Student guide for quick books online accountant

INTUIT ACADEMY
Student Guide to
QuickBooks Online Accountant
Seminar

Copyright
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Inc. cannot warrant that the material contained herein will continue to be accurate nor that it is
completely free of errors when published. Readers should verify statements before relying on them.

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant Table of Contents
1
Table of Contents
About the Author....................................................................................................................... 3
About Past Contributors ............................................................................................................ 4
QuickBooks Accountant Test Drive ........................................................................................... 5
QuickBooks Online Accountant Basics ...................................................................................... 6
What is QuickBooks Online Accountant?......................................................................................................6
How do I get QuickBooks Online Accountant?............................................................................................6
How do I Log into QuickBooks Online Accountant?....................................................................................9
Your Practice & Your Books..................................................................................................... 11
Clients..............................................................................................................................................................12
Team................................................................................................................................................................24
ProAdvisor.......................................................................................................................................................28
Work ................................................................................................................................................................35
Apps.................................................................................................................................................................42
Your Books......................................................................................................................................................43
QuickBooks Online Accountant Toolbar.................................................................................. 44
Client Switcher................................................................................................................................................45
Search..............................................................................................................................................................45
+New ...............................................................................................................................................................46
Gear Icon.........................................................................................................................................................47

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant Table of Contents
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Accountant Toolbox ................................................................................................................ 49
Chart of Accounts...........................................................................................................................................50
Journal Entries................................................................................................................................................50
Reconcile.........................................................................................................................................................51
Reports ............................................................................................................................................................52
Voided/Deleted Transactions.......................................................................................................................52
Close Books ....................................................................................................................................................53
New Window ..................................................................................................................................................55
Month-end Review (Bookkeeping Review) .................................................................................................56
Notes ...............................................................................................................................................................56
Reclassify Transactions ..................................................................................................................................58
Reports Options .............................................................................................................................................61
Write Off Invoices...........................................................................................................................................62
Prep for Taxes.................................................................................................................................................64
ProConnect Tax Online .................................................................................................................................68

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant About the Author
3
About the Author
Esther Friedberg Karp is an internationally renowned trainer, writer, business consultant and speaker
who has been repeatedly listed as one of Insightful Accountant’s Top 100 QuickBooks ProAdvisors
in the world. She has also been named to their Top 10 list on two occasions: as Top International
ProAdvisor and Top Trainer/Writer ProAdvisor.
Based in Toronto, Canada, Esther has the unique distinction of holding ProAdvisor certifications in
the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. She has authored materials and delivered
educational and certification courses for Intuit in all those countries, as well as Australia where she
conducted live QuickBooks Online training. She has spoken at Scaling New Heights, QuickBooks
Connect and other conferences, and has written countless articles for Intuit Global.
Esther’s clients include companies worldwide and accounting professionals who seek her out on
behalf of their own clients. She is sought out for her expertise in various countries’ editions of
QuickBooks Desktop and Online, and for her talent in customizing QuickBooks usage for different
industries. She also teaches QuickBooks Core and Advanced certification classes to accounting
professionals in Canada.
Esther holds a BSc from the University of Toronto in Actuarial Science and Mathematics, and an MBA
in Marketing and Finance from York University’s Schulich School of Business.
She can be reached at esther@e-compubooks.com or 416-410-0750.
Esther Friedberg Karp, MBA
President, EFK CompuBooks Inc.

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant About the Author
4
About Past Contributors
Karine Woodman specializes in integrating project management software with QuickBooks Online
for the construction industry. She strives to educate and partner on improving financial workflows for
her construction clients.
Karine is an alumni member of the Intuit Accountant and Advisor Customer Council (2014-2016), a
member of the Intuit Trainer Writer Network and a member of the TWN Education Committee. She
was also named the 2016 winner of Intuit’s Global Firm of the Future contest.
Karine lives in northern Minnesota with her husband, Ryan, and their children, Evan and twins
Gabrielle and Hudson. When she’s not being a serial entrepreneur, she’s enjoying time with family
bowling, mini golfing, biking, rollerblading and swimming in one of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes.
Karine Woodman
24hr Bookkeeper, Inc.
2900 E Beltline, Ste 4
Hibbing, MN 55746 USA

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant QuickBooks Online Accountant Test Drive
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QuickBooks Accountant Test Drive
Exercises contained in this handbook can be completed using a QuickBooks Online Accountant test
drive file. The test drive uses a sample company file called Craig’s Design & Landscaping Services.
This is slightly different from the regular QBO test drive file that you can share with your clients (see
note below). Unlike the QBO test drive file, this file is in an Accountant environment, as if Craig is one
of your clients (who uses QuickBooks Online Plus) and you are accessing his books via QuickBooks
Online Accountant
It can be accessed through the following link:
Craig's Design & Landscaping
You don’t have to create an account or sign in to access the test drive file; just complete the security
verification and click Continue.
If you don’t see the Accountant Toolbox when logging in through this URL, log into qbo.intuit.com
with your Intuit ID. Click the name of a QuickBooks Online Accountant firm. Navigate to the Gear
icon, then click Sample Company.
This is what you are looking for in the sample company.
REFERENCE YOU ARE IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT
This test drive is designed for you to explore and try out new things without worrying that you will
break something or make a mistake. It is not designed to retain any changes you make. Once you
close this QuickBooks Online test drive company it is completely refreshed, so please remember to
allow sufficient time to complete each activity. Don’t worry if you need to close the test drive before
you are finished, you can always begin again.
NOTE: This test drive uses QuickBooks Online Accountant. It contains some features that are not
available in QuickBooks Online Simple Start, Essentials, Plus or Advanced. In addition, some features
(such as in-product Help) may not be enabled inside this test drive file. This is subject to change.
NOTE: There is also a test drive you can share with your clients that doesn’t include accountant-
specific features. It can be accessed through the following link:
https://qbo.intuit.com/redir/testdrive

