Quickbooks, Bookkeeping and Accounting Blog

If you want your accountant to make adjustments to your books, but cannot give up access to QuickBooks while your accountant is making the changes, then create and give your accountant an Accountant’s Copy of your QuickBooks file. After your accountant has made all necessary adjustments, you can import them into your current QuickBooks company file. There are some limitations to what you can do while your accountant has the Accountant’s Copy, but they aren’t likely to prevent you from being productive.

Creating the Accountant’s Copy

• open your QuickBooks company file
• from the File menu, select Accountant’s Copy > Client Activities > Create Accountant’s Copy
• Next
• fill in the Dividing Date (your accountant can work on stuff before the Dividing Date, you can work on stuff after the Dividing Date)
• Next
• save the file
• give the file, which will have a .QBX extension, to your accountant.
• your accountant will convert the .QBX file to a .QBA file (Accountant’s Copy working file) and make necessary adjustments
• your accountant then exports the changes to a .QBY file (Accountant’s changes file)

Importing Your Accountant’s Changes

• Accountant’s Copy changes must be imported by the QuickBooks Administrator, who must be in single-user mode
• from the File menu, select Accountant’s Copy > Client Activities > Import Accountant’s Changes
• locate the Accountant’s changes file (.QBY) and click Open
• review the changes and, assuming you wish to accept them, click Import 

Limitations to what you can do while your accountant has the Accountant’s Copy

• you cannot add, edit or delete transactions in the historical period (on or before the dividing date)
• you cannot add, edit, delete or merge accounts in the historical period
• you cannot add, delete or merge lists in the historical period
• you cannot reconcile your accounts

While your accountant is working with the Accountant’s Copy, you will see ”Accountant’s Changes Pending” in the QuickBooks title bar. This will go away when you either import or cancel your accountant’s changes.