New Employee Onboarding Checklist (Accounting Department)

Verify W-2 vs 1099 status with HR before any systems are provisioned. Misclassifying a staff accountant as a contractor creates payroll-tax exposure and IRS Form SS-8 risk later. Capture the role level (Staff, Senior, Manager) since access tiers in the GL and tax software depend on it.

Create the firm email, assign the M365 license, and enroll the account in MFA. MFA on email is a Safeguards Rule expectation and a hard requirement under most cyber-liability policies.

Provision QuickBooks Online Accountant, Xero, or Sage Intacct access at the appropriate role level. For tax staff, add UltraTax / Lacerte / ProConnect / Drake users and assign preparer permissions. Do not grant admin or partner-level rights by default — use least privilege.

BitLocker or FileVault enabled, EDR agent installed, and the device enrolled in MDM. IRS Pub 4557 and the FTC Safeguards Rule require encryption of any device that touches client PII or tax data.

Section 1 must be completed by end of Day 1; Section 2 within three business days of start. Inspect List A, or List B + List C documents in person. Late I-9s draw ICE penalties starting at $281 per form.

Federal W-4 plus the state equivalent (e.g., IT-2104 in NY, DE 4 in CA, A-4 in AZ). Enter into Gusto / ADP / Paychex before the first pay run; mid-cycle changes trigger out-of-band tax deposits.

Required for any staff who will touch attest engagements. Capture the hire's covered-person disclosures (spouse employment, brokerage holdings) so partner can run the AICPA independence check before assigning audit or review work.

Cover the named cases: client SSNs and tax data live only in SmartVault / TaxDome / ShareFile, never on personal email or personal Dropbox. Reference the firm's incident-response steps and the IRS data-theft reporting line. WISP training is a paid-preparer requirement under IRS Pub 5708.

Run the IRS PTIN directory and the state board lookup. A lapsed PTIN renders any return signed during the gap unfiled for Circular 230 purposes. Capture license number, expiration, and CPE compliance status.

Add the new preparer as an authorized user under the firm's EFIN in the IRS e-Services portal. Without this, returns prepared by the hire cannot be e-filed under the firm.

Cover §10.34 (positions on returns), §10.21 (knowledge of error), and §10.36 (firm procedures). Most state boards also require a state-specific ethics module — confirm jurisdiction before booking.

Walk through the standard COA, class/location dimensions, and the firm's rules for adding new accounts (most adds should be a class or customer, not a new GL account). Show one cleaned-up client file and one messy 800-account file as the contrast.

Use the training-client sandbox. Have the hire reconcile one operating account, age the unreconciled items, and post the reclass AJEs. Review with the senior before they touch a live client file.

Show how PBC requests flow through Suralink or TaxDome, how review notes are cleared and signed off in Caseware or CCH ProSystem fx, and the rule that no workpaper closes without a tickmark legend and a preparer/reviewer sign-off.

Pair on one full close: bank rec, sub-ledger tie-out, AJEs, trial balance review, and lock the period in QBO. The hire observes the first close, drives the second under supervision.

Pair with a senior accountant or tax senior — not the partner. The buddy fields the small questions (where do we file 1099 backup, who approves AJEs over $5K) for the first 30 days.

Walk through the firm's active engagements with scope, fee structure, and partner-in-charge. Flag any attest clients where the new hire is barred from bookkeeping work for independence reasons.

Review utilization, realization on assigned engagements, and any review-note rework rate. Surface any client-fit or workload concerns before they harden.

Most state boards require 40 CPE hours annually with a specific ethics requirement. Map the hire's renewal date and book courses through the firm's CPE provider (Surgent, Becker, or AICPA).

Capture the partner's pass/fail decision on conversion from probation, a written summary of strengths and gaps, and the next-quarter goals. A 'Needs improvement' rating routes to the remediation plan in the next step.

Document the specific gaps (review-note rework, missed deadlines, technical accuracy), the senior assigned to coach, and the measurable targets. HR signs off before the plan is delivered to the employee.