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Professional services
Payments for accounting and tax firms, sized for season
An accounting practice does not bill evenly across twelve months, and a processing limit set on the yearly average will hold funds in exactly the weeks the firm cannot afford it.
What breaks in an accounting practice, and why
The failure modes here are seasonal and fiduciary. Both are decided at boarding, not at the counter.
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The limit is set against the peak, not the average
A practice that does much of its year inside a filing season is underwritten on that season, so the busiest fortnight does not trip a hold that takes days to clear.
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Money held for a client is not firm revenue
Where a practice receives funds on a client behalf, those funds are kept on a separate settlement path from the practice own income so the two never net against each other. DRAFT — pending counsel
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Bank debit suits the engagement invoice
Large engagement invoices move well on bank debit and small ones move well on cards; both land in the same ledger, so the client picks and the firm reconciles once.
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Recurring billing that survives a card expiring
Monthly bookkeeping retainers run on stored credentials with automatic updates, so a reissued card does not silently stop a client engagement mid-year.
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A refund crossing a filing season still reconciles
Returns issued after a period has closed are recorded as their own dated movements rather than as edits to a closed period, which is what keeps the books re-derivable.
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Passing card acceptance costs to a client is jurisdictional
Whether a practice may pass card acceptance costs to a client, and by which mechanism, is a question of card-brand rules and state law before it is a question of software. DRAFT — pending counsel
What to ask before you sign anything
The questions that matter for a practice whose year is not flat.
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Ask what happens in your busiest week
Get the underwriting limit in writing and compare it against your own peak. A limit that fits January is not evidence about April.
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Ask how client funds are kept apart
If the practice ever receives money on a client behalf, ask to see the second settlement path before boarding, not after. DRAFT — pending counsel
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Ask whether stored cards are updated automatically
Without an updater, every reissued card becomes a lapsed retainer that somebody has to notice and chase.
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Ask for the reconciliation export, not the dashboard
A dashboard is a view. An export is what your own bookkeeping actually consumes, and it is the thing to look at before you commit.
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Ask who answers in the second week of filing season
Support capacity is a promise everybody makes in the quiet months. Ask for the escalation path by name.
Questions accounting practices ask
Where an answer states a rule rather than a preference, it is marked draft until counsel signs it off.
Can we take card payments for a client tax liability?
Funds received on a client behalf are kept on a separate settlement path from practice income so the two cannot net against each other. (DRAFT — pending counsel)
Will our limit hold through filing season?
The limit is underwritten against your seasonal peak rather than a twelve-month average, and the peak is a number you give us before boarding.
Can clients pay by bank debit instead of card?
Yes. Both rails settle into the same ledger and the same export, so the client chooses and the practice reconciles once.
Do monthly bookkeeping retainers stop when a card expires?
Not if the stored credential is enrolled in automatic updates. A reissued card is refreshed before the next scheduled run.
Can we pass card acceptance costs to clients?
That depends on card-brand rules and the law where the practice operates, and on which mechanism is used. We configure what is permitted and block what is not. (DRAFT — pending counsel)
Two tools to run before your next filing season
Both are open to anyone. Neither asks for a card, and neither puts you in a queue.
Check what fits your business
The questionnaire walks the underwriting questions a practice gets asked — seasonal peak, client funds held apart from firm income, which rail an engagement invoice should ride. Answer them once on your own time and you will know what a boarding pack for a practice actually needs before anybody calls you.
Statement audit
The statement audit reads a processing statement you already have and names the lines on it. For a practice that bills hard in one quarter and quietly the rest of the year, the line worth finding is the one that charged you for the quiet months.
Start with a conversation, not a quote sheet
Tell us the practice and how to reach you. We will bring the seasonal question to the call.
Thank you. We will reach out to book a short discovery call and bring your seasonal profile to it.
We will implement whatever is right for you — including keeping what you have.
Last updated: 2026-08-17