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant QuickBooks Online Accountant Basics
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QuickBooks Online Accountant Basics
WHAT IS QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT?
QuickBooks Online Accountant provides central access to your clients’ QuickBooks Online company
files. It offers features for managing your practice, your firm’s books and special accountant-only
tools inside your clients’ QuickBooks Online companies.
HOW DO I GET QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT?
If your accounting practice has a QuickBooks Online Accountant firm already, then a QuickBooks
Online Accountant firm admin must invite you as a team member and give you access to the firm’s
clients’ QuickBooks Online companies.
If your practice does not have a QuickBooks Online Accountant firm yet, you can sign up for one
online at https://quickbooks.intuit.com/accountant-sign-up/.
1. Decide on the Intuit ID you want to use for your new QuickBooks Online Accountant firm.
Intuit ID: Firm vs. Individual – Some QuickBooks Online consultants find it advantageous to
create a separate Intuit ID for the firm, such as QBO@firmdomain.com. This username must be a
valid email address to receive the email invites from your clients to their QuickBooks Online
companies. This moves the central QuickBooks Online Accountant firm identity off an individual
and onto the firm.
2. Sign up for QuickBooks Online Accountant using that firm Intuit ID here:
https://quickbooks.intuit.com/accountant-sign-up/.
3. Give your clients your firm’s Intuit ID (designated email address) to invite your firm to access their
QuickBooks Online company as one of their accountant users (QuickBooks Online Simple Start,
Essentials, and Plus subscriptions are allowed two accountant users; QuickBooks Online
Advanced subscriptions are allowed three accountant users).
TIP: Before you click your email to accept the invitation as an Accountant user, be sure to log
out of QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Online Accountant or any other Intuit site where
you are logged in with an Intuit ID. It is a best practice to right-click the button to accept the
invite, copy the URL, and open an Incognito browser or browser whose cache and cookies
have recently been deleted then paste the URL.

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INVITATION SENT VIA EMAIL
4. Invite your staff as team users and delegate appropriate permissions and access to client
QuickBooks Online companies.
5. Centralize the wholesale billing plan for the firm, edit the billing information and manage all
wholesale client subscriptions.
6. Use Your Books for the firm’s bookkeeping, accessed by team users with proper permission.
NOTE: If your client invites you as the accountant user on their QuickBooks Online company and you
do not yet have a QuickBooks Online Accountant firm, then one will be created when you accept the
invitation. When you receive the email notification, click the button to Accept Invitation. You will be
asked to log in with the password for the Intuit ID email address where you received the invitation. If
you don’t have a QuickBooks Online Accountant Intuit ID for this email address yet, the next screen
you see will say Sign up for QuickBooks Online Accountant.

8

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HOW DO I LOG INTO QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT?
Once you have your Intuit ID, to access QuickBooks Online Accountant, navigate your browser
(preferably Chrome) to qbo.intuit.com and sign in.
QUICKBOOKS ONLINE LOGIN PAGE

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Next, select which QuickBooks Online Accountant firm to open. You may see the following options:
• QuickBooks Accountant – List of QuickBooks Online Accountant firms that the Intuit ID you
logged in with is linked to as a firm owner or team member; each of these firms may have access
to multiple clients’ QuickBooks Online companies
• QuickBooks Companies – List of active QuickBooks Online companies that the Intuit ID you
logged in with is linked to as a regular user, not an accountant user
• Canceled Companies – List of inactive QuickBooks Online companies that the Intuit ID you
logged in with is linked to
SELECTING THE COMPANY FILE

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant Your Practice & Your Books
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Your Practice & Your Books
The left navigation bar provides access to Your Practice and Your Books. The Your Practice section of
the bar provides access to your clients, your team, your ProAdvisor membership, the Work tab and
access to Apps. The Your Books section provides access to your firm’s books.
QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT DASHBOARD

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CLIENTS
When you first log in to QuickBooks Online Accountant, you are in the Your Practice section on the
Clients page. Here you will find a list of your firm’s clients. What’s great about this dashboard is
central access to your clients.
CLIENT GRID IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT DASHBOARD

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You can view their name and telephone number. To access a client’s QuickBooks Online company,
click the qb icon to the left of the client name. That icon indicates this client is a QuickBooks Online
client. (All qb icons initially display as gray. As you hover your mouse over the qb icon, it will turn
green.) Alternately, click on the drop-down next to Go to QuickBooks in the top left of your screen
and choose the client file you wish to open. You can switch to different files or your own practice’s
books this way as well.
If you click on the company name instead, you can find summary information about activity from your
clients’ QuickBooks Online companies, such as:
• Close date
• Alerts and notifications for review
• Banking download status
• Payroll status and items due
• Shared documents
• Access to Tax via ProConnect
If the list of clients is long, use the search box at the top left of the list to find a client by typing their
name. At the top right of the list, you’ll see a filter to change the list view from All Clients to view only
certain groups of clients, such as QuickBooks Online Payroll clients. The client grid gear icon allows
you to customize which columns display in the grid. If you don’t do tax services, you may choose to
uncheck the Tax Returns column to hide it. You can also Include inactive clients, set number of rows
appearing in grid on one page to 50, 150 or 300.

