Start a Bookkeeping Business - Licensing

If you are thinking about starting your own Bookkeeping Business, you will need to think about your qualifications and experience and if there are any services you can not offer to clients.

At this stage Bookkeeping is not regulated and anyone can set up shop as a bookkeeper. The only exception to this is if a bookkeeper wants to perform BAS and BAS related services to clients. The reason for this is that the provision of the BAS is caught up in the taxation legislation, which is very specific about who is eligible to perform BAS services for a fee.

Due to this if you want to provide BAS services for a fee, you will need to satisfy certain criteria so you do not get into trouble with the ATO.

If you perform all other bookkeeping functions for a business and just give the client the reports for them to complete to BAS form and you do not complete it, you do not need any special qualifications or professional memberships.

I often get asked if Bookkeeping itself might become more regulated and it is possible as it rises in popularity and is now looked at as a quasi profession. Since the provision of BAS services is wrapped up in taxation legislation, the provision of BAS services for a fee will become more regulated as with the proposed introduction of the BAS Agent Registration legislation and bookkeepers will need tp incerase their skills and knowledge to continue being competitive in their own businesses.