Behind on your books?
Start with a clear scope.

Catch-up and cleanup solve different starting problems

If your QuickBooks Online records are several months behind, catch-up work records and reconciles the agreed missing periods. Cleanup addresses problems in existing records, such as uncategorized activity, duplicate entries, or balances that need investigation. A business may need one or both.

Gold Standard Bookkeeping starts by understanding the condition of your records. We agree which periods and accounts will be reviewed, what supporting records are available, and which corrections or deliverables are included. We do not assume every historical balance can be resolved without evidence.

What a scoped QuickBooks cleanup can include

• Historical transaction review: identify missing or uncategorized activity within the agreed periods and record supported corrections.
• Bank and credit-card reconciliations: compare the in-scope accounts with statements and investigate outstanding differences.
• Duplicate or unsupported items: flag entries needing correction, clarification, or a decision from you or your tax professional.
• Balance review: investigate agreed balances using available statements, prior records, and business context.
• Completion handoff: provide the agreed reports and a summary of unresolved items, client decisions, or issues needing specialist input.

The exact work depends on your records. Tax corrections, payroll corrections, migrations, complex construction accounting, and other specialist requirements must be assessed separately; they are not automatically part of a cleanup.

From initial conversation to an agreed project

1. Describe the situation. Tell us the last month you believe is complete, whether accounts are reconciled, any known problems, and your timing needs. General information is enough for the first conversation.
2. Arrange a permitted review. If there is a potential fit, we agree the access and secure document method before you provide financial records. Do not send bank passwords or upload statements to the public enquiry form.
3. Receive a written scope. We identify the covered dates and accounts, client responsibilities, deliverables, exclusions, estimated schedule, and separate one-time project fee.
4. Begin after the agreed start conditions. We complete the service agreement, payment arrangements, and necessary access, then work through the project and any questions.

Unexpected findings can change the work required. We discuss an adjustment to scope, timing, or price and obtain written agreement before adding work.

A separate project fee, not a hidden monthly charge

Catch-up and cleanup are quoted separately from ongoing monthly bookkeeping. Our standard cleanup payment schedule is 50% upfront and 50% at agreed completion, as set out in the service agreement.

Pricing depends on the number of periods and accounts, transaction activity, record quality, supporting documents, and the corrections needed. We confirm those factors before committing to a final project price. If you also want monthly bookkeeping, the agreement identifies its fee and starting month separately.

Questions about historical books