SOC 2 Type II certified. IRS §7216 compliant. A dedicated team of 300+ CPAs, EAs, Chartered Accountants, and Big-4 alumni that integrates into your workflow and operates on your schedule.
$8–$35/hr, all-inclusive, and your first 40 hours are free.
New York CPA firms have more client demand than staff to service it.
In New York City, CPA firms compete for accounting talent against some of the most heavily capitalized employers in the world. Big 4 firms, investment banks, private equity houses, and publicly traded financial companies recruit from the same pool of accounting graduates that a mid-size CPA practice needs. A staff accountant or tax preparer who would be a valuable long-term hire can move to a Wall Street employer at a compensation level most CPA practices cannot match. On Long Island, Westchester, and in Albany, the same dynamic plays out: demand for qualified accounting professionals consistently outpaces what the local talent pool can supply.
When firms do hire, the cost runs well beyond the offer letter:
Acculink gives New York CPA firms a direct way out. Our team of 300+ professionals, including CPAs, Enrolled Agents, Chartered Accountants, and Big-4 alumni, integrates into your existing workflow through dedicated accounting outsourcing services and operates on your schedule. New York CPA firms that move to outsourced accounting with Acculink reduce staffing costs by 60 to 70 percent, without giving up quality, turnaround times, or data security.
The most common way New York CPA firms work with Acculink is the dedicated staffing model. You hire a specific professional, a dedicated accountant, a tax preparer, a bookkeeper, a payroll expert, or an audit support specialist, who works exclusively for your firm, integrates into your workflow, and operates under your direct supervision. This is not a shared service or an outsourced task queue. It is your person, on your schedule, doing your firm's work.
Each hire is matched to your firm based on the actual work you do: tax return volume, bookkeeping complexity, software platforms, and the industries your clients operate in. You meet the professional before the engagement starts. You set the tasks and review the output. Acculink handles employment, IT infrastructure, data security, and compliance.
PTET advisory and quarterly estimated payments, three-return individual filings for every NYC resident client, complex workpapers for hedge funds and real estate entities: this is recurring, layered work. A dedicated professional embedded in your firm's workflow carries client-level knowledge forward from one quarter to the next. They know which entities elected PTET, what the quarterly payment schedule looks like, which clients have co-op structures requiring separate handling. That knowledge builds over time in a way that project outsourcing cannot replicate.
For firms that prefer to delegate defined-scope work on a fixed-price basis without managing dedicated staff, Acculink's project-based outsourcing model is available. A dedicated Acculink project manager takes responsibility for delivery and quality end-to-end. See engagement models for a full comparison of both options.
Build an offshore team to manage compliance, documentation, and testing efficiently.
Daily transaction entry, reconciliations, and ledger upkeep.
Accounts receivable, payable, and billing management.
QuickBooks Online and Desktop bookkeeping and cleanup.
Xero-based bookkeeping, reconciliations, and reporting.
General ledger, month-end close, and financial statements.
1040, 1120, 1120S, 1065, and 1041 preparation and review.
Workpapers and documentation for financial, 401(k), and EBP audits.
End-to-end payroll, deposits, and quarterly filings.
Oversees deliverables and coordinates with your onshore team.
Budgeting, forecasting, and board-ready reporting.
From daily bookkeeping to New York-specific tax workpapers, your dedicated team works across the platforms your clients already use.
New York Industries
Bookkeeping and workpaper preparation for hedge funds, private equity funds, broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, and family offices. New York City's concentration of financial services clients makes this one of the most common and technically demanding client verticals for NYC-area CPA firms.
Property accounting, rental income tracking, depreciation schedules, 1031 exchange documentation, and investor-facing financial reporting. New York real estate adds layers most markets do not: co-op share structures, condominium association accounting, NYC Real Property Transfer Tax documentation, and Section 421-a exemption tracking.
Learn moreRoyalty tracking, licensing income reconciliation, talent management accounting, production company bookkeeping, and multi-entity film, television, and publishing accounting for New York's media and entertainment sector.
Practice accounting, insurance payment reconciliations, and compliance-focused financial reporting for New York's large healthcare sector, hospital-affiliated practices, multi-specialty groups, and independent providers across the city and surrounding counties.
Learn moreLaw firm accounting, partner profit distribution tracking, billing reconciliation, client trust accounting support, and year-end financial package preparation for New York's substantial legal sector.
