Create an Accountant's Copy of your company file in QuickBooks Desktop

Create an Accountant's Copy to securely share your company file with your accountant, allowing them to review your books and make changes while you continue working. Once they finish, you can import their changes directly into your file.

Overview

An Accountant's Copy is a special version of your company file (.qbx) that creates a continuous workflow between you and your accountant.

Note: These steps apply to QuickBooks Desktop for Windows only.

Prerequisites: Advanced Inventory

If you use QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Advanced Inventory features, you must turn them off before making an Accountant's Copy.

• You can turn the features back on immediately after sending the file.
• If you use QuickBooks Desktop Pro or Premier, or do not use Advanced Inventory, you can skip this step.

Method 1: Create a local Accountant's Copy file (.qbx)

Use this method to save the file to a portable drive (like a USB), attach it to an email, or share it via a cloud service.

1. Go to the File menu, select Send Company File, then select Accountant's Copy, and choose Client Activities.
2. Select Save File, then select Next.
3. Select Accountant's Copy, then select Next.
4. Enter the dividing date and select Next.
5. Save the file. The saved file will have a .qbx extension.
6. Share this file with your accountant using your preferred method (for example, USB, email, or cloud sharing).

Method 2: Send via the Accountant's Copy File Transfer Service

Use this method to send the file directly to your accountant through a secure Intuit web service.

1. Go to the File menu, select Send Company File, then select Accountant's Copy, and choose Client Activities.
2. Select Send to Accountant, then select Next.
3. Select Accountant's Copy, then select Next.
4. Enter the dividing date and select Next.
5. Enter your and your accountant's email addresses.
6. Create a file password for the file to protect it.
   • Important: You must provide this one-time password to your accountant directly, as it will not be included in the email.
7. Select Send.

Result: QuickBooks will close all open windows to send the file. Your accountant will receive an email from Intuit with a download link valid for two weeks.
Information for the Accountant

Information for the Accountant

To access your client's file, follow these steps:

1. Open the email from Intuit and select the download link.
2. You will receive a second email with the one-time password your client created.
3. Enter the password to download the Accountant's Copy file.
4. Open the file in QuickBooks to start making changes.

Turn Advanced Inventory back on

If you use QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise and have turned off Advanced Inventory, you can turn it back on after the Accountant's Copy is sent. You can keep it on while your accountant works, but you must turn it off again when you import their changes.

Note: If your accountant adds inventory transactions to their copy, the transactions will not include Advanced Inventory details like serial numbers, inventory sites, or lot numbers. You may need to add this information manually after importing the changes.

Pending changes and file restrictions

After you send the file, QuickBooks will display a reminder for Accountant's Changes Pending next to your company file name. Certain activities in your file will be restricted to prevent conflicts with your accountant's work.

This restriction remains in place until you either import your accountant's changes or remove the Accountant's Copy restriction.

Next steps

Once your accountant finishes their work and sends the file back, you will need to import your accountant's changes into your company file.