· Reviewed by Nimra Khalid
What is audit support?
Audit support is the preparation work done before and during an external audit or review: assembling the documents on the auditor's prepared-by-client (PBC) list, tying every balance sheet account to its support, preparing lead schedules and roll-forwards, and answering the auditor's questions. It is done by the company or its bookkeeper, not the auditor, so the auditor's independence is protected.
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Audit support: what we do and how it runs
Audit support is the preparation work done before and during an external audit or review: assembling the documents on the auditor's prepared-by-client (PBC) list, tying every balance sheet account to its support, preparing lead schedules and roll-forwards, and answering the auditor's questions. It is done by the company or its bookkeeper, not the auditor, so the auditor's independence is protected.
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What it is
Audit support is the preparation work done before and during an external audit or review: assembling the documents on the auditor's prepared-by-client (PBC) list, tying every balance sheet account to its support, preparing lead schedules and roll-forwards, and answering the auditor's questions. It is done by the company or its bookkeeper, not the auditor, so the auditor's independence is protected.
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What you get
PBC list tracked and delivered item by item, on the auditor's dates
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How it runs
Every balance tied out to support before the fieldwork starts
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Discovery call
We confirm the type of engagement (audit, review or agreed-upon procedures), the auditor, the fieldwork dates, the prior-year findings and how the auditor wants documents delivered.
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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.
Get a custom quote 06 / 06
Who it is for
Businesses facing their first audit
A lender, investor, grant funder or regulator now requires audited or reviewed statements. You have never been through fieldwork and do not know what a PBC list is. You want someone who has done it before.
Nonprofits and grant-funded organizations
A single audit, funder audit or annual review comes around every year, and the finance team is one person. You want the schedules prepared and the questions answered without the office stopping for a month.
Finance managers with a recurring audit
You know the drill but the PBC list eats three weeks of your year. A dedicated accountant works the list so you handle the auditor's judgment questions, not the document gathering.
What's included
- PBC list loaded into a tracker with owner, due date and status per item
- Every balance sheet account tied out to statements, agings or schedules
- Lead schedules by financial statement line with ledger references
- Roll-forwards for fixed assets, prepaids, accruals, debt and equity
- Bank, loan and legal confirmation details compiled for the auditor to send
- Revenue and expense cut-off samples pulled with invoices and receipts
- Sampled transactions supported with contracts, invoices, approvals and payments
- Subsequent receipts and payments testing support
- Prior-year audit adjustments confirmed as posted and opening balances agreed
- Auditor questions logged, answered and documented in one place
- Proposed audit adjustments posted with your approval and the ledger re-tied
- Post-audit lessons list so next year's PBC is shorter
Deliverables and KPIs
| Deliverable | KPI we report | Cadence |
|---|---|---|
| PBC tracker | Every requested item delivered by the auditor's date, with status visible to you | Per engagement |
| Tie-out binder | Every balance sheet account agreed to support before fieldwork | Per engagement |
| Lead schedules and roll-forwards | Each schedule references the ledger and agrees to the trial balance | Per engagement |
| Sample support packs | Each sampled item supported by contract, invoice, approval and payment evidence | Per request |
| Question log | Auditor questions answered in writing with the document referenced | Per question |
| Post-audit close-out | Audit adjustments posted, ledger agreed to the final statements, year locked | Per engagement |
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 confirm the type of engagement (audit, review or agreed-upon procedures), the auditor, the fieldwork dates, the prior-year findings and how the auditor wants documents delivered.
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Pre-audit tie-out
You grant accountant access to your ledger and upload year-end statements to LedgerDesk. We tie out every balance sheet account and fix what does not tie before the PBC list arrives.
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PBC list worked
A named accountant, a backup and a team lead load the PBC list into the tracker and deliver each item through the auditor's portal or Suralink-style request list on the agreed dates.
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Fieldwork and close-out
During fieldwork we answer sample requests and questions within the agreed turnaround. After the audit we post approved adjustments, re-tie the ledger, lock the year and write up the lessons list.
