Virtual Assistant for Accountants Virtual Service AssistsPractice admin for UK accountants
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Virtual assistant for accountants, UK

A virtual assistant for UK accountants who already knows practice work

If you are looking for a virtual assistant for your accounting practice in the UK, the useful question is how much of your admin the assistant can take on without training from scratch. Ours arrive knowing AML files, agent portals and MTD quarters.

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Specialist or general

What a specialist accounting VA does differently

A general virtual assistant is usually strong on diaries, inboxes and documents. Practice admin adds regulated steps, agent portals and fixed deadlines, and that is where specialist knowledge saves your reviewers time.

  1. Knows what a complete AML file looks like

    Collects the right identity and address evidence, records dates and sources, and stops at the point where your MLRO needs to make a decision.

  2. Works the agent side of HMRC and Companies House

    Understands agent authorisations, filing statuses and confirmation statements, and prepares them for approval inside your own agent access.

  3. Plans around the tax calendar

    Chases MTD quarterly records ahead of 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May, and plans self assessment records collection well before 31 January.

  4. Hands back at the right point

    Prepared work comes back to a named reviewer with queries listed, so a partner can check the file in one sitting.

Which tasks fit

Tasks an accounting VA can take, and what stays with you

Use this table to sort your own task list. Anything needing a professional judgement call or your agent credentials stays in the practice.

TaskSuits a specialist VA?What stays with your practice
Collecting CDD evidence and running ID checks in your AML toolYes, see AML checksRisk assessment and the decision to accept the client
Preparing confirmation statements and tracking director ID verificationYes, see portal adminApproval and filing under your ACSP registration
Chasing and categorising MTD quarterly recordsYes, see MTD-ready reportingReview and submission
Drafting late filing and late payment penalty appealsYes, see appealsReview and submission under your agent authorisation
Monthly bank reconciliations and payroll inputsYes, see bank recs and payroll prepQueries needing judgement; running and approving payroll
Engagement letters, clearance requests and new client set-upYes, see client onboardingEngagement terms and fees
Answering routine client emails and raising invoicesYes, see inquiry support and billingTechnical answers, write-offs and fee disputes
Tax advice, planning and signing off returns or accountsNoAll of it
Comparing options

General VA agency, offshore outsourcer or specialist VA team

UK practices looking for outside help usually meet three kinds of provider. Each suits a different need, so match the model to the work you want off your desk.

Summary of typical models, based on publicly available provider information reviewed in October 2026. Individual providers vary, so check the details of any provider you consider.
UK general VA agencyOffshore accounting outsourcerVirtual Service Assists
Main workDiary, email, documents and general business adminBookkeeping, year-end accounts, payroll and tax return productionPractice admin and compliance preparation: AML, portals, appeals, MTD records, onboarding, billing
Accounting compliance focusGeneralist, with no specific accounting-compliance specialismStrong on production work; compliance admin is a smaller part of the offerBuilt around UK practice compliance admin
Where the team worksUKMostly India or the PhilippinesGhana
Time difference from LondonNoneAbout 4.5 to 8 hours ahead, depending on country and seasonNone in winter; one hour behind during BST
How work movesLive during the UK dayOften an overnight hand-off, with work returned the next morningLive during the UK day
Typical engagementMonthly plans with a set number of hoursManaged service or dedicated offshore staff, often charged per staff member per monthHours your agreed tasks need, quoted after a scoping call
VA or new hire

How a specialist VA compares with hiring an assistant

Hiring makes sense when you need someone in the office full time. For admin that rises and falls with the tax year, paying for the hours your tasks need is often the simpler arrangement.

