Outsourced bookkeeping, AustraliaOne dedicated, university-qualified graduate accountant keeps your books current inside your own Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks or Reckon file, during Australian business hours. Your bookkeeper is based in the Philippines and typically costs 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent. No lock-in contract and no setup fee.
The short answer
Outsourced bookkeeping is an arrangement where someone outside your payroll keeps your financial records. They code transactions, reconcile bank and card accounts, enter supplier bills, send and chase invoices, prepare pay runs, and produce the reports and BAS figures your accountant or registered agent relies on.
In Australia it usually takes one of three forms: a local contract bookkeeper paid by the hour, a bookkeeping firm whose staff work across many clients, or a dedicated offshore bookkeeper who works only on your file. FreeMyCloud provides the third. You keep your software, your accountant and your way of working. The daily work moves to a person whose whole job is your books.
What the work looks like
| When | What your bookkeeper does | What you have at the end |
|---|---|---|
| Daily | Codes bank feed transactions, matches receipts and bills, answers supplier and customer queries | A bank feed with nothing left waiting |
| Weekly | Reconciles bank, card and merchant accounts, enters supplier bills, sends invoices and follows up overdue ones | Current payables and receivables lists |
| Each pay run | Prepares the pay run, the Single Touch Payroll report and the super payment for your approval | Pay and super ready to approve on payday |
| Monthly | Closes the month and prepares the profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow | Management reports for the month just finished |
| Quarterly | Prepares BAS figures and workpapers for your registered BAS or tax agent | A BAS ready for your agent to review and lodge |
| Yearly | Prepares year-end schedules and, where it applies, the figures for the Taxable payments annual report | A clean file for your accountant |
Super is now part of every pay run. For earnings paid from 1 July 2026, the contribution must be received by the employee's fund within 7 business days of payday (ATO, Payment deadlines for Payday Super, as at 29 September 2026). Our guide to Payday Super covers the detail.
Scope
One person, working in your software and following your processes, covering the bookkeeping a business needs every week.
Every transaction coded against your chart of accounts, with the receipt or bill attached.
Bank, credit card and merchant accounts reconciled on a set schedule, with differences followed up.
Supplier bills captured, coded and scheduled so nothing is paid twice or missed.
Invoices sent, statements issued and overdue accounts followed up each week.
Pay runs, Single Touch Payroll reports and super payments prepared for your approval.
Profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow each month, with the notes that explain the movements.
Also available: BAS preparation for your registered agent, software setup, and catch-up work on books that have fallen behind.
Get in touch
Tell us a little about your business and what you need looked after. We reply within one business day, Australia-wide, and fifteen minutes on the phone is enough to say whether a dedicated bookkeeper suits you and what it would cost.
Prefer to talk? 1300 66 88 14
Who does what
Only a registered BAS agent or tax agent can provide BAS services for a fee in Australia (Tax Practitioners Board, BAS services). FreeMyCloud is not a registered tax agent and does not prepare or lodge tax returns. Your bookkeeper keeps the records and prepares the figures. Your registered agent reviews them, lodges and advises.
| Role | Registration | What they do in this arrangement |
|---|---|---|
| Your FreeMyCloud bookkeeper | Works under the direction of your registered agent | Keeps the records current every week and prepares figures and workpapers |
| Registered BAS agent | Registered with the Tax Practitioners Board | Reviews and lodges your BAS, and advises on GST and PAYG obligations |
| Registered tax agent (your accountant) | Registered with the Tax Practitioners Board | Prepares tax returns and year-end accounts, and gives tax advice |
Your accountant stays your accountant. For a fuller explanation see Bookkeeper, BAS agent or accountant: who does what in Australia.
Choosing an arrangement
| In-house employee | Local bookkeeper or firm | Dedicated FreeMyCloud bookkeeper | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who does the work | One employee on your payroll | A contractor, or staff the firm assigns across several clients | The same graduate accountant every day |
| Where they work | Your premises | Their office, sometimes yours | Manila, Philippines, inside your software |
| Hours | Your hours | By arrangement | Australian business hours |
| What you pay for | Salary, super, leave, recruitment and cover for absences | An hourly rate or monthly fee | A monthly fee. No setup fee, no lock-in contract |
| Suits | Work that needs someone on site: cash, mail, paper files, front desk | Low volumes, a few hours a month | Steady weekly volume that justifies a regular role |
When a local arrangement is the better choice. If your records are on paper that never gets scanned, if cash is counted on site, or if the bookkeeper also runs the front desk, an employee on your premises will suit you better. If you need two hours a month, a local contractor is simpler. A dedicated bookkeeper earns its place when there is enough work for a regular role.
