Incorrect or Incomplete Accounting? Back Work Isn’t Optional.

In accounting, numbers build on each other over time. Estimating numbers without complete and accurate data is just filling in the blanks, putting your small business at risk of not minimizing your tax liabilities.

If any of your bookkeeping or tax returns have fallen behind or have errors, an expert needs to “go back” to fix or complete your data. Accountants call this back work.

At CSI Accounting & Payroll, we’ve provided monthly accounting services for nearly 60 years. That means we’ve answered thousands of questions about back work! By the end of this article, you’ll know the answers to these FAQs:

• What are the signs that I need back work handled?
• Why didn’t my last accountant tell me that I need back work services?
• What does CSI’s back work service look like? Is it optional even if I need back work done?

4 Signs You Need Back Work Done

If your books or taxes are behind, you know that you need to get caught up. However, if they’re complete but incorrect, you probably have no idea. (Most people don’t question their prior accountants’ expertise.)

Some signs that you need back work handled are more obvious than others. Some of the signs include:

• You have not filed a tax return every year. This means you not only need back work (bookkeeping), but you also need back taxes filed.

• You switched accountants, but not overnight. Any gap in your books, even if it’s just for one month, needs to be caught up. 
• You are not confident in the accuracy of your books. Back work will need to be done until you think the numbers look right. This usually means going back to your last tax return, but it can also just mean going back a month. 
• Your books have switched hands… often. Whether it’s done by you, your employees, or a service, some things may be coded differently from person to person. Changing your bookkeeper too often can mean some details get miscommunicated and need to be fixed.

Do any of these apply to you? Then you’ll want to keep reading!

Why Other Accountants Don’t Mention Back Work

Some prospective clients are hesitant about back work because none of their prior accountants have mentioned it before. That’s because many accountants don’t provide back work services – even if you need them.

Why? It’s a lot of work in a short period of time. They’re doing months’ or years’ worth of accounting and taxes in a small fraction of the time, and they can’t close out the present until the past is resolved. This stalls out services that don’t specialize in it.

Instead, bad accountants will just estimate numbers and fill in the blanks. This seems cheap and efficient at first, but it can cost you significantly down the line by:

• Increasing your risk of penalties and interest from an audit.
• Cutting your ability to use year-round tax strategy to minimize what you owe.
• Eliminating your ability to use your financial data to make accurate, timely decisions.

Good accountants who don’t have the capacity to handle your back work will refer you to someone who can – like us at CSI Accounting & Payroll! I’ll talk about what back work is like with CSI in the next section.

Back Work Process With CSI

If you want CSI’s monthly accounting services but have incomplete or incorrect accounting, back work is not optional. We require it so we’re able to “audit-proof” your books and represent you in the event of an audit at no additional cost.

While we can handle any back work project, it will require some patience due to high demand. The timeline depends on how quickly you give us the information we need to get started. After that, the first year’s worth of back work and taxes will take us at least 60-90 days, and each consecutive year will be done at a faster rate.

What about cost and billing? Once your monthly accounting fee is determined, it applies to both future months and prior months that need back work done. We bill for all back work upfront. It can be paid with a credit card or with an optional payment plan for up to 13 weeks. The basic formula to determine the price of your back work is:

Back Work Price = Number of Prior Months to Work On * Monthly Fee

Knock Back Work Out of the Park!

Now that you have an idea of whether you need back work handled, why other accountants don’t talk about it or provide it, and what CSI Accounting & Payroll’s back work service is like for clients who need it, are you ready to check out our monthly accounting services?

To see if we can be a good fit for your business, click the button below for a free consultation:

Not ready to talk? That’s okay! First, get an idea of what your monthly accounting fee might look like by clicking the image below: