Questions, answered properly

A bookkeeper records and reconciles what happens in your business day to day — invoices, expenses, bank transactions, VAT and payroll. An accountant typically works with that finished record to produce annual financial statements, handle complex tax structuring and provide audit or assurance services. Most small businesses need a bookkeeper monthly and an accountant occasionally. Good bookkeeping is also what makes accountants cheap: they charge far less when the books arrive clean.

If you are invoicing customers, paying suppliers and submitting anything to SARS, you are big enough to benefit. The real test is time and risk: if bookkeeping is eating your evenings, or if you are not confident that your SARS submissions are accurate, outsourcing usually costs less than the hours and penalties it saves. We work with sole proprietors and freelancers as well as established companies.

It starts with a free 15-minute call to understand your business and what you need. We then send a written quote and, once you are happy, an engagement letter. From there we get access to your accounting software and bank statements, do a review of where things currently stand, and you receive your first monthly pack at the end of your first full month with us.

No. Monthly packages run month to month with fourteen days written notice to cancel. We would rather keep clients because the work is good than because they are locked in.

For a small business, monthly bookkeeping in South Africa generally ranges from around R400 to R900 per month for very low transaction volumes, R1 100 to R1 600 for a typical small business, and R2 100 to R2 500 or more where VAT and payroll are involved. Full compliance packages covering bookkeeping, VAT, payroll and tax typically run from R3 000 upwards. Hourly rates commonly sit between R100 and R400. Friendly Figures packages start at R950 per month excluding VAT.

Four things, mostly: the number of transactions running through your bank accounts each month, whether you are VAT-registered, how many employees you have on payroll, and how far behind the books currently are. Turnover on its own matters less than people expect — a business with high turnover and few large invoices is often cheaper to service than a low-turnover business with hundreds of small card payments.

No. You get a written quote before any work starts, and statutory fees charged by third parties such as CIPC are passed on to you at cost with the receipt. If something falls outside the agreed scope we tell you what it will cost before doing it, not after.

We work remotely, which means you are not paying for office overheads and you are not driving anywhere to drop off a lever-arch file. Everything happens by email, WhatsApp and shared cloud folders. We are based in Krugersdorp and work with clients across the West Rand, Gauteng and the rest of South Africa, and we are happy to arrange an in-person meeting on request.

We work in Xero, Sage and QuickBooks, and use SimplePay for payroll along with SARS eFiling and CIPC portals. If you already have a subscription we work inside yours so you always own your own data. If you are starting fresh we will recommend what suits your business and set it up.

Whatever way is easiest for you. Most clients share a cloud folder, some forward invoices by email as they arrive, and a few simply photograph slips and send them on WhatsApp. There is no system for you to learn — the point of outsourcing is that the admin gets easier, not harder.

Yes. Your records are stored in password-protected systems, accessed only by authorised personnel, and never shared with third parties without your consent except where the law requires it. This is set out in our engagement letter and in our privacy policy.

We bring the outstanding periods up to date and get the missing returns submitted. Being behind is common and it is fixable — the worst thing you can do is leave it, because SARS penalties and interest accrue automatically. Where appropriate we can help you approach SARS about penalties once you are compliant again.

VAT registration is compulsory once your taxable turnover exceeds R1 million in any consecutive 12-month period, or if you expect to exceed it under a written contract. Voluntary registration is possible once turnover exceeds R50 000 in the past 12 months. Voluntary registration is not automatically a good idea — it helps if your customers are VAT-registered businesses and hurts if they are members of the public.

Yes. A tax clearance status is issued through SARS eFiling and requires all your returns and payments to be up to date. If you are not currently compliant we will tell you honestly what needs to be fixed first and how long it is likely to take.