Security and control
Your bookkeeper logs in to your own accounting file with a user account you create. You choose the permission level and you can remove access at any time. Your data stays in your accounting software.
Every engagement starts with a signed non-disclosure agreement. Changes made in the file are recorded against the user who made them, so you and your accountant can see who did what and when.
There is no need to change platforms. FreeMyCloud bookkeepers are able to work with Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks, Reckon, or the accounting software your industry uses.
Whichever platform your business already uses.
Job management, practice management and point of sale systems that feed your accounts.
Approvals, payment runs and reporting dates stay as you have set them.
User permissions set by you, removable by you, with a signed NDA in place.
Your bookkeeper is a university-qualified graduate accountant with Australian experience, employed by FreeMyCloud and based in our Manila office. The same person works on your file every day.
FreeMyCloud is Australian owned and was founded in 2010. We work with Australian businesses from individual operators to ASX-listed companies, with offices in Melbourne and Manila.
A dedicated FreeMyCloud bookkeeper typically costs 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent. The figure for your business depends on hours and transaction volume, and the cost page sets out how it is worked out.
Getting started
Most clients are running within three business days of the first call.
You describe the business, the software and the work that needs doing.
We match a graduate accountant to your software and workload.
The NDA is signed and you invite your bookkeeper into your file.
Your bookkeeper follows your existing process from the first day.
By industry and software
FreeMyCloud has provided outsourced bookkeeping to Australian businesses since 2010. Because the work is done inside your cloud accounting file, it makes no difference whether your business is in a capital city or a regional town.
Clients range from individual operators and sole traders to ASX-listed companies, across trades and construction, medical and dental practices, NDIS and aged care providers, hospitality, legal practices and real estate agencies. Accounting practices also use FreeMyCloud staff to extend their own teams. See services for accountants.
If you are weighing up the Philippines as a location, our guide to outsourced bookkeeping from the Philippines explains how the arrangement works in practice.
Frequently asked questions
Outsourced bookkeeping with FreeMyCloud covers transaction coding, bank and card reconciliation, accounts payable and receivable, pay run and super preparation, month-end close and monthly management reports. BAS figures are prepared each quarter for your registered BAS or tax agent to review and lodge. Software setup and catch-up work are available when needed.
A dedicated FreeMyCloud bookkeeper typically costs 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent. There is no setup fee and no lock-in contract. The figure depends on the hours and transaction volume your business needs. The cost page explains how it is worked out and the savings calculator gives an estimate.
FreeMyCloud bookkeepers are based in the Philippines, in our Manila office. They are university-qualified graduate accountants with Australian experience and they work Australian business hours. FreeMyCloud itself is Australian owned, founded in 2010, with an office in Melbourne.
Only a registered BAS agent or tax agent can provide BAS services for a fee in Australia. Your FreeMyCloud bookkeeper keeps the records current and prepares the BAS figures and workpapers. Your registered agent reviews them and lodges. FreeMyCloud is not a registered tax agent and does not prepare or lodge tax returns.
Your bookkeeper works inside your own accounting file using a user account you create, at the permission level you choose. You can remove access at any time. Every engagement begins with a signed non-disclosure agreement, and changes in the file are recorded against the user who made them.
No. FreeMyCloud bookkeepers are able to work with Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks, Reckon, or the accounting software your industry uses. Your accountant stays your accountant and receives a file that is reconciled and ready to work from.
Most clients are running within three business days of the first call. The steps are a 30-minute call, matching a bookkeeper to your software and workload, signing the NDA and inviting your bookkeeper into your file.
No. FreeMyCloud works without lock-in contracts and without setup fees.
This page is general information about bookkeeping arrangements and Australian reporting obligations, current as at 29 September 2026. It is not tax, financial or legal advice. FreeMyCloud is not a registered tax agent and does not prepare or lodge tax returns. Rates, thresholds and dates change. Confirm your own position with your registered tax or BAS agent.
Fifteen minutes on the phone is enough to tell you whether a dedicated bookkeeper suits your business and what it would cost.
