ERP for accountancy practice. Every client's books, filings and deadlines on one review queue.
A practice sells deadlines. Kinnow keeps the practice's own books, one register of every client job, and the VAT work prepared and waiting for a partner before anything is filed.
From early 2027How does Kinnow help an accountancy practice? It runs two things side by side: the practice's own books (fees, payroll, expenses) and one list of every client job, with two dates on each: your own preparation date and the date the return is due. The groundwork to draft the nine-box VAT return for a partner to review is completed before launch, and a person files it through recognised software or HMRC. Nothing is filed, paid or posted without a person. The UK edition opens in early 2027; what follows is the first release.
Your practice, in one paragraph.
Money comes in as fees: a monthly retainer for bookkeeping and VAT, a fee per set of accounts or return, and the odd advisory job. It is billed late because a partner has to be sure the work is finished. Time goes into chasing clients for records. Compliance is what you sell, with a date on every item, and fifty clients' VAT quarters land in the same few weeks of the year.
Three things keep the partner awake. A client has not sent records and the date is close. A VAT return went out over an invoice that never carried a valid VAT number. A deadline lived only in someone's diary and was missed.
Two ways a client sits in Kinnow
Both can run in the same practice, client by client.
A party in your own books
Most clients start here. You bill them, and every job for them (a VAT return, a set of accounts, an advisory piece) is a line in your job list. The client does not need to use Kinnow at all.
Their own Kinnow company
A client who keeps their books on Kinnow can give you limited access. You see a list of the clients who have, open one, and look but not change by default. Their administrator can let you prepare work for them, and everything you do is recorded in their audit trail.
See a month of your own client list on Kinnow, with your deadlines on it.
How your month runs on Kinnow
| Step | Who | What Kinnow does | Where a person approves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Open the month's jobs | Practice manager | A repeating schedule opens one job for each client, obligation and period (a VAT return, or any name you give, such as year-end accounts). You set the preparation date and the due date. A person starts the run. | The manager sets the dates; nothing is dated for you. |
| 2. Chase records | Associate | The document chaser lists clients whose records are not yet marked received for open jobs, at 45, 21, 7 and 3 days out, and drafts one reminder per client. It sends nothing; you copy and send. A job waiting on the client sits in Awaiting client. | The associate sends. |
| 3. Book the month | Accountant | Bills and bank lines go in. Bank Reconciler pre-matches lines and shows why it matched each one; the AI Invoice Extractor reads bill PDFs and fills in the fields. | A manual journal above an amount you set waits for a second person. |
| 4. Check the VAT invoices | Accountant | Kinnow checks each sales invoice for the supplier VAT number (including its check digit), date, running number, customer name, VAT shown in sterling and tax point (the date the VAT is due). A simplified invoice is allowed up to £250 including VAT. A domestic reverse charge invoice must carry no VAT and the customer-accounts notice. | A large VAT invoice is read by a person before it is raised. |
| 5. Prepare the return | Executive | The groundwork to build the nine-box VAT return from the period's sales and purchase records, saved as a file, is completed before launch. Boxes 2, 8 and 9 apply to Northern Ireland only, and the draft says so. Kinnow does not send it to HMRC. | Drafts only; your adviser confirms how each box is filled before first use. |
| 6. Send for review | Executive | The job moves to Awaiting review. The sender cannot be the one who files. | A send-back needs a written reason. |
| 7. Partner review | Partner | The partner sees the draft and the records behind each box. Partner sign-off is required before the return goes anywhere. | Partner approves, with the reason on record. |
| 8. File and mark filed | Executive | A person files the figures through recognised software or HMRC and marks the job filed. Kinnow records the filing date. | Filing is a person's act. |
| 9. Bill the client | Partner, accountant | The fee goes on the job. A write-down beyond your limit (10% of the fee to start with; you set it) goes to a second person with a reason. The invoice is raised through Sales; a wrong invoice is put right with a credit note, not re-issued. | A large invoice needs approval. |
| 10. Close your own month | Accounts head | Twelve month-end checks run, and seven of them must pass. | The close is confirmed by a person. |
Ask us to set up your first ten client jobs and take one of them from start to finish.
The deadline calendar, VAT to annual
Alerts go out 15, 7 and 1 day before each date. Kinnow tracks the date; your adviser confirms it.
| Obligation | When it falls | What Kinnow does |
|---|---|---|
| VAT return | One calendar month and seven days after the period end. You set the client's HMRC stagger group (the quarter pattern HMRC gave them: 1, 2 or 3); monthly filers are supported | Groundwork to build the nine-box return and a file for a person to file, completed before launch. Kinnow does not guess the stagger group and does not send anything to HMRC |
| Confirmation statement | Annual, with Companies House | Tracks the date and reminds you; a missed one can lead to strike-off. Kinnow does not file it |
| Annual accounts | Nine months after the accounting reference date for a private company | Tracks the date and reminds. Kinnow does not prepare or file the accounts |
| Corporation tax return | Twelve months after the period end; tax payable nine months and one day after it | Tracks both dates and reminds. Kinnow does not compute the tax or prepare the return |
| ICO data protection fee | Annual | Tracks the renewal and reminds |
| Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) | Monthly contractor returns (Construction Industry Scheme, CIS) by the 19th | Tracks the date and reminds. Kinnow does not prepare the return or verify subcontractors with HMRC |
What the partner sees, and what the client sees
The job list separates three kinds of late: waiting on the client, waiting on your team, and past the due date. Kinnow records the prepared and filed times itself, so a turnaround figure can be quoted.