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Client Details: Contact Info
From the Client list, click the client’s name to drill down and view more information.
CLIENT DETAIL SCREEN
The header section of the Client Detail screen shows contact information such as:
• Client’s name
• QuickBooks Online Accountant team user count – Hover over the number to see who has
access to this client
• Email icon – Hover over the icon to view the email address; click the icon to launch an email to
this contact
• Phone icon – Hover over the icon to view the phone number
• Click the downwards arrow to expand the header section and view more info such as address

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Firm users with permission can select the Edit client button to update the contact info and team
access. This contact information section is originally populated by the QuickBooks Online company.
You may change this information and it will not change what’s already entered in the client’s
QuickBooks Online company. You may want to change this information for a few reasons. One, you
may want to change the name of a group of commonly owned entities so they sort, then appear near
each other on the Client list. Or, maybe you want to update the phone number or email address of
your main point of contact at that company.
The drop-down arrow next to the Edit client button allows you to make a client inactive, which
removes the client from the firm’s active Client list for all the firm’s team users. It does not cancel the
QuickBooks Online subscription for that company. For example, your firm may not work on a
particular client very often, but that company may keep your firm as an accountant user. You may
find it helps to make them inactive so only your most frequently used clients appear in your Client
list. To work on an inactive client, use the grid gear settings on your Client list to show inactive
clients. If you want to make them active again, click the client name to drill down to the Client Detail
Screen then click the arrow on the same Edit client button for the option to make them active again.
Client Details: Notes, Bookkeeping, Payroll, Documents and Tax
Below the header section is the Notes tab where you and your staff can add notes about this client
and pin important notes. Each note shows the name of the team user who posted it and the date and
time the note was posted. Adding a note is as simple as typing in the Add a note field then clicking
the button to save it. New notes are added to the top of the list of notes. URLs are automatically
converted to hyperlinks so you can click on them to go to a website. When you hover over an
existing note, you will see options to edit, pin or delete the note. When you pin a note, a green bar is
added to the left border of the note and the note also appears in the right-hand pane on screen.
This allows you to draw attention to the more important notes. Any QuickBooks Online Accountant
team user with access to this client can add, edit or delete any of the notes.

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NOTES TAB OF CLIENT DETAIL SCREEN
The Bookkeeping tab contains dynamic information pulled from the client’s QuickBooks Online
company file. This is a great way to review indicators about a company without having to drill down
into the QuickBooks Online company database.
If the books have been closed, you can see the closing date, who was the last user to sign in and
when, date of the last banking download, and the version of QuickBooks Online the client is
subscribed to. You will also see the Account watchlist showing current balances in key accounts,
such as checking and credit cards, and when these accounts were last reconciled. To the right, you
will find indicators for information to Review in QuickBooks, such as changes made to closed books
and summary info about downloaded transactions from the Banking screen. You cannot change
QuickBooks Online information from here, but if you want to take action on something, click the
hyperlinked indicator to drill down into that client’s QuickBooks Online company and it will take
you directly to the information.

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You can see their QuickBooks Online subscription level in the top right above the Account watchlist.
BOOKKEEPING TAB OF CLIENT DETAIL SCREEN

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The Payroll tab shows the last pay date and a summary of recent tax payments and form filings (if
your client has QuickBooks Online Payroll). This allows you to check them quickly and verify they are
remitting payroll tax and filings in a timely fashion. You can also verify the payroll subscription they
are using.
PAYROLL TAB OF CLIENT DETAIL SCREEN
The Shared documents tab supports collaboration of paperwork between your firm and your client.
SHARED DOCUMENTS TAB OF CLIENT DETAIL SCREEN

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The Tax tab allows your firm to create and organize tax returns linked to your client’s books.
TAX TAB IN CLIENT DETAIL SCREEN
About Blue Hyperlinks
• From the Client list, click a client name to go to the Client Detail screen in QuickBooks Online
Accountant
• From the Client Detail screen, click a blue hyperlink (from any of the tabs) to go into that client’s
QuickBooks Online company to that specific area

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Add Client
As more businesses move to the cloud, you may be asked to set up a QuickBooks Online company
for a business.
1. From the Client list, click the Add client button.

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2. In the Client contact information section, enter the client’s company name and contact
information.
NEW CLIENT SETUP

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3. In the QuickBooks subscription section, choose Wholesale discount (your firm will pay), Direct
discount (your client will pay), No subscription right now (set up but no active QuickBooks
Online subscription), or Payroll Only (and the client will pay for that). One of the most valuable
features of QuickBooks Online Accountant is the wholesale billing plan. This plan gives you 50%
off for the life of the QuickBooks Online Essentials or Plus, or QuickBooks Self-Employed
subscription. If your client requires QuickBooks Online Advanced, this plan gives you 30% off for
the life of that subscription. The firm receives one monthly consolidated bill for all clients on the
wholesale plan. If you select your client to pay, they do not get this discount; they will get the
standard rates available at the time and will be prompted to enter their credit card information
when they log into QuickBooks Online.
4. Select which subscription level of QuickBooks Online you want to create for this client. If your
client already has a QuickBooks Online company, you should not create a company for them;
instead, they should invite you as the accountant user from their existing QuickBooks Online
company’s Manage Users screen. (There is no option here in this screen to find and link to an
already-existing QuickBooks Online company.)
You can create a subscription for a QuickBooks Online Essentials, Plus, Advanced, or
QuickBooks Self-Employed account or Payroll only (you can choose Elite Payroll, Premium
Payroll or Core Payroll). As you select the various versions, you will see pricing displayed on
screen. If you wish to create a subscription for a QuickBooks Online company and add payroll,
you can add payroll to the company after the subscription is created.
You cannot create a Simple Start company from QuickBooks Online Accountant

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Once you’ve selected the QuickBooks Online subscription level, check the box to designate
yourself as the Master Admin of this new company. If your client is to be the Master Admin,
uncheck the box and they will be invited to this new QuickBooks Online company as the Master
Admin user.
SUBSCRIPTION AREA OF NEW CLIENT SETUP IN WHOLESALE
5. Next, assign access to the various team users of your QuickBooks Online Accountant firm so your
staff can access this new company.

