· Reviewed by Nimra Khalid
What is close support for accounting firms?
Close support for accounting firms is an outsourced team that performs the month-end close steps for a firm's client accounting clients, then hands a review-ready package to the firm's manager or partner. The work covers reconciliations, accruals, prepayments, fixed assets, intercompany and variance explanations. The firm reviews, asks questions and issues the financials under its own name.
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Close support: what we do and how it runs
Close support for accounting firms is an outsourced team that performs the month-end close steps for a firm's client accounting clients, then hands a review-ready package to the firm's manager or partner. The work covers reconciliations, accruals, prepayments, fixed assets, intercompany and variance explanations. The firm reviews, asks questions and issues the financials under its own name.
01 / 06 -
What it is
Close support for accounting firms is an outsourced team that performs the month-end close steps for a firm's client accounting clients, then hands a review-ready package to the firm's manager or partner. The work covers reconciliations, accruals, prepayments, fixed assets, intercompany and variance explanations. The firm reviews, asks questions and issues the financials under its own name.
02 / 06 -
What you get
Review-ready close packages for every client, on your calendar
03 / 06 -
How it runs
Balance-sheet reconciliations, accruals and variance notes done before review
04 / 06 -
Discovery call
We walk through your client list, close calendar, package template and where the bottleneck sits today. You choose the first batch of clients to move.
05 / 06 -
A named accountant, a backup and a team lead
Inside your own software, on a fixed close calendar, with a reply from a person within 1 business day. Call +1-657-777-0006 or start a quote.
Start a pilot 06 / 06
Who it is for
Client accounting services teams
You close 20 to 150 client entities a month and the second week is always a scramble. We prepare the packages so your managers review rather than reconcile.
Firms with controller-level clients
Your clients expect accrual-basis financials with variance notes by the tenth. We build the package to your template so the partner call is about the numbers, not the tie-outs.
UK and Australian practices
Monthly management accounts and quarter-end VAT or BAS-ready ledgers need to land on time. We reconcile and close; your practice or registered agent files.
What's included
- Close calendar per client with owners, due dates and dependencies
- Bank, credit-card, loan and merchant-processor reconciliations
- Balance-sheet reconciliations with support for every account
- Accruals, prepayments, deferred revenue and fixed-asset entries
- Intercompany and due-to, due-from tie-outs for group clients
- Payroll and sales-tax liability reconciliations to filings
- Flux and variance commentary against prior month and budget
- Close package in your firm's template, ready for manager review
- Review notes cleared and entries re-posted within your workflow
- Open-items and follow-up list for the client with dates
- Portfolio close-status report for partners every week
Deliverables and KPIs
| Deliverable | KPI we report | Cadence |
|---|---|---|
| Close package per client | Delivered by the agreed day of the month, tracked in CloseTrack | Monthly |
| Balance-sheet reconciliations | Every account reconciled with support; no unexplained variances | Monthly |
| Variance commentary | Every line movement above your threshold explained in plain English | Monthly |
| Review notes cleared | Notes addressed and package re-issued within one business day | Monthly |
| Portfolio close status | Every client's close step visible on one page for partners | Weekly |
| Quarter-end and year-end packages | Tax-ready trial balance and schedules handed to your tax team | Quarterly |
KPIs are what we measure and report, agreed per engagement. Service-level commitments are set in your agreement.
How it works
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Discovery call
We walk through your client list, close calendar, package template and where the bottleneck sits today. You choose the first batch of clients to move.
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Checklist and template build
We turn your current close steps into a CloseTrack checklist per client, with your thresholds for variance notes. Access is set up at accountant level in each ledger.
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Parallel first close
A named accountant, backup and team lead run the first close alongside your team. Your manager compares both packages and we adjust the checklist before the next month.
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Monthly operations
Every client closes on the calendar through CloseTrack and Two-Tier Review. Your managers review packages, we clear notes and partners get one weekly status view.
Software we work in
How much does close support cost?
Close support is priced per client entity per month, banded by the number of balance-sheet accounts and the depth of the package, or as dedicated seats for larger portfolios. There is no setup fee and engagements run month-to-month. Pricing depends on volume and scope, and we send a custom quote within 1 business day.
What moves the quote
- Number of client entities and how many balance-sheet accounts each carries
- Package depth: reconciliations only, or full flux commentary and schedules
- Close deadline and how many clients close in the same window
- Group structures with intercompany, consolidations or multiple currencies
Market benchmarks
| Market | Typical range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| US | $10 to $25 per hour for offshore accounting support versus $40 to $75 per hour for US-based staff | Madras Accountancy, Acculink (2026) |
| US | $8 to $35 per hour all-inclusive for offshore staffing depending on seniority | Rose Talent (2026) |
| UK | £20 to £55 per hour for outsourced accounting support; £100 to £1,500 per month fixed fees | UK provider pricing surveys (2026) |
| Australia | A$40 to A$100 per hour for bookkeepers; A$300 to A$1,500 per month fixed | Australian bookkeeping fee surveys (2026) |
Third-party ranges for orientation, not our prices.
Start a pilot No setup fee. Month-to-month.
Close support for your industry
Security and compliance
- Accountant-level access per client ledger, MFA on every login, access logged
- NDA per firm, background-checked staff, managed devices, no local downloads
- We never move money; the client approves and releases every payment
Full control list on the security page and country rules on the compliance page. Certifications are listed only when held.
Frequently asked questions
How much does close support for accounting firms cost?
Pricing depends on volume and scope, and we send a custom quote within 1 business day. As a market reference, offshore accounting support for CPA firms typically runs $10 to $25 per hour versus $40 to $75 for US-based staff (Madras Accountancy, Acculink, 2026). Most firms are quoted per client entity per month, banded by package depth.
What does a partner-ready close package contain?
The package holds a P&L, balance sheet and cash flow in your template, a reconciliation for every balance-sheet account with support attached, variance notes for movements above your threshold, and an open-items list. It has already passed our Two-Tier Review, so your manager reviews judgment calls rather than tie-outs.
How much review will my managers still do?
Managers review the package, not the ledger. After two or three closes per client, most firms move to exception review because the reconciliations, support and commentary are already in place. Review notes are cleared within one business day and the note count per client is reported monthly.
Can you close on our calendar and in our time zone?
Yes. Close dates are set per client and tracked in CloseTrack. Our team covers US Eastern and Pacific hours, UK hours and Australian Eastern hours, so questions during the close window are answered the same day rather than overnight. If a client closes late, the calendar shows the slip and who owns it.
How do you protect client confidentiality?
Access is granted at accountant level inside each client's own ledger, with MFA and a log of every login. Staff sign an NDA covering your firm and its clients, work on managed devices and never download files locally. You can remove our user from any client file yourself at any time.
Do you need IRS section 7216 consent for close work?
No. Section 7216 applies to tax-return information. Close support works in the client's ledger and produces financial statements, not returns. If your tax team later asks us to prepare a draft return from those books, the consent is collected first through our tax preparation support service.
What if a client's books are behind or messy?
We start with a catch-up or clean-up project to reconcile prior periods before putting the client on the monthly close calendar. That work is quoted per back month after we look at the file, and our white-label bookkeeping service can take over the daily posting afterward.
Can you handle group clients with several entities?
Yes. Intercompany balances are tied out each month so due-to and due-from accounts net to zero, and we prepare consolidation workpapers where the firm issues group financials. Multi-currency entities are reconciled in their functional currency with translation entries documented in the package.
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