Senior Accountant – SME Business Services & Tax

About the Company:

The Client is a Brisbane-based, cloud-first accounting and tax practice operating since 2002. Registered Tax Agent and Xero partner. We deliver year-end accounts, company/trust/individual tax returns, BAS, SMSF compliance, bookkeeping, and overdue-lodgement catch-up work for SME clients, alongside Virtual CFO and cash flow advisory through our sister brand, Peer Group Advisory. Client acquisition runs through a proven digital marketing engine, and all work is delivered remotely.

The Role:

A founding role in a growing Australian practice. You will own year-end compliance for your own portfolio of Australian SME clients (turnover up to $6M) – companies, trusts, partnerships, individuals, and SMSFs – working directly with the Director, not through layers of managers. Real technical work across companies, trusts, and SMSFs, not data entry. All ATO lodgements are reviewed and lodged by the Director as a registered tax agent.

Key Responsibilities:

• Prepare year-end financial statements and income tax returns for companies, trusts, partnerships, sole traders, and individuals.
• Trusts: prepare trust returns, review distribution resolutions, track unpaid present entitlements (UPEs) and beneficiary entitlements.
• Handle Division 7A and FBT as they arise, including Div 7A loan identification, minimum yearly repayments, loan schedules, and annual FBT returns.
• Prepare BAS/IAS, GST reconciliations, PAYG instalment reviews, year-end STP, and superannuation reconciliations.
• SMSF (BGL Simple Fund 360): annual financial statements, member statements, SMSF annual returns, audit packs, and liaison with the independent auditor.
• Corporate secretarial (BGL CAS 360): ASIC annual reviews, solvency resolutions, company changes, and registers.
• ATO online services for agents: pre-lodgement checks – ICA/ITA balances, lodgement status, prefill data, outstanding obligations, and lodgement program reporting.
• Xero ledger review and clean-up: bank reconciliations, journals, accruals, fixed asset registers, and depreciation.
• Practice management: help set up and run Xero Practice Manager (XPM) – jobs, statuses, daily timesheets, and job budgets; flag overruns early.
• Prepare annual compliance proposals and engagement renewals for Director approval using Practice Ignition.
• Draft information requests and client query emails for Director approval; send routine follow-ups from the practice email.
• Prepare pre-30 June tax planning estimates and workpapers for Director review.
• AI bookkeeping (from month 3): help implement and run AI-assisted bookkeeping/transaction coding – build rules, review exceptions, document the process, and measure time saved.
• Maintain a standard, documented workpaper file for every job.

Requirements:

Essential:

• A Bachelor's degree in Accounting/Accountancy.
• Strong working knowledge of Australian tax: income tax for companies, trusts, partnerships, and individuals; Division 7A; trust taxation and UPEs (including awareness of s100A); FBT; CGT; GST.
• Hands-on experience with Xero.
• Intermediate+ proficiency in Excel.
• Excellent written and spoken English – able to draft client-facing emails with minimal editing.

Desirable:

• Experience with Xero Practice Manager (XPM).
• SMSF compliance experience in BGL Simple Fund 360.
• ASIC corporate secretarial experience in BGL CAS 360.
• CPA (Philippines) or CA/CPA ANZ – completed or in progress.
• Experience with Practice Ignition.
• Exposure to AI or automation tools in bookkeeping.

Experience (Essential):

• 5–7 years of accounting experience, with a minimum of 5 years in Australian public practice (onshore or offshore for an Australian firm).
• SME business services – clients with turnover up to approximately $6M.
• Independently completed full year-end compliance for companies, trusts, and individuals.
• Working knowledge of Division 7A and FBT.
• Managed own job list and timesheets in XPM or a similar practice management system.

Advantage:

• SMSF compliance in BGL Simple Fund 360.
• ASIC corporate secretarial in BGL CAS 360.
• Supervising, reviewing, or training junior staff.
• Experience with real estate agency or other service-business clients.

Competencies:

• Autonomous – takes a job from source records to review-ready without hand-holding.
• High attention to detail; self-reviews before submitting.
• Raises issues early and asks precise questions rather than guessing.
• Deadline discipline through peak lodgement periods.
• Process-minded – documents steps and suggests efficiency improvements.
• Curious about technology and willing to adopt AI tools.
• Integrity and strict confidentiality with client data.
• Coachable – acts on review feedback and does not repeat review points.

Benefits:

What’s in it for you?

• Founding team member: the first hire in an offshore team planned to grow to approximately 5 – you help build it, not just join it.
• Clear pathway to Tax Manager: formal promotion review at 12 months against defined criteria.
• Work directly with the Director – fast feedback, real mentoring, and visibility of your work.
• Remote role – work from home anywhere in the Philippines.
• Varied, technical work: companies, trusts, SMSF, and corporate secretarial, with Division 7A and FBT as they arise – build a well-rounded Australian tax skill set.
• Modern cloud stack (Xero, Xero Practice Manager, BGL Simple Fund 360, BGL CAS 360, Practice Ignition) and hands-on involvement in rolling out AI bookkeeping – skills that put you ahead of the market.
• A growing practice: new clients every week from a proven marketing engine, so your role and responsibilities grow with it.
• Stable, established firm – operating since 2002.
• Competitive, above-market package for the right candidate.