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TEAM
QuickBooks Online Accountant allows you to manage your staff by inviting them as team users,
specifying the steps to add, edit and control permissions to team users for accessing your
QuickBooks Online Accountant firm.
The QuickBooks Online Accountant team is made up of the staff members who work for the firm on
the QuickBooks Online client files. QuickBooks Online Accountant gives you one central place to
invite, deactivate and control permissions to team users for accessing your QuickBooks Online
Accountant firm and your clients’ QuickBooks Online companies. Navigate to the Team screen via
the left navigation bar. You’ll find a grid with the names of the firm’s staff, their title, email addresses,
types of access and status. Use the icons to print this list or change the settings for the number of
rows displayed. Click on Add user to add a new team member, then fill in the information fields and
firm and client access information in the screens that appear.
TEAM LIST IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

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Team Details: User Profile
Once a team member exists, click their row on the team grid to view and modify their settings. On
the User Profile tab, you can update name, email, title, and change the status of a team user from
active to inactive. Making a team member inactive will discontinue their access to QuickBooks
Online Accountant for this firm and all of the firm’s QuickBooks Online client files.
USER PROFILE TAB IN TEAM MEMBER PROFILE

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Team Details: Firm Administration and Books
On the Firm Administration and Books tab you’ll determine which level of access to grant the
team user:
• Full access allows the user to edit QuickBooks Online Accountant firm information, modify team
users, update the firm’s wholesale subscription billing account, and access the firm’s books
• Basic access gives the user view-only access to QuickBooks Online Accountant firm information,
no access to team and subscription billing, and no access to the firm’s books
• Custom access lets you select a different mix of these permissions for the user
FIRM ADMINISTRATION AND BOOKS TAB IN TEAM MEMBER PROFILE

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Team Details: Client Access
On the Client Access tab, scroll through the list of clients connected to this QuickBooks Online
Accountant firm and check the box next to each client you want this team user to access as an
Accountant user. An Accountant user is equivalent to an Admin user. All QuickBooks Online
Accountant team users are Accountant users and have admin access to the client QuickBooks Online
companies to which they are assigned.
A QuickBooks Online Simple Start, Essentials or Plus subscription allows the client company to invite two
accounting firms. A QuickBooks Online Advanced subscription allows the client company to invite three
accounting firms. Each firm can then grant access to each of its individual staff members via QuickBooks
Online Accountant Team center. When your client navigates to their QuickBooks Online Manage Users
screen in the Accounting Firms section, they will see the firm name and the name of their Lead contact at
the firm. They will not see each of the firm’s staff members listed as users. When the Lead team user’s
access is removed from a QuickBooks Online company, QuickBooks Online Accountant will prompt you
to select another team user to show as Lead contact for the firm on the client’s QuickBooks Online
Manage Users screen.

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When your staff members log in and work on the QuickBooks Online company, the audit log tracks
their activity, as it does for any QuickBooks Online user. When your client navigates to the Audit Log,
they will see the name of the Accountant user firm as the username for any activity performed by any
of the firm’s team member users. When any team member of the Accountant user firm accesses
QuickBooks Online via QuickBooks Online Accountant and navigates to the Audit Log, they will see
the individual team member as the username for any activity performed. Notice a message at the top
of the screen: When your client views the audit log, we don’t show any user details. We only
show the name of your firm.
PROADVISOR
In addition to managing your clients and your team, QuickBooks Online Accountant also lets you
manage your ProAdvisor membership. Each of the firm’s team users can manage their ProAdvisor
memberships. This gives you central access to the wealth of resources provided by the ProAdvisor
program. Navigate to the ProAdvisor portal in QuickBooks Online Accountant from the left
navigation bar.
There are two tabs in the ProAdvisor area: Benefits and Training.
In the Benefits tab, the header section tabs show your membership status — Silver, Gold Platinum or
Elite. You can also see your firm’s points (which determines the membership status) and how to
points are earned. Points are earned by having certain client subscriptions under you, as well as
various certifications that are offered by Intuit.
PROADVISOR SCREEN IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

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ProAdvisor Benefits
There are many benefits of being a QuickBooks ProAdvisor and you should take full advantage of
the discounts and resources available to you.
Check out the Your Benefits grid to see the benefits available to each member status level. They
include various resources and marketing tools, as well as a listing in the Find-a-ProAdvisor directory,
discounts, QuickBooks merchandise, ProAdvisor badges, training, and various prioritized levels of
phone and chat support.
Benefits include:
• Discounts – Gives you a central place for ProAdvisors to find discount opportunities to take
advantage of for their own business or their clients
• Training – Gives you resources for you to give to your clients
• Apps – Search for apps for your firm and your clients
• ProAdvisor Listing – View and edit your listing for the Find-a-ProAdvisor website
• Software – Access to QuickBooks Desktop software downloads
• Support – Access to various prioritized levels of phone and chat support depending on your
status
As a team user of a QuickBooks Online Accountant firm, you are automatically enrolled in the
ProAdvisor Program and can begin exploring the various tabs in the ProAdvisor portal immediately.
If you have any trouble accessing your benefits or linking your account, contact ProAdvisor support
at 1-888-250-7279 and they can link your account for you.

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ProAdvisor Certification
If you are an existing ProAdvisor member, you may connect to your ProAdvisor profile details, client
reviews, and historical certifications. Just click ProAdvisor in the left navigation bar. The ProAdvisor
Portal consists of two tabs: Benefits and Training.
The Benefits tab indicates the tier of your ProAdvisor membership (Silver, Gold, Platinum, or Elite)
based on points you have earned. Silver level ProAdvisors have under 200 points; Gold level
ProAdvisors have at least 200 and fewer than 800 points; Platinum level ProAdvisors have at least
800 and fewer than 1600 points; Elite ProAdvisors have at least 1600 points.
Under your points indicator, you’ll see how points are earned if you click on Earn Points.

