A review after an accountant resigns starts with securing systems and passwords, then reconciling bank accounts, testing filed tax returns, examining manual journal entries, and confirming customer and supplier balances. This review should precede hiring a replacement, so the new accountant does not inherit errors whose origin nobody can trace. Abdelhamid & Co (MOE LC0106-01) performs it.
Why review the records after an accountant resigns before hiring a replacement?
The incoming accountant takes the opening balances exactly as his predecessor left them. He builds on figures without knowing their source or whether they are correct.
Any existing error therefore carries into the new year, and after a few months nobody can attribute it to a period. An independent review establishes a documented starting point.
The review also fixes responsibility for the prior period. That covers tax penalties accrued, undetected breaches, and balances left unreconciled.
The risk of relying on one person for accounts
Small and medium UAE companies concentrate wide authority in a single accountant. That person handles posting, bank reconciliation, tax returns and dealings with the banks.
This concentration produces four risks:
- No segregation of duties, since the person who posts is the person who reviews.
- Knowledge held by one individual, with accounting treatments left undocumented.
- Exclusive control of access to systems and government portals.
- Errors and breaches becoming detectable only after that person leaves.
Securing systems, passwords and files
The owner should complete these steps in the first days:
- Recover access to the accounting system and change passwords immediately.
- Recover control of the company account on the Federal Tax Authority portal.
- Cancel bank viewing or transfer rights granted to the departing accountant.
- Take a complete copy of the accounting database as at the departure date.
- Identify files held on the accountant's device or in personal storage accounts.
- Take delivery of paper records under a numbered, signed handover minute.
Complete these steps before notifying the accountant that his access has ended, because delay allows data to be deleted or amended.
Unreconciled accounts and unconfirmed balances
Bank reconciliation reveals the first signs of trouble. Request statements directly from the bank rather than from the former accountant's files.
Test the following:
- Old reconciling items left unresolved across more than one accounting cycle.
- Issued cheques recorded but uncashed for many months.
- Deposits appearing on the bank statement but never posted to the books.
- Suspense accounts with generic names carrying balances with no detailed breakdown.
Send independent confirmations to major customers and suppliers. This procedure surfaces differences that the books alone never reveal.
Incomplete tax returns
Review the company's complete file with the Federal Tax Authority. The review covers:
- Returns due but not filed, and the penalties accrued for late filing.
- Reconciliation of sales declared in VAT returns to the books for every period.
- Entitlement to input tax recovered and the existence of supporting tax invoices.
- Registration and filing status for Corporate Tax under Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022.
- Notices received from the Authority that were never answered.
The review sizes the existing exposure before a tax audit finds it. That allows the position to be corrected through a voluntary disclosure on the company's own initiative.
Manual entries and deferred treatments
Accounting systems post most transactions automatically. Manual entries exist for adjustments, accruals and closing entries.
Test the manual entries for the final period for these patterns:
- Entries posted in the last days before the resignation was submitted.
- Large round-sum entries with no attached supporting document.
- Adjusting entries that clear suspense account differences without stating their source.
- Reversing entries cancelled and re-posted at different amounts.
Key facts on the review after an accountant resigns
| Item | Action |
|---|---|
| System access | Change passwords and cancel bank rights immediately |
| Data | Full database copy as at the departure date |
| Bank balances | Statements requested from the bank and fully reconciled |
| Customer and supplier balances | Independent confirmations issued by the review team |
| Tax returns | Every period reconciled to the books, penalties scheduled |
| Manual entries | Testing of entries in the final period before resignation |
| Record retention | Minimum five years for tax purposes |
Our methodology for the review after an accountant resigns
We perform five sequenced steps:
- Step 1: Secure systems and data, take a database copy, and receive records under a signed handover minute.
- Step 2: Fully reconcile bank accounts to the books using statements obtained directly from the bank.
- Step 3: Analyse every trial balance line and request explanations for suspense accounts and unexplained balances.
- Step 4: Review the complete tax file and schedule missing returns and accrued penalties.
- Step 5: Issue a report presenting documented opening balances, the differences identified, and a remediation list for the incoming accountant.
Common mistakes after an accountant leaves
- Hiring a replacement before the review, so the new accountant inherits balances he cannot trace or defend.
- Delaying cancellation of access rights, allowing records to be amended after employment ends.
- Reconciling from the former accountant's own files, which reuses the very source under review.
- Overlooking the tax portal, so penalties accumulate on unfiled returns without management's knowledge.
- Accepting a verbal handover, which leaves no record of what was and was not received.
Why choose Abdelhamid & Co
- Licensed by the Ministry of Economy under registration LC0106-01 and entered in the Local Auditors Record under No. 956.
- Registered FTA Tax Agent (TAN 30003958, TAAN 20033908), allowing a full technical review of the tax file.
- Record reconstruction and interim bookkeeping until a replacement accountant is appointed.
- Anomaly testing across the complete ledger using computer-assisted audit techniques.
- A report establishing a documented starting point for the incoming accountant.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the first step after an accountant resigns?
Secure the systems and data. That means changing passwords, cancelling bank viewing rights, and taking a complete copy of the accounting database as at the departure date, before anything else.
What period does the review after an accountant resigns cover?
Usually from the last audited financial statements to the departure date. It extends to earlier periods where brought-forward balances are unexplained or tax returns are missing.
Does the review imply an accusation against the departing accountant?
No. Its purpose is to document a starting point for the incoming accountant and schedule outstanding work. Most differences arise from workload pressure or weak documentation rather than any deliberate act.
What if the accountant refuses to hand over passwords?
Contact the accounting software vendor, the bank and the Federal Tax Authority directly to recover account control as the party of record. Document each request in writing.
How long does the review take?
Ten to twenty working days for a small or medium company. Multiple bank accounts, accumulated unfiled tax returns, and missing paper records all extend it.
Does the review include preparing financial statements?
Not necessarily. It establishes documented balances, differences and remediation actions. Statement preparation follows as a separate engagement or within the annual external audit.
Related Services
- Accounting & Bookkeeping — record reconstruction and interim accounting.
- Internal Audit Service — closing segregation of duties gaps.
- Voluntary Disclosure — correcting missing returns on the company's initiative.
- Data Analytics Using CAATs — testing manual entries in the final period.
- Insights — more UAE accounting and tax guidance.
Contact Us
To review what your former accountant left behind before hiring a replacement, call Abdelhamid & Co in Sharjah on 00971065610040 or visit our contact page.
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