The partner
The clients who have given you access, each marked look-only or prepare. Every client's jobs in one list: status, who has it, both dates, whether it is late and whose turn it is. Jobs waiting for review. Deadlines by person and by client.
The client
A portal in your own branding. The client signs in with a code sent to their email, sees the invoices you raised as PDFs and what is outstanding, and can raise a query. Engagement letters go out through Kinnow Sign, our e-signature; working papers are shared as Documents (Vault) links that you can withdraw.
Walk through the partner view with your own client list.
What the practice setup includes
Three UK reports come with the country setup: a VAT sales register, a VAT purchase register and a VAT rate summary. The practice setup adds the trial balance, profit and loss and the lists of client engagements.
| Safeguard | Starting limit | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| VAT return sign-off | Every return | Approval before submission |
| Large VAT invoice | Above a value you set | Read by a person before it is raised; a credit note puts it right |
| Manual journal | Above a value you set | Second person; the link to digital records is kept |
| Write-off | Every write-off | Review, with the VAT bad-debt relief deadline shown; relief is repayable if the customer pays |
| Payroll run | Every run | Sign-off before it is final |
| Purchase order | Above a value you set | Review, with the construction reverse charge flagged |
| Timesheet overtime | Beyond the working-time average | Warning, with the opt-out on record |
| Marketing campaign with no audience | Always | Blocked, so there is always a record of consent |
These are starting settings. Change them to whatever a reviewer in your firm would want to see.
Seventeen processes come switched on, each with an owner and a printable step-by-step procedure, plus four lists of who signs off, in order: return, journal, invoice and engagement letter.
Agents for an accountancy practice
Filing Prep
Builds the sales-tax return file from your books and lists every document it left out, with the reason, for a person to clear before filing.
ComplyMismatch Detector
Finds mismatches between your returns and your ledger, and in supplier tax data, and flags them for a person before a return is filed.
Filing deadline tracker
Watches the dates in the calendar above and alerts 15, 7 and 1 day before each. Files nothing.
Client document chaser
Lists clients whose records are outstanding before a due date and drafts one reminder each. Sends nothing.
Close Checklist
Runs the twelve period-close checks, helps clear the ones holding up the close and drafts the commentary on variances. A person confirms the close.
AccountBank Reconciler
Matches bank lines to receipts ahead of time and shows why it matched each one. Lines it is unsure about come up as suggestions only and are never committed on their own.
Every agent is validated with each client before it works on their books, and every output waits for a person.
Ask Kinnow, for a practice
| Ask | The answer comes from |
|---|---|
| Which client filings are due this week? | Your job list and the deadline calendar |
| Which client jobs are late? | Your engagements list, showing whose turn it is |
| How much of our work is waiting on clients? | Engagements by status |
| What VAT did I charge this quarter, and at which rate? | The VAT sales register and rate summary |
| Which supplier invoices are missing a VAT registration number? | The VAT purchase register |
| When is my next VAT return due? | The deadline calendar and the stagger group you set |
Each answer names its source and what it will cost before it runs. Veil, our privacy layer, holds back bank, tax and ID numbers and swaps names for placeholders before an AI call. It covers Ask Kinnow and most agents today; the rest are being added.
Ask us to run these questions on your own numbers.
Your own staff and data
The practice's payroll calculates PAYE income tax (the tax taken from pay each month), employee and employer National Insurance, pension contributions and student loan plans, with Scottish income tax bands as a variant. A second person signs off every run. Marketing follows UK GDPR and PECR: consent or the narrow soft opt-in, and a one-click unsubscribe.
Questions
Can I see all my clients in one place?
Yes, in two views. The job list shows every client job with its status, owner, dates and whether it is late. The client list shows the clients who have given you access to their own Kinnow company, marked look-only or prepare.
Does Kinnow file VAT returns to HMRC?
No. The groundwork to build the nine-box return and a file is completed before launch; a person files it through recognised software or HMRC, after a second person has reviewed it. Kinnow does not submit to HMRC and is not Making Tax Digital recognised software.
Can my clients stay on their current accounting software?
Yes, during the move. Data comes across with a trial balance that must agree before it is accepted, and clients can move one application at a time. Clients who are only a party in your books need nothing from their side.
How long does set-up take?
About two weeks to first results for one practice: your client, supplier and account lists (Masters) and opening balances in the first week, agents switched on and a first close in the second.
What happens when an agent gets it wrong?
Each agent hands back a draft that shows its reasons, and a person approves before anything is filed, paid or posted. Agents are validated with each client first, and you can send any job back with a reason.
Does it work on a phone?
It works in the phone browser. There is no separate mobile app.
Do you prepare corporation tax and accounts?
Not in the first release. You can track those jobs in the same list with your own preparation and due dates, and bill them in the same way as other fees.
Show me Kinnow for an accountancy practice.
Answer three questions. Get the applications, the agents and a two-week plan for your business.