
  • The signed engagement letter and any authority to act with Inland Revenue.

History

  • Financial statements and tax returns for recent years.
  • Inland Revenue correspondence, assessments and any reviews in progress.
  • The fixed asset register, loan agreements and lease documents.
  • Shareholder current account workings and the previous accountant's working papers, where they hand them over.

Ongoing

  • Access to the accounting software, bank feeds and payroll system.
  • Details of regular suppliers, contracts and any upcoming deadlines.

A client onboarding room

  1. 1

    Send a request list

    Create a room for the client and load your onboarding checklist as a document request list. Each item can be assigned to the client, their spouse or co-director, or their previous accountant.

  2. 2

    Give them one link

    Clients upload against each item through the room, or through a public request-a-file link, so documents arrive in the right folder.

  3. 3

    Watch it fill

    Track each item through pending, submitted and provided. Chasing becomes a glance at the list instead of a search through email.

  4. 4

    Close or keep

    Once onboarding is done, keep the room as the client's working space or export it and close it.

Why it is worth doing properly

Identity documents are among the most sensitive personal information a practice holds. New Zealand's privacy law expects you to keep personal information secure and to hold it only as long as you need it. Emailed passport scans sit in inboxes indefinitely. In a room, they are in one place, protected by access you control, and you can delete them when your retention policy says to. Deleting removes stored files and their previews.

Every upload is scanned for viruses, and nothing can be opened until the scan is clean, which matters when files arrive from clients' own computers.

Old returns and statements often arrive as scans. ShareAndGo reads text from documents, including scans, and AI tags, categorises and summarises them and can sort uploads into a folder structure it suggests. That turns a client's shoebox of files into something a junior can work through.

Handover from a previous accountant goes more smoothly when they have a clear list. Assign the handover items to them, send a public request-a-file link, and their working papers arrive against the right items without them needing access to the rest of the client's room.

Your team signs in through MyAndGo with Google, Microsoft or email and two-step verification. BookAndGo can schedule the onboarding meeting and SignAndGo can send the engagement letter for signature, all on the same login.

Frequently asked questions

Do clients need an account?
No. A client confirms their email with a six-digit code and goes straight in. They do not have to remember another password.
Is there a template for this?
ShareAndGo includes request list templates for tax audits and due diligence. Many practices start from the tax audit template and add their own onboarding items.
Can I brand the invitations with my practice's logo?
Yes. Your logo and company name appear on invitations, so clients see the request comes from you.

Related guides

Year-end document collection

The annual version of the same task.

Preparing for a business valuation

When a client asks what the business is worth.

All guides

Every business process we cover.

How ShareAndGo protects documents

Access, watermarks, scanning and the audit log.