Software we work in
How much does audit support cost?
Audit support is priced as a project fee based on the size of the PBC list, the number of balance sheet accounts and entities, and the length of fieldwork. Clients on our month-end close or account reconciliation service already have the tie-out binder, so their project is smaller. Pricing depends on volume and scope, so we send a custom quote within 1 business day.
What moves the quote
- Length of the PBC list and number of sampled transactions
- Number of entities, balance sheet accounts and prior-year findings
- Whether monthly reconciliations already exist or must be built
- Fieldwork duration and the turnaround the auditor expects
Market benchmarks
| Market | Typical range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| US | Offshore accounting staff for preparation work run $10 to $25 per hour versus $40 to $75 for US-based staff; all-inclusive offshore staffing $8 to $35 per hour | Madras, Acculink, Rose Talent (2026) |
| UK | Hourly bookkeeping and accounts preparation £20 to £55 | UK provider pricing surveys (2026) |
| Canada | Freelance accounting support C$30 to C$90 per hour | Outsource Bookkeeping CA, TheAccTaxCo (2026) |
| Australia | Bookkeepers A$40 to A$100 per hour for preparation work | Australian bookkeeping fee surveys (2026) |
Third-party ranges for orientation, not our prices.
Get a custom quote No setup fee. Month-to-month.
Audit support for your industry
Security and compliance
- Documents delivered through the auditor's portal or LedgerDesk, never unencrypted email
- Accountant-role access only; nothing is changed in the ledger without your approval
- MFA on every login, per-client access log, and no local downloads of support
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 do audit support services cost?
Pricing depends on volume and scope, and we send a custom quote within 1 business day. As a market reference, offshore accounting staff for preparation work typically cost $10 to $25 per hour compared with $40 to $75 for US-based staff, and all-inclusive offshore staffing runs $8 to $35 per hour (Madras, Acculink, Rose Talent, 2026). The size of the PBC list and the state of the reconciliations drive our quote.
Do you perform the audit or issue an opinion?
No. We are not your auditor and we give no audit, review or attest opinion. We prepare the schedules, documents and answers your independent auditor asks for, in the role your own finance team would otherwise play. Keeping preparation and testing separate is what protects the auditor's independence and the value of their opinion.
What is a PBC list and how do you handle it?
A prepared-by-client list is the auditor's request list: trial balance, reconciliations, agings, contracts, confirmations, samples and schedules, each with a due date. We load every item into a tracker with an owner and status, deliver each one through the auditor's portal or request-list tool, and keep the list current so nothing is delivered late or twice.
What does a tie-out involve?
For every balance sheet account we agree the ledger balance to independent support: bank statements, lender statements, customer and vendor agings, fixed asset and prepaid roll-forwards, payroll and tax filings. Differences are explained or corrected before fieldwork. A clean tie-out is the single biggest reason an audit finishes on time with few adjustments.
We have never been audited. Where do you start?
With a pre-audit tie-out, usually two to three months before fieldwork. We reconcile every balance sheet account, fix what does not tie, and prepare the schedules an auditor will ask for regardless of the specific PBC list. First audits go badly when the auditor finds the reconciliations do not exist; we make sure they do.
How do you handle audit adjustments the auditor proposes?
Each proposed adjustment goes to you and your accountant with our explanation of what it changes and why. Once you approve, we post it, re-tie the affected accounts, agree the ledger to the final audited statements and lock the year. The adjustments and their causes go on the lessons list so next year's close prevents them.
Can you work with our auditor's portal and request tools?
Yes. Most auditors use a portal or request-list tool such as Suralink or their own client site. We upload directly to it, mirror the statuses in our tracker and follow the auditor's file-naming rules. Where the auditor works from email or a shared drive, we deliver through LedgerDesk and keep the same tracking.
Will you talk to the auditor directly?
Yes, with your permission and with you copied. Document questions, sample requests and reconciliation explanations are answered by your named accountant in writing so there is a record. Questions of judgment, such as estimates, going concern or related parties, are answered by you and your accountant; we supply the figures behind them.
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