How can you tell your bookkeeper isn't paying attention?
Check the reconciliations first. If the bank balance in your books doesn't match last month's bank statement, nobody has closed the month, and every report built on those numbers is a guess. After that, look at the holding account and at the date your last report arrived.
None of this has to mean bad faith. A bookkeeper with too many clients drifts the same way. Your name is still on the returns, though, so it pays to know what to check.
What does a bookkeeper who's paying attention do each month?
A normal month looks like this.
- Every bank and credit card account is reconciled to its statement, and the reconciliation report is saved.
- Transactions that couldn't be matched get sorted, or you get a short list of questions about them.
- The profit and loss and the balance sheet reach you by a date you both agreed on.
- Payroll in the books is checked against what the payroll system actually paid and withheld.
- You hear about what's due next month before it's due, not after.
Hold anyone you hire for monthly bookkeeping to that list. If your reports never come with a single question attached, notice it. Almost every month brings a deposit or a card charge that needs a word from the owner.
What are the five signs of neglect?
Each one shows up in the books well before it shows up as a bill.
| Sign | Where you'll see it | What it can lead to |
|---|---|---|
| Reconciliations stopped | The book balance differs from the bank statement | Reports and tax figures built on wrong numbers |
| Holding account keeps growing | The Uncategorized or Ask My Accountant balance rises | Expenses missed or misread at tax time |
| No questions from them | Months pass with no list of unclear items | Guesses recorded as if they were facts |
| Reports late or missing | No profit and loss by the agreed date | Decisions made without current numbers |
| Deadlines found by notice | A letter from the IRS or the state arrives first | Late-filing penalties and a rush to fix it |
Open the holding account first. Most accounting software has somewhere to park a transaction nobody could place, and a few items there at month-end is normal. A balance that climbs every month means the sorting has stopped.
Not sure what your books are telling you?
Book a free consultation and talk through what the reconciliations and the holding account are showing.
Which New Hampshire deadlines show a missed month first?
The Department of Revenue Administration confirms New Hampshire has no general sales tax on goods, so a Seacoast shop selling goods has no general sales tax return pushing anyone to look at the sales figures each month. Meals and rentals have their own state tax, listed on the department's Granite Tax Connect page, so a shop that also serves food is a different case. That leaves payroll and business tax dates to show whether someone is watching.
If you have employees, two quarterly filings make the easiest test. The IRS employment tax due dates page says Form 941 is due by the last day of the month that follows the end of each quarter, with 10 more calendar days if every deposit was made on time, though small employers the IRS has approved for Form 944 file once a year instead. New Hampshire Employment Security says every employer must file a tax and wage report for every calendar quarter while providing employment. A bookkeeper who is paying attention has both on the calendar and mentions them before they're due.
The department's Business Profits Tax FAQ says corporate and proprietorship returns are due on the 15th day of the 4th month after the taxable period ends, and partnership returns on the 15th day of the 3rd month. It also says four estimated payments fall on the 15th day of the 4th, 6th, 9th and 12th months of the taxable period once the tax passes a minimum the page sets. Whether you file at all depends on gross business income against a threshold the department adjusts for inflation.
Say you run a contracting business in Dover with a small crew. If your first word about a missed return is a letter from Concord, nobody was watching the calendar. Under RSA 21-J:31, a New Hampshire return filed late without an extension carries a penalty for each month or part of a month it stays unfiled, unless the delay was due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect.
Is it a one-off or a pattern?
One late report doesn't mean you need a new bookkeeper. What to do depends on what you found.
| Your situation | What we'd suggest |
|---|---|
| One late report, accounts otherwise reconciled | Ask what happened and agree a fixed date for reports |
| Reconciliations months behind or the holding account growing | Put the gaps in writing and ask for them closed by a set date |
| A notice arrived for a filing you thought was done | Deal with the notice first, then check what else is behind |
| You can't get into your own books or payroll | Start the handover now, beginning with admin access |
The second row is the one that's easiest to put off. A written list with a date on it is fair to the bookkeeper, and it gets you a clear answer either way. If the date passes and nothing has moved, you have your decision.
If a notice is what set this off and the books are months behind, getting current comes before choosing anyone new. That's what catch-up bookkeeping is for: reconciling the missed months so whoever comes next starts from numbers that are right.
How do you switch bookkeepers without a mess?
Sort out access before you give notice, then collect the records, then pick a clean cutover date.
- Make sure you, not the bookkeeper, are the primary admin on your accounting software.
- Download the general ledger, the trial balance and the latest saved reconciliation reports.
- Collect copies of every filed return, federal and New Hampshire, along with the year's payroll filings.
- List every login the bookkeeper holds, including bank feeds, payroll and Granite Tax Connect.
- Pick a cutover at a month-end that has already been reconciled.
- Remove the old bookkeeper's access once the new one has confirmed the opening balances.
Start with the software, because it's the step that can hold up everything else. QuickBooks' help article for accountants says it isn't recommended for a firm to be the primary admin on a client's company, and it shows the firm how to hand the role back to the client. Its article on changing the primary admin describes the usual route: the current primary admin makes the transfer, and the new person must already be an admin on the account. If the current admin isn't available, you have to send QuickBooks a request with documents proving you own the business or have permission to take over the account.
Keep the filed returns as well as the books. The IRS page on how long to keep records says to keep copies of filed returns, generally to keep records that support an income tax return for 3 years, and to keep employment tax records for at least 4 years after the tax is due or paid, whichever is later. On the state side, the department's Granite Tax Connect page says the portal lets you view balances and correspondence, and that you can connect your tax preparers to your own account. Holding that login yourself means a change of bookkeeper doesn't have to cut you off from your own state account.
Switching mid-year is fine. The awkward part is the month nobody owns, so agree in writing which month the old bookkeeper finishes and which month the new one starts. For an owner in Portsmouth changing over in the autumn, the outgoing bookkeeper might close September and the new one pick up October.
If you're weighing a switch, get in touch. The first consultation is free and commits you to nothing.
