Bookkeeping stops being a background task at a predictable point. Usually it is the month the bank feed runs to four hundred lines, or the quarter a GST return is due and nobody can say with confidence what the number should be. At that stage the choice is to hire someone part time, keep losing Sunday evenings, or hand the function to a bookkeeper who does this all week.
We are the third option. You keep the bank accounts and the decisions. We keep the records, meet the deadlines and tell you what the numbers say.
What you get every month
The work below is the standard package. Nothing here is an add-on, and there are no billable hours attached to a phone call or an email.
| Work | How often | What that means in practice |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction coding | Weekly | Every payment and receipt categorised against your chart of accounts, not dumped in suspense. |
| Bank and card reconciliation | Monthly | Every account agreed to the statement, with a written note on anything that does not match. |
| Sales and purchase ledgers | Monthly | Who owes you money and who you owe, aged so you can chase in the right order. |
| GST returns | Quarterly | Prepared, checked against the ledgers and filed if you are registered. |
| Payroll and the Combined Employer Return | Monthly | Payslips, ITIS deductions and Social Security both sides, reported to Revenue Jersey. |
| Management accounts | Monthly | Profit and loss, balance sheet and cash position, with last month alongside for comparison. |
| Year-end pack | Annually | A tidy trial balance and supporting schedules handed to your accountant. |
Your Jersey compliance year, laid out
Jersey is a Crown Dependency with its own tax system, not a UK region. There is no VAT, no capital gains tax and no inheritance tax, but there is a filing rhythm of its own, and it is the rhythm rather than any single return that catches owners out. Here is the shape of a typical year for a small Jersey company with staff.
| When | What Jersey expects | Who does it |
|---|---|---|
| Every month | Combined Employer Return — ITIS income tax plus Social Security, employer and employee sides together | Us |
| Every quarter | GST return, if you are registered. GST is 5%; registration is compulsory above £300,000 rolling twelve-month turnover | Us |
| End of February | Annual return to the JFSC Companies Registry | Us, with your confirmation |
| Once a year | Income tax returns for the company and its owners, standard rate 20% | Us or your accountant |
| Continuously | Business records kept and retrievable for six years | Us |
If you want the underlying rules rather than the timetable, our plain-English guide to Jersey tax covers income tax, GST and the ITIS system, and the Jersey bookkeeping glossary defines the terms that appear on your returns.
Who this suits
Most of our monthly clients are Jersey businesses turning over somewhere between fifty thousand and two million pounds, with one to twenty people on the payroll. Typically that means:
- Sole traders and freelancers who have outgrown a spreadsheet
- Limited companies that need management accounts to make decisions rather than just to satisfy the registry
- Trades and construction firms juggling retentions, subcontractors and materials
- Hospitality and retail, where daily takings and stock make the volume the problem
- Professional practices and agencies billing time against projects
- Landlords holding Jersey property in a company or in their own name
It suits you less well if you want someone in your office two days a week, or if your business is regulated in a way that requires a designated in-house finance function. We will say so at the quote stage rather than three months in.
Getting started takes about a week
- You tell us what you run. Send the enquiry form with your rough transaction volume, how many bank accounts you have, whether you are GST registered and how many people you pay. That is enough for a price.
- We quote a fixed monthly fee. Written, itemised, with the scope on the same page. If your records are behind, we quote the catch-up separately so you can see the two costs apart.
- We connect and set up. Bank feeds, chart of accounts, your cloud accounting platform, and read access for your accountant. If you already run Xero or QuickBooks we work in yours rather than moving you.
- The first full month runs. From then on you approve, we file, and the management accounts arrive early the following month.
Send us your details and we will price it. No sales call in the middle, and the quote is written down.
What it costs
One fixed monthly fee, quoted upfront, based on transaction volume, bank accounts, GST status and headcount. We would rather agree the number in advance and stick to it than send an invoice that reflects how chatty a month was. If your business changes shape, we requote and tell you why.
Two things sit outside the monthly fee, and we always price them separately so you can see what you are buying. Clearing a historical backlog is a project, covered by our catch up bookkeeping service. Payroll for larger teams is priced on headcount, described on our Jersey payroll service page.
Where we work
All twelve Jersey parishes: St. Helier, St. Saviour, St. Clement, Grouville, St. Martin, Trinity, St. John, St. Mary, St. Ouen, St. Peter, St. Brelade and St. Lawrence. The work is done in the cloud, so being at the other end of the island from St. Helier makes no difference to how quickly your books get done.
Questions we get asked
How much does a bookkeeper cost in Jersey?
There is no single figure, because a sole trader with forty transactions a month and a restaurant with two thousand are different jobs. We price on transaction volume, bank accounts, GST status and headcount. You get one fixed monthly fee, quoted upfront, and it does not move unless your business does.
Do I need a bookkeeper or an accountant?
Usually both, doing different jobs. A bookkeeper keeps the records accurate through the year and files the recurring returns. An accountant uses those records for year-end accounts and tax planning. Clean monthly books tend to make the accountant's bill smaller.
Can you work alongside my existing accountant?
Yes, and it is the normal arrangement. We keep everything current and hand over a tidy trial balance with schedules at year end. We are happy to give your accountant direct read access to the software so nothing travels by email attachment.
Do I have to register for GST?
Registration is compulsory once turnover passes £300,000 on a rolling twelve-month basis, and Jersey GST is 5%. Below that it is voluntary and worth a proper think. Watching that rolling figure is part of the monthly job, so the threshold does not arrive unannounced.
If you want it off your desk
Tell us the size and shape of the business and we will come back with a fixed monthly price and what it covers. Nothing starts until you have that in writing.
Ask for a quote — we reply within one business day.
General guidance only. Jersey rates and deadlines are set annually; confirm current figures with Revenue Jersey on gov.je, or let us track them for you.