What AI could run / accounting practices

Let AI prepare the client file. You sign off the work.

Connected AI agents can collect documents, chase missing items and draft cover letters and file notes inside the software your practice already uses. A registered agent reviews each output and stays responsible for the service, which is where the Tax Practitioners Board's July 2026 guidance puts responsibility.

Discuss your business

Potential implementation areas

Define the work.
Keep the decision.

Gather what arrives

Read emailed and uploaded documents, match them to the right client file and list what is still missing.

Draft what repeats

Prepare cover letters, file notes and follow-up emails to the client for review.

Keep the record

Log which tool produced each draft, who reviewed it and when, in the system you already keep records in.

Example / not a live deployment

AI prepares.
A person decides.

Illustrative example
Client permission → Agent prepares → Practitioner reviews → Practitioner signs off → Record kept

Nothing leaves the practice until a person has reviewed it. Lodgement stays with the registered tax or BAS agent.

What the rules say

What TPB(GS) 55/2026 says

Tax practitioners stay ultimately responsible for the tax agent services they provide, whatever tools they use.
TPB(GS) 55/2026, Introduction
AI output should be assessed and supplemented by professional judgement before it is relied on.
TPB(GS) 55/2026, Introduction
AI models can give inaccurate information, so practitioners should verify and review AI output at each step of the workflow and document those steps.
TPB(GS) 55/2026, Competency
Before client information is passed to a third party, which can include entering it into an AI tool depending on how the tool is configured, the practitioner must have the client's permission.
TPB(GS) 55/2026, Confidentiality (Code item 6)
The TPB recommends telling the client to whom and where their information goes, where data is stored and whether AI tools may be used.
TPB(GS) 55/2026, Confidentiality
Permission can be a signed letter of engagement, signed consent or another communication such as a fact find and consent. A general authority may also be acceptable.
TPB(GS) 55/2026, Confidentiality
Where client information includes tax file numbers, the Privacy (Tax File Number) Rule 2015 adds obligations, and the TPB suggests practitioners get their own advice on it.
TPB(GS) 55/2026, Privacy

This page summarises the guidance and is not tax or legal advice. Read TPB(GS) 55/2026 and take your own advice, especially where tax file numbers are involved. The Tax Practitioners Board has not reviewed or endorsed anything on this site.

Questions accountants and bookkeepers ask

Clarity before commitment.

Do we need client permission before using an AI tool?

Yes, if client information goes into the tool. The TPB says practitioners must have the client's permission before client information is passed to a third party, which can include entering it into an AI tool depending on how the tool is configured. A signed engagement letter can carry that permission.

Who is responsible if the AI gets it wrong?

The practitioner. The TPB says practitioners stay ultimately responsible for the services they provide, so output is reviewed before anyone relies on it.

What about tax file numbers?

The Privacy (Tax File Number) Rule 2015 may add obligations where client information includes tax file numbers. The TPB suggests getting your own advice on it.

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