Let me start by saying that I have worked in #Accounting and #Finance for decades. I however haven’t yet gotten round to completing my CIMA exams and will as such will be deemed by most, to be a part-qualified Accountant. I however consider myself a qualified Accountant, qualified by experience – more than 20 years of it!
I recently became an ICB certified #bookkeeper and obtained a license to run my own bookkeeping practice. I then sat a further level of exams which then provided me with certification to be able to offer more advanced services, those usually believed to be offered by Accountants e.g. preparing and filing financial statements, corporation tax and self-assessment tax returns.
Even though I deem myself a ‘qualified by experience’ accountant, I cannot offer to the public as an accountant, the services I have spent decades providing as an employee but am able to offer them as an ICB Certified bookkeeper. So, imagine how astounded I was when I came across this article published as recently as November 2021! There were so many others like it with one also identifying bookkeeping tasks as as opening the post!
Extracted from the above referenced article is Table 1 below which details the comparative between Bookkeeper and Accountant (as identified by the article)!
Table 1: Key Differences Between Bookkeeping and Accounting
| Bookkeepers | Accountants |
| Bookkeepers manage day-to-day financial tasks. | Accountants focus on overall financial health. |
| Bookkeeping Qualifications | Accounting Qualifications |
| Most positions do not have specific formal education requirements and instead prioritize past clerical work experience. Bookkeeping courses and college experience can make you a more competitive candidate. | Most employers require at least a bachelor’s degree in accounting or a related financial field. Accountants can also take the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Exam to become a CPA, and many earn their master’s degree. |
| Bookkeeping Tasks | Accounting Tasks |
| Updating the general ledger | Creating financial statements |
| Recording all payments and income | Analyzing expenses and suggesting places to save money |
| Verifying that financial records meet federal documentation requirements | Filing tax returns |
| Managing payroll accounts and processing pay checks | Forecasting the outcome of different financial decisions |
| Organizing receipts, invoices and reimbursement requests | Maintaining knowledge of tax law and procedures |
| Producing regular budget reports | Business consulting |
| Calculating basic tax deductions | Ensuring company compliance with tax law |
Because of the terminology used in the article e.g., CPA, federal documentation, etc. I am inclined to believe this article is written in respect of United States. The depcition of a bookkeeper as being less, is however not too far out from the opinion held of bookkeepers here in the U.K. as well. I have heard (and had personal experience) of clients not engaging the service of bookkeepers because they are not accountants and are therefore not deemed capable of doing anything but updating the ledger!
Below is a more realistic reflection, in my opinion, of key differences between bookkeepers and accountants in the U.K. in 2022
Table 2: Key Differences Between Bookkeeping and Accounting (updated for 2022 in U.K.)
| Bookkeepers | Accountants |
| Bookkeepers manage day-to-day financial tasks. | Accountants focus on overall financial health. |
| Bookkeeping Qualifications | Accounting Qualifications |
| Some positions do not have specific formal education requirements and instead prioritize past clerical work experience. Bookkeeping courses and college experience can make you a more competitive candidate. | Most employers require at least a bachelor’s degree in accounting or a related financial field. Accountants can also take the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Exam to become a CPA, and many earn their master’s degree. |
| Bookkeeping Tasks | Accounting Tasks |
| Updating the general ledger and creating financial statements | Creating financial statements |
| Recording all payments and income and analysing expenses/suggesting places to save money | Analyzing expenses and suggesting places to save money |
| Verifying that financial records meet documentation requirements and; preparing and filing VAT, corporation tax and self-Assessment tax returns | Filing tax returns |
| Managing payroll accounts and processing paychecks | Forecasting the outcome of different financial decisions |
| Organizing receipts, invoices and reimbursement requests | Maintaining knowledge of tax law and procedures |
| Producing regular budget reports, forecasting outcome of different financial decisions and providing advisory services | Business consulting |
| Calculating basic tax deductions and ensuring company compliance with tax law | Ensuring company compliance with tax law |
As reflected in Table 2 above an ICB Certified bookkeeper in practice in the U.K, in addition to the tasks listed for bookkeepers in the article, does pretty much all the tasks listed for Accountants! The choice of whether they want to limit their services to what is deemed the standard bookkeeping tasks or add on accounting tasks, is the bookkeepers’!
The generalisation that bookkeepers only process transactions is no longer a reality! Processing transactions and updating the ledger is only one part of what a bookkeeper does. In fact, as a result of the visibility the bookkeeper has of their clients’ transactions from processing their transactions on a day-to-day basis, they are able to spot warning signs and respond by discussing with their clients early enough to avert any disasters, thus offering top-notch, time appropriate advisory services.
I am a perfect example of a bookkeeper who does more than standard bookkeeping tasks and there are so many more like me in the #bookkeeping community, so don’t let invalid preconceptions deter you from engaging the services of a certified bookkeeper (they will tell you if they don’t offer the service you require and refer you elsewhere, where possible).
For a value based bookkeeping and accounting service, contact hello@bancservices.co.uk