AI agent for accountants: the client file from A to Z
In an accounting firm, the task that eats the most time is not the return itself, it is chasing documents. This guide follows one client file from end to end and shows what Leo, Orvel's agent for accountants and tax professionals, prepares and follows up on, and what always stays in the professional's hands.
The real problem: chasing paperwork
Every season, each client has to be reminded three or four times to send slips (T4, Relevé 1, T5, Relevé 3, receipts) while the deadline gets closer. And you need to see at a glance what is missing and what has been received, without digging through emails.
On top of that, deadlines differ by client: individual, self-employed worker, corporation, monthly, quarterly or annual GST/QST, tax instalments. An agent that keeps this calendar and follows up at the right moment frees the firm from the repetitive part of the work, without touching the part that requires professional judgment.
The seven-stage journey
Leo tracks each file through a simple funnel in which every stage triggers a task or a prepared message. The professional can see at any time where each client stands and which files are blocked waiting on someone.
- New client: the engagement letter is sent.
- Engagement signed: the document list suited to the client type is sent and a due date is set.
- Documents requested: the client uploads the papers, and the agent follows up as needed.
- Documents received: the checklist is run to confirm that everything is there.
- In preparation: the accountant's work, without the agent.
- To validate: the client approves the returns before filing.
- Filed: filing confirmation, amounts payable and payment or instalment dates, then archiving.
Template messages, stage by stage
Messages are written in advance, approved by the firm, then personalized with the client's first name and the firm's details. At the start, the engagement letter sets out the planned services, the agreed fees and what the firm expects from the client. Next, the document list invites the client to use the secure portal rather than ordinary email, with a requested date and an open door if a document cannot be found.
Later, an acknowledgment confirms that preparation is starting, an invitation proposes a validation meeting in person or by video, and a filing confirmation attaches the copies and receipts. None of these messages contains an amount or any tax data: the figures stay in the attached documents and in the firm's own software.
Follow-ups: when and how
Follow-ups are clear rules, not improvisation. Two days after a new client enters, the firm checks that the engagement letter is signed. One day after signature, the document list goes out. If a file stays inactive for seven days at the documents-requested stage, a reminder goes out, offering to upload to the portal or to schedule a call. One day after receipt, the checklist is run; three days after the file is sent for validation, the firm makes sure the client has approved.
Finally, a file that has not moved for two weeks is brought to the screen so the professional can decide: follow up or pause. For text messages, a request for documents tied to an ongoing engagement does not require prior consent (Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation, s. 6(6)(b)), whereas a promotion does (s. 10(9)(a)). Deadline reminders by text explain how to reply STOP.
What Leo never does
The safeguards are not negotiable. Leo gives no personalized tax advice: the accountant validates. It applies the firm's confidentiality rules and never sends a document to the wrong person, because each client sees only their own file.
It does not say what to declare, does not settle any question of substance and does not replace the professional's judgment. It prepares, reminds and sorts; the accountant decides and approves. Every tax question is passed to the accountant.
Measure what matters
Five indicators are enough to steer the season: the share of files complete before the internal drop-off date, the average time between the request and the receipt of documents, the share of files filed before their legal deadline, the rate of signed engagement letters, and the number of files stuck waiting on the client for fourteen days or more.
These measures describe how the firm is running; they promise no result. They help you see where a file stops, then adjust the follow-up or the workload among team members.
A good file journey reduces document chasing without touching professional judgment. Leo prepares and follows up; your firm decides, validates and signs.
General information, not legal advice. Check with your professional order or the official source.
Questions
Can Leo answer a client's tax question?
No. Leo explains the services, the fees according to the firm's fee schedule and the document list, but every tax question is passed to the accountant. It gives no personalized advice.
Do clients' documents travel by email?
The messages recommend the secure upload portal instead of ordinary email, to protect identity documents and statements. Each client sees only their own file.
Who approves the messages sent to clients?
The firm does. Templates are validated in advance by the professional, who keeps control over the stages, the follow-ups and the decision to pause a file.
Official sources
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/topics/important-dates-individuals.html
- https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/representative-authorization/how.html
- https://cpaquebec.ca/-/media/docs/membres-cpa/reglementation-profession/code-deontologie/Code_deontologie_CPA_non_officiel.pdf
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