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Further down in the Benefits tab, you’ll see a grid of the tiers and the benefits that come with each.
Your current tier will be highlighted. There are downloadable training guides, software downloads
and, depending on your tier, access to resources and discounts as well as your earned badges for
placement on your website, social media profiles and business cards.

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The Training tab is packed with training videos, training guides and access to exams. Get certified
and show your firm and clients you are proficient with the software solutions in which you are
certified. Get Advanced certified and brand yourself as an expert! These certification training
materials and exams are updated regularly, so check back and stay certified on the most up-to-date
certifications. There are also specialty courses and access to QuickBooks Desktop, Enterprise and
Point of Sale training as well.
To access the in-depth training provided for each certification or specialty course, expand the course
section if necessary and choose from various training delivery methods and supplemental PDF
guides for each module of that course. Click the Get started button when ready. There are links to
take various exams or to recertify, and once you are certified you can download the certificate.
(Download certificate replaces the Take Exam button.) Remember, your badges are available in the
Benefits tab.
TRAINING TAB IN PROADVISOR CENTER

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ProAdvisor Profile
The Find-a-ProAdvisor directory is visited by hundreds of thousands of small businesses every year.
FIND-A-PROADVISOR WEBSITE
In addition, businesses using QuickBooks Online are prompted inside QuickBooks Online to
connect with a ProAdvisor for help.
FIND OR ADD AN ACCOUNTANT VIA THE MY ACCOUNTANT MENU IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE

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Many ProAdvisors will tell you this Find-a-ProAdvisor directory is the only marketing they need to
pull in all their business and it’s free to ProAdvisors.
To access your ProAdvisor profile, navigate to the profile icon in the upper toolbar. If you have
already attached a picture to your ProAdvisor listing, that picture will display instead of a generic
profile icon.
ACCOUNTANT PROFILE ICON
Keep your profile updated. An address and up-to-date phone number are very important for
prospects. Add unique certifications and credentials. Create a good statement about your practice.
Often what you have on your website will work perfectly here. Add a picture. Get as many
certifications as you can. Request reviews from your clients. All these factors improve your ranking in
the search results.
PROADVISOR LISTING

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WORK
Work Dashboard
Access QuickBooks Online Accountant’s practice management tool from the left navigation bar’s
Work tab. Here you’ll see all the tasks that needs to be completed for your clients. Four columns
organize the work and group it by due today, due this week, due next week, and due in the next 30
days. Use the drop-down menus to filter the work for a particular client, or by the team user whom
the work is assigned to, or to show only projects, tasks or requests. A toggle switch is available to
show or hide tasks created automatically by your clients’ QuickBooks Online companies, such as a
payroll processing due date or unaccepted banking activity waiting for review.
FILTER OPTIONS IN WORK DASHBOARD

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Click the card to edit the project or the tasks associated with the project. To reassign work quickly to
another team user, click the user’s initials on the card to view a team user drop-down menu and
select the staff member to whom you want to reassign the task.
ASSIGN TASK TO ANOTHER TEAM MEMBER

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Add Work
Click the Create project button to add new tasks.
Choose a template, give the project a name, specify the client and due date, and assign the project
to one of the firm’s team users. Next, enter details about the work that should be performed. When a
project recurs on a regular basis, you may set it up to repeat automatically so you don’t worry about
having to schedule it again.
Within the project, you can create several associated subtasks assigned to various users with varying
due dates. For example, a project called Monthly Bookkeeping may have tasks that include work the
bank feed, reconcile checking account, reconcile credit card account, review and send reports, and
enter close period date.
CREATE A PROJECT

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Duplicate Work
You may often find the need to copy an existing project. To do this, click on the card to edit the
project. Then click the Duplicate button at the bottom.
On the copy, change the client, due date, and any other information that is unique to the new
project. All the tasks related to the original project will also be included in the duplicate.
DUPLICATE AN EXISTING PROJECT

39
Requests
QuickBooks Online Accountant’s practice management helps you collaborate with your client to
gather information and documents. The client request functionality helps manage your request for
information, the status of the request and the response from the client.
Click the button on the Work tab to Create a client request.
Enter a descriptive name for the request similar to the subject line of an email, specify the client
contact you are requesting this from, and the date you wish to receive the information. You can enter
more details, similar to the body of an email. If you are sending a document to the client, you can
upload it here. Check the box to notify the client by email; otherwise they will only see the request as
a notification in their QuickBooks Online company. Click to publish the request to the client’s
QuickBooks Online company.
CREATE CLIENT REQUEST

40
The next screen will show you a preview of what the request will look like to the client. You may
make adjustments here as needed. Click Publish and send email, and the client will receive the
request in QuickBooks Online and/or email. This request is also added as a card on the Work tab in
QuickBooks Online Accountant to track the status of the request.
EXAMPLE OF A CLIENT REQUEST TO SEND

41
When the client navigates to the My Accountant section from the left navigation bar, they will find a
list of requests. The client clicks on a request to view more details and uses the attach link to upload
any documents requested. Each request allows for comments to support communication between
client and accountant.
REQUESTS TAB IN CLIENT’S QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNT
Next to the Requests tab is the Shared documents tab for central access to documents for both
clients and accountants.
SHARED DOCUMENTS TAB IN CLIENT’S QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNT
Once the client responds to the request, the accountant is notified and the status of the request is
updated from To do to In progress. In QuickBooks Online Accountant, the accountant can navigate
to the Work tab and click on the request to find the uploaded document and any comments posted.

