5 things Australian accounting firms should focus on now to finish the year stronger
From compliance and AML to AI and extra client work, here’s what accountants and bookkeepers should keep on their radar over the next few months.
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There’s a lot competing for your attention right now.
Alongside the usual BAS, accounts and tax deadlines, accounting and bookkeeping firms are navigating tax and superannuation changes, new AML/CTF obligations and evolving guidance around the use of AI.
The challenge isn’t finding more things to do. It’s working out what needs attention now, what can wait and what you can deal with while the work is already in front of you.
Here are five areas worth focusing on over the coming months — so you can keep work moving now without creating bigger problems later.
1. Keep the compliance machine moving
First things first: keep the work that’s already underway moving.
At this point in the year, you probably don’t need another ambitious firm-wide project. You need visibility over what’s coming up and where work is getting stuck.
That means:
- keeping upcoming lodgements and deadlines visible
- spotting bottlenecks before they become urgent
- making sure additional client requests don’t quietly disappear into existing jobs.
That last point is particularly important. When everyone is busy, it’s easy for a “quick question” or an extra piece of work to be absorbed into an existing engagement without anyone stopping to consider whether it’s actually included.
Those small extras can quickly become a bigger profitability problem.
Related: How to manage, monetise and make the most of scope creep
2. Catch additional work before it disappears
Tax and superannuation changes generate questions. Annual accounts and tax returns uncover issues. Clients ask for things that weren’t part of the original plan.
That’s normal.
The important part is deciding what to do with that additional work while it’s still in front of you.
Before you get too far down the track, go back to the engagement and ask:
- Is it extra work? Scope and engage it.
- Is it a small piece of work that’s already complete? Charge for it.
- Is it covered by the existing service? Keep going.
What you want to avoid is reaching the end of the job and realising several hours of additional work have disappeared into the original compliance fee.
Clear scope is good for your firm and your clients. Everyone knows what’s included, what isn’t and what happens when requirements change.
Ignition can help here by keeping the agreed scope attached to the client engagement. When new work comes up, you can formalise it with an additional proposal or use Instant Bill for completed ad hoc work, rather than letting it go unbilled. Ignition’s current positioning also puts tighter scope control and billing for out-of-scope work at the heart of protecting firm revenue.
Related: How to harness out-of-scope work and define your project scope
3. Make AML part of the workflow
For Australian accounting and bookkeeping firms providing designated services, the AML/CTF reforms introduce new obligations from 1 July 2026.
The important thing now is making sure AML isn’t treated as a separate compliance exercise sitting off to the side of your normal client processes.
It needs to work as part of them.
Depending on your firm and the services you provide, that means having processes to:
- identify when AML/CTF requirements apply
- complete the required client verification and due diligence
- retain the appropriate records
- manage risk assessments and decisions
- meet relevant program, governance and training requirements.
The easier these steps are to identify and follow during your normal client engagement process, the less likely they are to become a bottleneck.
Where Ignition can help
Ignition Compliance is designed to bring AML/KYC requirements into the client engagement workflow. It can help Australian firms identify when verification is required, complete KYC, KYB, AML and sanctions checks, and maintain an audit trail of verification and compliance decisions. It’s currently available in Early Access for eligible Australian practices.
Learn more: Ignition Compliance
4. Review how your firm is using AI
AI probably isn’t something your firm is going to use. Chances are, people are already using it.
That makes now a good time to take stock.
Following the TPB’s guidance on the use of artificial intelligence and the Code of Professional Conduct, firms should understand where AI is being used and make sure appropriate safeguards are in place.
At a minimum, review:
- which AI tools people across the firm are using
- what client information is being entered or shared
- how AI-generated outputs are checked and reviewed
- whether your AI policies need updating
- whether engagement terms or client disclosures need updating
- how any required client consent is being obtained and recorded.
The aim isn’t to stop your team from using AI. It’s to make sure you know how it’s being used and that professional judgement remains part of the process.
That principle is also reflected in Ignition’s approach to AI: practical, human-in-the-loop AI that supports professional decision-making rather than replacing it.
5. Don’t create another problem for November
There will always be another deadline.
The goal isn’t to somehow make busy season less busy. It’s to avoid getting through it only to discover you’ve created another pile of work for yourself.
Think about what you don’t want waiting for you on the other side:
- unbilled work
- debtors to chase
- outdated engagement terms
- unfinished AML requirements
- inconsistent AI practices
- additional services that were never properly scoped.
You don’t have to fix your entire firm over the next few months.
But you can make small decisions while the work is already in front of you.
See an additional client request? Check the scope.
Find extra work? Engage or charge for it.
Hit an AML requirement? Complete it as part of the workflow.
Notice an AI process that needs attention? Fix it while you can see it.
Those small decisions can add up to a much cleaner end to the year — and fewer loose ends to deal with later.
Keep the work moving — and make sure you get paid for it
Being busy doesn’t have to mean letting revenue or important processes slip through the cracks.
The simplest approach is often the best:
Check the scope. Identify the extra work. Engage it where necessary. Get paid for it. And keep moving.
Ignition brings proposals, engagement letters, billing and payments together in one platform, helping accounting firms keep scope clear, capture additional work and automate getting paid.
