Employment contract for a bookkeeper

A bookkeeper sees the bank, the payroll and the ledgers, and the contract has to set the controls that protect both the business and the employee: what the bookkeeper may authorise alone, what needs a second signature, how access to the bank and the accounting system is managed, and what happens when an error costs money. It also has to carry the checks and professional rules the role attracts, the confidentiality of the data in the ledgers, and the deadlines for payroll, pensions and VAT that the role is responsible for meeting. The contract is drafted for the employer as a reusable template for the grade, for a fixed fee of £595 and delivery in five working days.

Who this is for

Businesses in England and Wales employing an in-house bookkeeper, finance assistant, accounts clerk or credit controller, and accountancy and bookkeeping practices employing bookkeepers to serve their clients.

What matters in a bookkeeper's contract

Authority, controls and the money the role touches

The contract should state what the bookkeeper may do alone (post transactions, reconcile, raise invoices, prepare payment runs) and what requires a director's approval or a second authorisation (payments above a limit, new supplier bank details, changes to payroll, refunds), the rules on bank access (the employee's own login, no shared credentials, access removed on leaving), and the segregation of duties the employer operates; controls protect the bookkeeper from suspicion as much as the employer from loss, and the contract should state them as terms rather than leave them to practice.

Qualifications, checks and professional body rules

The contract should state any qualification the role requires (an accounting technician or bookkeeping body membership, or working towards it), the employer's right to verify it and to see references and, where the role handles client money or the business is in a regulated sector, to carry out a credit check and a basic disclosure with the employee's consent, and the employee's obligation to comply with their professional body's rules and continuing professional development; where the employer is an accountancy or bookkeeping practice supervised for anti-money laundering purposes under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, the contract should require compliance with the practice's procedures and training.

Confidentiality and the data in the ledgers

The contract should impose confidentiality on the business's financial affairs, its suppliers' and customers' terms, its staff's pay and personal data, and (for a practice) its clients' affairs, require compliance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 in handling payroll and personal data, prohibit the removal or copying of financial records, and require the return of records and access on leaving; a bookkeeper knows everything about the business, and the clause should be drafted for that.

Errors, fidelity and what the employer can recover

An employee is liable to the employer for losses caused by dishonesty and may be liable for gross negligence, but an employer cannot deduct losses from wages without a contractual term or written consent under section 13 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 and will rarely recover ordinary mistakes; the contract should require the employee to report errors immediately, state the disciplinary consequences of concealment and of dishonesty (gross misconduct), authorise the recovery of overpayments the employee receives, and leave the employer's fidelity insurance to cover the rest, because a clause making the bookkeeper liable for every error is unenforceable and unfair.

Payroll, pensions and the deadlines the role carries

Where the bookkeeper runs payroll, the contract should state the responsibilities: PAYE submissions on time, auto-enrolment assessments and contributions under the Pensions Act 2008, statutory payments, VAT returns under the Value Added Tax Act 1994 where the role prepares them, and the records the law requires, with the employer's accountants' oversight stated; the employer remains liable to HMRC and the Pensions Regulator for a missed deadline, and the contract should make the deadlines the employee's responsibility within the controls, not the employee's liability for the penalties.

Hours, pay and the particulars

Issued before the first day, the contract satisfies section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 on written particulars, states the hours with flexibility around month-end and year-end and time off in lieu, the pay, annual leave under the Working Time Regulations 1998 with the employer's right to restrict leave at period ends, sick pay, pension, probation and notice with section 86 as the floor, the handbook and the disciplinary and grievance procedures, with confidentiality that survives and, for a practice, a non-solicitation of clients for a short period; the Employment Rights Act 2025 changes the early months of employment on a timetable the regulations set, and the probation clause is drafted with it in mind.

What it costs

Employment contract, £595. One template you can reuse for a grade of staff. Five working days.

Staff handbook and core policies, £995. Five working days.

Buying online forms the engagement on payment. The scope is what the employment contracts and handbooks page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I email you within four working hours to get started. If you would rather ask something first, email me.

What you get

• A bespoke contract drafted for how you employ people
• Restrictive covenants drafted at a scope a court will uphold
• Confidentiality and intellectual property provisions that put ownership where it belongs
• The statutory particulars, so the document does the job section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 requires it to do
• Flexibility clauses where you genuinely need them, drafted to survive challenge
• Core policies: disciplinary, grievance, sickness absence, equal opportunities, data protection and, increasingly, AI use
• One round of amendments

What is not included

• Acting for employees
• Employment tribunal representation
• Payroll, pensions auto-enrolment and tax
• Immigration and sponsor licence work
• Day to day HR handling, disciplinaries, grievances and redundancy processes

Questions I am often asked

Our bookkeeper paid a fraudulent invoice. Can we recover it from her pay?

Not for an ordinary mistake, and not without written consent in any event. Dishonesty is different. The contract sets the controls (second authorisation for new bank details) that stop the loss arising, and leaves fidelity insurance to cover the rest.

Can we credit check a bookkeeper before hiring?

With the candidate's consent and a reason connected to the role, which handling money provides. The contract records the checks the role requires.

Is the bookkeeper liable if a PAYE submission is late?

The employer is liable to HMRC. The contract makes meeting the deadlines the employee's responsibility within the controls, which is a performance matter, not a liability for the penalties.

Related guidance and services

• Employment contracts and handbooks, £595, the service this page describes
• Consultancy and contractor agreements, £595
• Settlement agreements for employers, £795
• Employment contract for an office manager
• Reviewing a payroll or HR outsourcing agreement

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: October 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.