42
APPS
Find apps for your firm or for your clients. Simply search for apps or click on any suggested app box
for more information such as overview of the app, reviews, pricing and support.
APPS CENTER IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

43
YOUR BOOKS
From QuickBooks Online Accountant, navigate to the Your Books section on the left navigation bar.
Click any of the links in that section to go to that page. This is your firm’s QuickBooks Online (Plus)
company to use for bookkeeping. Not all QuickBooks Online Accountant firm team users have
access to the firm’s books; however, if you do, you’ll find you are now looking at a QuickBooks
Online company. It is a fully functioning QuickBooks Online Plus company subscription. You have all
the same screens along the left navigation bar and options on the +New and gear icons.
YOUR BOOKS MENU IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT
It is not a good idea to use Your Books as a sample to learn QuickBooks Online, nor to use it with
sample data as a demo company. Use the QuickBooks Online Accountant sample company found
on the QuickBooks Online Accountant gear icon for demo purposes (or click here) instead.
Regular client QuickBooks Online company users have a 60-day time limit within which they must
convert data from a QuickBooks Desktop data file to their new QuickBooks Online company before
the QuickBooks Online company is locked down for conversion and they are no longer allowed to
push data. As the Accountant user on your client’s QuickBooks Online company, you have 180 days
from the subscription start date to push data to your client’s QuickBooks Online company,
regardless of how the QuickBooks Online company was created.
The Your Books QuickBooks Online company has a 1,060-day limit. Therefore, if you have had this
QuickBooks Online Accountant account for a while (but less than 1,060 days) and haven’t moved
your firm’s books from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online, you are not too late. Remember,
if you do convert a QuickBooks Desktop file to this Your Books QuickBooks Online company, all the
clients in the Desktop file’s customer list will appear here in the Your Books Customer Center as well
as in the QuickBooks Online Accountant Client list.

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant QuickBooks Online Accountant Toolbar
44
QuickBooks Online Accountant Toolbar
The top navigation toolbar in QuickBooks Online Accountant offers some great tools for accounting
professionals. Notice that when you are on the firm’s QuickBooks Online Accountant Client list,
Team List, ProAdvisor portal, Work tab, Apps tab or Your Books, the left navigation bar remains a
light color. This tells you you’re in QuickBooks Online Accountant and not in a client’s QuickBooks
Online company.
When you jump into a client’s company, the left navigation bar turns black. This tells you you’re in a
client’s QuickBooks Online company and not in your QuickBooks Online Accountant firm or books.
The top left corner qb Accountant logo tells you you’re logged into either a QuickBooks Online
Accountant firm or a QuickBooks Online company via a QuickBooks Online Accountant firm.
Anytime you are in a client’s QuickBooks Online company and want to jump back to QuickBooks
Online Accountant, click the left qb Accountant corner. Alternately, click on the drop-down
between the company name and the Accountant Tools and select Back to practice.

45
CLIENT SWITCHER
The drop-down between the company name and the Accountant Tools is called the Client Switcher.
Click this drop-down to see a list of clients. (If you are in Your Books, the company name is replaced
by Go To QuickBooks.) Click the client you want to open and you’ll jump into their QuickBooks
Online company, landing on the Home page. This Client Switcher stays with you in all your client’s
QuickBooks Online companies. If you want to jump into another client’s QuickBooks Online
company, navigate to the Client Switcher and jump companies.
CLIENT SWITCHER IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT
SEARCH
The Search box here is tied to the Your Books QuickBooks Online company. Click the box to see a
list of recent transactions. Type in text or amounts to search for in transactions or reports.
SEARCH BOX IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

46
+NEW
The +New which you learned about in QuickBooks Online is also used in QuickBooks Online
Accountant. It allows you to add transactions to the Your Books firm.
CREATE NEW TRANSACTION IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

47
GEAR ICON
The gear icon in QuickBooks Online Accountant is slightly different from its counterpart in
QuickBooks Online. It takes on a dual role when clicked from QuickBooks Online Accountant. The
left three columns are associated with the firm’s Your Books and control the firm’s QuickBooks
Online company settings, lists and tools just as they do in a client’s QuickBooks Online company.
Team users who are not granted access to the firm’s Your Books do not see these options in the left
three columns when they click the Gear icon.
COMPANY SETTINGS IN GEAR ICON IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT
The right column is associated with the QuickBooks Online Accountant firm. From the Intuit Account
link, you can manage your user ID, email address, password, and contact information. From the
Subscriptions and billing link, you can manage the wholesale billing subscriptions for your clients,
update the firm’s credit card billing information, add and remove clients from wholesale billing, and
upgrade client subscriptions to a higher subscription. This is a common question among
ProAdvisors with existing client QuickBooks Online companies looking to add them to their
wholesale billing plan.
You also have links to your team, welcome videos, the sample (QuickBooks Online interface)
company, giving feedback to Intuit about QuickBooks Online, privacy statement, and switching
companies to jump in and out of different QuickBooks Online Accountant firms or QuickBooks
Online companies related to the Intuit ID with which you are currently signed in.

48
YOUR COMPANY OPTIONS IN GEAR ICON IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

Student Guide to QuickBooks Online Accountant Accountant Toolbox
49
Accountant Toolbox
When you log into a client as an Accountant user, there is an icon in the top left-hand section of the
screen that looks like a briefcase or toolbox. This is called the Accountant Toolbox. When you click
on the Toolbox, there is a list of quick links and tools you can use when working on your clients’ files.
Some of the tools are available elsewhere and some can be found only here. For example, Prep for
Taxes, Reclassify Transactions, Voided/Deleted Transactions and Write Off Invoices are Accountant-
only tools. Your clients can make journal entries, but only Accountant users can mark them as
adjusting entries. Both clients and Accountant users can close the books and reconcile, but those
options are listed here because they are features accountants commonly use. You will learn about
each of these tools.
ACCOUNTANT TOOLBOX IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

50
CHART OF ACCOUNTS
It is easy to access your Chart of Accounts from the Accountant Toolbox. As with some of the other
tools, you can access the Chart of Accounts from other places, such as the gear icon and the left
navigation bar.
JOURNAL ENTRIES
Journal entries can be created by both clients and Accountant users. They can be entered from the
Accountant Toolbox or from the +New drop-down. What makes journal entries different for
Accountant users is these users are the only ones who can mark journal entries as adjusting entries.
These adjusting entries populate the Adjusting Journal Entry report as well as the Adjusted Trial
Balance, which are accountant-only reports.

