What happens when you first start working with a bookkeeper?

The first few weeks are onboarding. Your Mornington Peninsula bookkeeper gets access to your Xero file, connects bank feeds, corrects the chart of accounts and GST codes, and clears any backlog so your numbers start from a correct baseline. You provide access, recent statements, and a short conversation about how the business runs and where it earns.

Does my bookkeeper need my signature before lodging BAS?

Yes. Good practice, consistent with Tax Practitioners Board guidelines, is that a registered BAS Agent obtains your signed declaration and authority before lodging each BAS, IAS and TPAR, confirming the figures are true and correct. We use secure electronic signatures so this is quick and properly recorded every time.

How often are engagement letters and STP authorities renewed?

Annually is good practice. Your engagement letter and Single Touch Payroll lodgement authority should be refreshed each year so they stay accurate as your business changes and the arrangement stays in line with TPB guidelines. Electronic signatures make these annual renewals painless.

What to Expect Working With a Bookkeeper on the Mornington Peninsula

Published August 2026By True Tally Bookkeeping7 min read

This article mentions a tool we use and includes an affiliate link. As a registered BAS Agent, our advice is honest first, a commission never changes what we recommend.

Getting Started, the First Few Weeks

The start of the relationship is about getting the foundations right. For a Mornington Peninsula small business that means we take access to your Xero file, connect every bank account and card as a live feed, correct the chart of accounts so it reflects how your business actually earns, and fix any GST codes that would otherwise send the wrong figures to your BAS. If there is a backlog, we clear it so your numbers start from a correct baseline.

Your part is light: give us access, share recent statements and payroll details if you have staff, and spend twenty minutes telling us how the business runs. The ATO's guide to record keeping for business explains why this clean baseline matters so much.

The Monthly Rhythm

Once you are set up, working with us settles into a predictable, calm rhythm. Each month your transactions are reconciled, your BAS and payroll are handled on time, and a clear reporting pack lands in your inbox, profit and loss, cash position, and who owes you money, written in plain English. If a figure looks off, we have already looked into it before it reaches you.

Each month you get	What it means for you
Reconciled books	Accurate numbers you can trust for decisions
BAS and payroll handled	Lodged on time, no last-minute panic
Plain-English reporting pack	You can see how the business is really doing
Proactive prompts	Issues flagged before they become problems

How We Get Your Sign-Off on Every Lodgement

Here is something a lot of business owners do not realise: every time a registered BAS Agent lodges something for you, a BAS, an IAS, or a Taxable Payments Annual Report, they should get your sign-off first, confirming the figures are true and correct. That is not red tape, it is how the arrangement stays transparent and in line with Tax Practitioners Board guidelines.

The old way, chasing a wet-ink signature several times a year, is slow and easy to let slip. So we use secure electronic signatures through Alohi. You get a secure link, sign in seconds from your phone, and there is a time-stamped record for both of us. We like Alohi because it is genuinely secure, the signatures are properly binding, and the low monthly cost suits a small business rather than enterprise pricing. It means your sign-off actually happens on time, every lodgement, without becoming a job you have to remember.

Lodgement	What you sign off
BAS (each period)	Declaration the GST and PAYG figures are true and correct, plus authority to lodge
IAS (each period)	Declaration and authority to lodge the instalment activity statement
TPAR (annual)	Declaration that the taxable payments report is complete and correct

Annual Renewals: Engagement Letters and STP Authority

Two documents should be refreshed every year, not signed once and forgotten. Your engagement letter sets out the scope of what we do, and your Single Touch Payroll lodgement authority authorises us to lodge STP on your behalf. Renewing both annually keeps them accurate as your business changes and keeps everything in line with TPB guidelines. With e-signatures through Alohi, these annual renewals take a minute rather than becoming a chore.

How Much of Your Time It Takes

After onboarding, very little. Most Mornington Peninsula owners spend a few minutes a week forwarding paperwork and a moment to sign off a lodgement electronically when it is due. The whole point of working with a bookkeeper is to take admin off your plate, not add to it. If you find yourself doing more than that, something is set up wrong, and we would fix it. The government's bookkeeping guidance is a useful primer on what good looks like.

Thinking about working with a bookkeeper?

We look after Mornington Peninsula small businesses the calm way, set up once, then off your plate, with secure sign-off on every lodgement and annual renewals handled for you. Book a free call and we will walk you through exactly what working together would look like. Free, no obligation, no lock-in.

Book a Free 20-Minute Call