Employing an admin assistant

  • Salary, plus employer National Insurance at 15% on earnings above £5,000 a year
  • Employer pension contribution of at least 3% of qualifying earnings under auto-enrolment
  • Recruitment, equipment, a software seat, desk space, and cover for holiday and sickness
  • Training on your processes, AML procedures and portals

Engaging Virtual Service Assists

  • Engaged as a B2B supplier, so there is no payroll, employer NI or pension for you to run
  • Priced by the hours your agreed tasks need, set out in a written scope
  • Hours adjusted as volumes change, with peaks agreed in advance
  • A team that already knows practice admin, working in your existing systems

Sources: GOV.UK, "Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027" (employer Class 1 NI at 15% above the £5,000 secondary threshold); GOV.UK, "Workplace pensions: what you, your employer and the government pay" (employer pays at least 3% of qualifying earnings). For worked figures, read our guide to outsourced back-office support costs. Whether the arrangement affects your own employment tax position is a question for your adviser.

The practicalities

Hours, data and tools

Working hours

Ghana keeps GMT all year. From 25 October 2026 to 28 March 2027 our day matches London's to the minute; during British Summer Time we start and finish an hour earlier by your clock. Either way, the assistant is working while your office is open.

Client data

The work happens inside your systems through logins you issue, over secure connections, with GDPR-conscious handling procedures. You can see who has access and remove it at any time. What data we handle, and for which tasks, is agreed in writing before access starts.

Continuity

Dual-fibre internet and backup power keep the assistant working through local outages. Urgent items get same-day attention, which matters most in deadline weeks.

Software our team works in

  • QuickBooks
  • Bright Manager
  • Staffology
  • IRIS
  • HMRC agent portal
  • Companies House
  • Microsoft Teams
  • Zoom
  • Monday.com
  • SignWell

Source for clock change dates: GOV.UK, "When do the clocks change?".

Questions

Questions about virtual assistants for accounting firms

What does a virtual assistant for accountants do?

A virtual assistant for accountants handles the admin around professional work: collecting AML evidence, preparing Companies House and HMRC portal tasks, chasing MTD records, reconciling bank accounts, preparing payroll inputs, onboarding new clients, answering routine emails and raising invoices. The accountant keeps advice, risk decisions, review and submission.

Can a general virtual assistant do accounting practice admin?

A general VA can manage diaries, inboxes and documents well, but will need training on CDD files, agent authorisations, confirmation statements and MTD quarters. A specialist accounting VA starts with that knowledge, so less of your reviewers' time goes on explaining and correcting.

How much does a virtual assistant for an accounting firm cost?

Providers price in different ways: monthly hour plans, per-staff monthly fees or hours quoted for a defined scope. We quote the hours your agreed tasks need after a scoping call. Our cost guide sets this against the full cost of employing an assistant.

Can a virtual assistant submit MTD quarterly updates for our clients?

In our model, the assistant prepares and your practice submits. We chase each client's records, categorise them in your MTD software and flag gaps before the 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May deadlines. Your team reviews the update and sends it under your agent credentials.

Is it safe to give an offshore VA access to client data?

It depends on the controls. We work only inside your systems, using logins you issue and can revoke, over secure connections and with GDPR-conscious handling. Data and tasks are agreed in writing first. Your practice should also check the UK GDPR basis for any international transfer.

Do we employ the virtual assistant?

No. Your practice engages Virtual Service Assists as a business-to-business supplier, so there is no payroll, employer National Insurance or pension to run. If you need certainty about how the arrangement is treated for your firm's own tax position, check with your adviser.

How quickly can an accounting VA start?

Most engagements go live within the first couple of weeks. That covers a scoping call, setting up logins in your systems and agent portals, learning your templates, and then running the agreed tasks on a weekly rhythm with progress reported back.

Related

All nine services

What each service includes, and how practices combine them in a typical week.

Client inquiry support

First-line handling of client emails using your approved wording.

The hidden admin workload

Why inquiry handling and billing quietly use up senior staff time.

Next step

See what a specialist VA could take off your desk

Bring your task list to a short call and we will tell you which jobs we could run and how we would quote them.

Book a consultation