Bookkeeping and workpaper preparation for foreign companies with US operating entities, US subsidiaries, or cross-border payment structures. FBAR workpaper preparation and Form 5471 preparation support for firms serving international clients based in or doing business in New York.
Fund accounting, restricted and unrestricted grant tracking, Form 990 preparation support, and board-ready financial packages. New York City has one of the largest and most complex not-for-profit sectors in the country.
Learn moreNew York CPA firms pay among the highest accounting salaries in the country. Here is how the true cost compares to a dedicated Acculink team.
New York CPA firms pay among the highest accounting salaries in the country. The market rate for a staff accountant or tax preparer in New York City reflects the cost of living, the competition from financial sector employers, and the density of professional opportunity in the region. Employer payroll taxes, health insurance, retirement contributions, paid leave, and office overhead add 25 to 35 percent on top of base pay. The real per-hire cost runs well above the number on the offer letter, and that number is already high.
Offshore accounting through a dedicated team is not a new concept for New York CPA firms. What has changed is the compliance infrastructure that makes it defensible. Providers that carry SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 certifications, deliver IRS §7216 consent tools at onboarding, and operate under signed data processing agreements have removed the barriers that made offshore accounting difficult to justify.
| In-House Accounting Staff in New York | With Acculink CPA | |
|---|---|---|
| Direct Cost | Market-rate NY salary, among the highest in the US | $8–$35/hr, all-inclusive |
| Employer Overhead | Payroll taxes, benefits, PTO, and office overhead on top | Included in the hourly rate |
| True Annual Cost | Substantially more than the salary figure | No hidden additions |
| Onboarding Timeline | 4–8 weeks minimum (recruiting, interviews, training) | 5–10 business days |
| Data Security | Depends on your firm's own infrastructure | SOC 2 Type II Certified |
| Trial Period | None | 40 hours free |
| Exit Terms | Notice period, potential severance | No lock-in, no penalties |
New York CPA firms working with Acculink report cost reductions of 60 to 70 percent on accounting staffing compared to equivalent domestic hires. For a firm carrying multiple accounting positions in a New York City cost environment, that difference is substantial. Most firms find the savings from outsourced accounting justify the shift within the first quarter of the engagement.
New York operates one of the most layered tax environments in the country. For CPA firms serving New York-based businesses and individuals, that means more returns per client, more filing deadlines to coordinate, and more interaction between federal, state, and city requirements than firms in most other states face.
New York City imposes its own resident income tax on individuals who live within the five boroughs. For a CPA firm serving NYC-resident clients, every individual return is a three-return filing: federal, New York State, and New York City. The city tax runs from 3.078 percent on lower income to 3.876 percent at higher income levels, a separate calculation with its own form, its own set of credits, and its own filing requirements on top of the state return.
Most states do not have a city-level income tax. For NYC-area CPA firms, this is simply the standard workload. Every individual client based in the five boroughs is three returns, not two.
New York enacted a Pass-Through Entity Tax as part of the 2021-2022 state budget. It allows eligible S-corporations and partnerships to elect to pay New York income tax at the entity level, generating a corresponding federal income tax deduction for the owners. The election deadline is March 15 of the tax year.
Since its introduction, the PTET has become one of the most actively discussed advisory topics between New York CPA firms and their business clients. For your firm's workload, it means additional return preparation for every electing entity, quarterly estimated tax payments tracked at the entity level, and coordination between the entity return and each partner's or shareholder's individual NY return to ensure the PTET credit is properly applied. Acculink's team handles this multi-layer preparation work, staged for your licensed CPAs to review.
New York City imposes its own business taxes on top of state requirements, creating additional filings for NYC-based entities.
The Unincorporated Business Tax (UBT) applies to partnerships and sole proprietors conducting business in New York City. It is calculated at 4 percent of net income allocated to the city, with its own deductions and credits, and is entirely separate from the state filing. C-corporations operating in NYC are subject to both New York State corporate tax and the NYC Business Corporation Tax, which use different apportionment rules and different computation bases.
For a CPA firm serving a portfolio of NYC-based business clients, each entity may have two to three separate business tax filings in addition to the federal return. That cumulative volume is exactly where a dedicated offshore preparation team pays for itself.