51
RECONCILE
You can access the reconciliation feature from the Accountant Toolbox, from the left navigation bar
(a sub-tab of Accounting), the gear icon or the top right corner above the specific account register.
Your clients can access this feature only from the last three access points; remember, they do not
have access to the Accountant Toolbox. There is nothing special about the actual reconciliation
process but, as an Accountant user, you can undo a reconciliation and your client can not.
When you click Reconcile, it takes you to the Reconciliation screen where you can reconcile an
account as well as access the History by account and Summary screens.
UNDO ACCOUNT RECONCILIATION
Only Accountant users can undo a reconciliation. To do this, click Reconcile  History by account,
then go to the drop-down under the Action column and click Undo. (Note: you may not see the
option to undo a reconciliation in the test drive company, even if you’ve accessed it via QuickBooks
Online Accountant.)

52
REPORTS
Clicking Reports takes you to the Reports tab, as if you had chosen it in the left navigation bar.
VOIDED/DELETED TRANSACTIONS
The Voided/Deleted Transactions report is a shortcut to a specific portion of the audit log through
the Accountant Toolbox. This shortcut pre-filters for voided and deleted transactions while still
allowing you to make additional customizations.

53
Use the filters to set the date range as well as drill down further if you want to see transactions
voided or deleted by a particular user or in a certain account.
Use the View link to see all the history associated with the transaction.
It’s a good idea to review this report on a regular basis. It may identify areas an employee has
difficulty with and needs additional training, or could be a sign of something worse, such as theft or
embezzlement.
CLOSE BOOKS
There is no formal closing in QuickBooks. It is a perpetually running system. Instead there is a feature
called Close Books that allows you to set a locking date so the user will get a warning not to
change/add/delete a transaction on or before that date. You can also set a closing date password so
the user will not only get the warning but will have to enter that password to make the change.
Setting a password is strongly recommended. Even if the client knows the password, being forced to
enter it will hopefully prevent them from making simple mistakes and will hopefully result in a phone
call to you to find out if the change they are making is proper.

54
Clicking on Close books in the Accountant Toolbox will take you to where the closing date is set, in
the Advanced tab of Account and Settings.
CLOSE THE BOOKS
TIP: You can set the closing date as often as you want. It’s recommended that you set it, at
the minimum, at year end when you know the balances agree with the tax return or financial
statements. But you might also want to set it monthly after all the reconciliations are
completed.

55
If someone does change something on or before the closing date, you can identify those
transactions by clicking Reports (either in the left navigation bar or the Accountant Toolbox) and
searching for the Exceptions to Closing Date report. This report is available only if a closing date
has been set. In the Accountants Report group, you can view the Exceptions to Closing Date report.
This takes you to the Audit History window where you can view the details of the transactions that
have been changed in a period after it was closed. Please note this report does not show up if a
closing date is not set.
NEW WINDOW
This tool in the Accountant Toolbox allows you to open a new tab (not a new window) duplicating
the screen you currently have open. When learning about navigation, you learned that when using
Chrome, you can right-click on the tab and duplicate. However, when you are at a client’s office, they
may be using an old browser that doesn’t support duplicating a tab. That’s when the New Window
tool comes in handy.

56
MONTH-END REVIEW (BOOKKEEPING REVIEW)
Month-end Review looks for areas of concern in the QuickBooks Online file, alerting you to problems
that should be addressed on a monthly basis.
It offers three tabs: Transaction Review, Account Reconciliation (which accounts have been
reconciled and when they were last done), and Final Review to keep you organized as you do the
monthly work for a client.
The Transaction Review tab lists problems in the company file, but also provides as list of additional
areas you should look into grouped under Additional Items (such as checking for transactions
without receipts and checking for personal transactions). It allows you to add your own bullets to this
list. You can check items off the list as they are completed.
The Final Review tab lists reports you should review, along with links to them. It also allows you to
add other tasks to the list and check these off as you go.
NOTES

57
Notes allow you or other accounting or bookkeeping staff to add memos to the file that are not
transaction-specific. These are notes for you and members of your firm to see, not the client.

58
RECLASSIFY TRANSACTIONS
The Reclassify Transactions tool is used to move transactions in batch from one account to another,
one class to another, or one location to another (these last two functions are available if class
tracking and/or location tracking are turned on, features available in QuickBooks Online Plus and
Advanced). This tool can be used when many transactions have been posted to the wrong account
causing financial information to be inaccurate. It can also be used to clean up large uncategorized
expense accounts. You can reclassify accounts on non-item-based transactions and you can
reclassify classes and locations on both item-based and non-item-based transactions.
RECLASSIFY TRANSACTIONS IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT

59
• Set your view – Set the types of accounts (Profit and Loss or Balance Sheet), basis (Accrual or
Cash) and date range for which you would like to review transactions
• Accounts to view – From the left side, choose an account whose transactions you would like to
view.
• Filters – On the right side, ensure you have the right date range, then filter by transaction type,
class, location, customer/vendor name, and what you want to modify (e.g. All, Accounts, Class)
• Click Find transactions
• Checkboxes – In the list of found transactions below, check the box next to the transaction(s) you
want to reclassify
• Click Reclassify

60
• Specify the desired account, class, and/or location then click on Apply
NOTE: This tool can come in handy when turning on class or location tracking the first time. If there are
already transactions recorded, batch reclassify to assign the appropriate class and/or location.
NOTE: You cannot reclassify the source account, only the target accounts. Additionally, you can’t use
this tool with payroll transactions even though they may show up on the screen.
TIP: Make sure to watch your date range when changing accounts. This tool ignores the
closing date, which could change prior period transactions with no warning.