Employers with payroll in the Metropolitan Commuter Transportation District, which covers New York City and surrounding counties, are subject to the MCTMT. For CPA firms handling payroll compliance for New York metro clients, MCTMT calculations and filings are part of the standard stack alongside federal and state payroll deposits. Acculink's payroll team handles MCTMT calculations as part of the standard New York payroll service.
Sharing client financial data with any outside team, offshore or domestic, triggers specific legal and professional obligations. Below is how Acculink operates within each framework that applies to New York CPA firms.
Under IRC §7216 and Treas. Reg. §301.7216-2, a tax return preparer must obtain the client's written, knowing, and voluntary consent before disclosing tax return information to any service provider outside the United States. The consent must name the recipient, identify the information being shared, and state the purpose of the disclosure. For 1040-series taxpayers, additional specific language is required under Revenue Procedure 2013-14.
Acculink provides New York CPA firms with ready-to-use §7216 consent templates as part of standard onboarding. These slot directly into your existing engagement letters. Failure to obtain a valid §7216 consent before disclosing offshore is a federal misdemeanor.
New York's Stop Hacks and Improve Electronic Data Security (SHIELD) Act became effective March 21, 2020. It requires any person or business that owns or licenses computerized private information of New York residents to implement and maintain reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards, regardless of where the business is located.
Acculink's infrastructure is independently audited under SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001:2013 frameworks, covering access controls, encryption, audit trails, and incident response. That certification standard exceeds the SHIELD Act's reasonable safeguard requirement. Violations are enforced by the New York Attorney General.
If your CPA firm serves clients regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services — banks, insurance companies, broker-dealers, or other licensed financial entities — those clients may be subject to NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation (23 NYCRR Part 500). Acculink works as a support team to your CPA firm and does not interact directly with your NYDFS-regulated clients. Acculink's compliance documentation (SOC 2 Type II report, ISO 27001 certificate, and data processing agreement) is available to support any due diligence your clients' compliance teams require.
New York CPAs are licensed through the New York State Education Department (NYSED) Office of the Professions under Education Law Article 149. New York CPA firms may use offshore support staff provided the licensed CPA firm retains supervisory responsibility for all work product. Acculink's engagement model is built entirely around this requirement. Your licensed CPAs review and approve every deliverable before it reaches a client. Acculink staff do not file returns, do not contact your clients, and do not represent your firm in any professional capacity.
| Certification or Standard | Status |
|---|---|
| SOC 2 Type II | Certified |
| ISO 27001:2013 | Certified |
| IRS §7216 | Compliant: consent templates provided at onboarding |
| GDPR | Compliant |
| NY SHIELD Act | Infrastructure independently audited; exceeds requirements |
| AICPA Code of Professional Conduct | Aligned |
| FTC Safeguards Rule | Compliant |
| Client data breach history (5+ years) | Zero |
Most New York CPA firms are fully operational within 5 to 10 business days. The steps below describe onboarding for the dedicated staffing model; for project-based outsourcing, your Acculink project manager is assigned at scoping and handles delivery from there.
We map your firm's workflow, software stack, team structure, and the specific gaps you need to fill, whether that is tax season surge capacity, year-round bookkeeping, PTET return support, or a combination.
We match your firm with professionals whose background fits your work type and client industries. You meet the team before the engagement begins. No anonymous resource pools, no random assignments.
Your Acculink team integrates into your existing tools and workflow, faster than most domestic recruiting timelines.
Your team works dedicated hours with daily overlap with US Eastern Time business hours. All work comes back to your firm for review, approval, and client delivery.
CPAs, EAs, Chartered Accountants, and Big-4 alumni, trained in US standards.
From solo practitioners to mid-size regional practices.
A five-year track record with zero client data breaches.
No setup fee, no hidden costs, no long-term contract.
Your team works on live files before you commit to a paid engagement.
No recruiter, no job board, no waiting.
Independently audited security, not a self-declared policy.
Hire dedicated offshore staff full-time, part-time, or on-demand, or outsource specific work on a fixed-price project basis.
New York's accounting labor market is not going to get easier. Demand for CPA firm capacity keeps growing. The talent pool that feeds it is pulled in too many directions. Acculink client firms are typically onboarded and delivering within 5 to 10 business days. The first 40 hours cost nothing.