61
REPORTS OPTIONS
The Reports Options tool takes you to a screen where you can see the closing date and the
reconciliation status of various accounts. It is also where you can set the default date range for
reports. This default date range is picked up by the Reclassify Transactions tool as well, although the
date range in that tool can be altered manually.

62
WRITE OFF INVOICES
The Write Off Invoices tool allows you to write off invoice balances in batch using a discount item on
the original invoice. It may be small dollar amounts or old uncollectible invoices.
Specify the criteria for selecting invoices: age, the aging as of a certain date, or balances of less than
a certain threshold amount. Click Refresh.
Choose which invoices you want to write off by putting a checkmark to each line item. Choose the
account where the write-off should post (e.g., Bad Debt), then click Preview and Write Off.

63
This will give you a Confirm Write Off preview screen. If everything looks right, click Write Off.
WRITE OFF INVOICES IN QUICKBOOKS ONLINE ACCOUNTANT
You will receive a confirmation pop-up listing the transactions that are being written off and the write
off account.
This writes off the invoices as the original invoice dates. That means if the invoices are dated in a
prior period and you use this tool, you will be changing prior period numbers because it’s putting a
discount on the original invoice with the original invoice date.
If this process does not work for you, do not use the Write Off Invoices tool. Instead, use this screen
as the basis for what needs to be written off and create credit memos dated in the current period to
write off.
TIP: If sales tax is involved, don’t use this tool because it won’t affect sales tax payable.
Instead, use it as a guide for which invoices you need to create credit memos.

64
PREP FOR TAXES
NOTE: The Prep for Taxes feature cannot be accessed from the sample company. If you’re in another
file, you may get an error message. Just change the year to a prior year.
The Prep for Taxes feature has two components. One is the Review & adjust tab, which gives you an
opportunity to review a client file, see prior year balances and track changes. The other tab is the Tax
Mapping tab, which allows you to import QuickBooks Online data into ProConnect Tax Online to
prepare tax returns. ProConnect Tax Online, commonly referred to as PTO, is a cloud-based tax prep
app. It can be used as a stand-alone solution, but if you have clients on QuickBooks Online, it makes
sense to import their information into the tax return. One of the benefits of being a ProAdvisor is you
receive five free 1040 tax returns and five free business returns (1041, 1065, 1120, 1120S, 709 or
990) through PTO. You can also export the adjusted trial balance or the tax summary to Microsoft
Excel® to review or import into a separate application.

65
Review & Adjust
REVIEW & ADJUST SCREEN
When you first access the Prep for Taxes workspace, your current unadjusted balance is locked to
protect the integrity of your workspace. Any further changes you or your client make to the fiscal
year in question (after they have been reviewed and accepted in the top panel; they will be listed
there) will appear in the Adjusting Entries column (if you enter an Adjusting Journal Entry) or the
column related to that fiscal year.
• First Column – Allows you to checkmark it to show you have finished reviewing that account
• Accounts – Represents the chart of accounts and account type
• Ending Balance – Represents the prior ending balances from QuickBooks Online. If you
prepared the prior year return in ProConnect Tax Online, this will reflect the balances from the
prior year return.
• $ Change – Represents the difference between the account balance for the current fiscal year
and the prior one, indicating the current period activity
• Adjusting Entries – Shows the sum total of any journal entries that were marked as adjusting
entries. Remember, only an Accountant user can mark a journal entry an adjusting entry.
• Actions – Allows you to make an adjustment, add notes or add an attachment related to that line
(account)

66
When you are done with the Review & Adjust tab, you can finish the review by clicking the Unlocked
icon in the upper right quadrant of the screen. This will enable you to confirm that you want to
Lock/close the books. This is simply another access point for closing the books and creating a
closing date password.
You can also click Tax options in the top right and choose to Export this screen’s numbers to a CSV
file. You can also Update existing return or Create new return. In addition, you can click Year-end
options and Download to Zip.
At any time, you can run the Adjusted Trial Balance report for this period from the Reports Center.

67
Tax Mappings
TAX MAPPING TAB IN PREP FOR TAXES
To push your QuickBooks Online data to ProConnect Tax Online, you must first ensure all your
accounts are properly mapped. Based on the tax form selected in Account and Settings, QuickBooks
tries to map accounts to the appropriate tax lines on the tax return. The Tax Mapping tab allows you
to add new or modify existing account mappings. Unmapped accounts are grouped at the top of the
table and are indicated by a yellow exclamation point icon at the top left. Simply click the Assign tax
line hyperlink in the right column for each account.
Underneath the unmapped accounts, the tax lines are listed with the general ledger accounts
assigned to them underneath. After the mappings are complete and the adjustments are made, click
View tax return in the upper right-hand corner. You then finish the tax return in ProConnect Tax
Online. You can find additional resources and training for ProConnect Tax Online at
https://accountants.intuit.com/training-center/online/.

68
You can also print a tax summary report or send it to Excel by clicking on the icons on the top right of
the report.
NOTE: The Prep for Taxes feature can also be accessed from the Prep for Taxes column in the Client
List in QuickBooks Online Accountant.
NOTE: The Prep for Taxes feature can be used to review the books even if you don’t prepare tax
returns.
PROCONNECT TAX ONLINE
The last tool in the Accountant Toolbox is ProConnect Tax Online. This brings you directly into the
ProConnect Tax Online dashboard to start new returns, e-file, use Intuit Link, etc.
Remember, if you want to import your client’s QuickBooks data into a tax return, you will use the
Prep for Taxes tool. If you want to learn more about ProConnect Tax Online, go to:
https://proconnect.intuit.com/proconnect/.

Student guide for quick books online accountant

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