Client Tasks Module Guide

Where to find this workflow and its controls

For staff, choose Clients → Client tasks, or open a client's profile and its Client tasks tab. Search and Filters are above the list. The status row contains All, Draft, Waiting on client, Overdue and Completed. The right-hand Quick actions panel contains Create client task and the template entry point.

Open a task card for its detailed request and responses. In an edit flow, distinguish one occurrence from a recurring series before changing dates or instructions. Tasks in the professional sidebar is a separate module for internal work.

For a signed-in client, the sidebar entry Tasks opens their client tasks. The person receiving a task invitation follows that invitation; they do not use the professional's Clients directory.

Owner, Admin and Member: access, restrictions and exceptions for this chapter

See the current application screenshots for this chapter

Module overview

Who uses Client Tasks

Glossary

Distinguish task creation from sending

For the team, use Clients → Client tasks and the Quick actions shortcuts Create client task or Create from template. Enter the title, instructions, client, related company/tax year where relevant, primary contact, due date, tag and reminder. Primary contact is the firm’s team member who will be the client’s point of contact, not the recipient. Request actions are optional; add them when the client needs to submit a specific confirmation, document, answer or approval. Review the recipient and any action requirements before sending; a saved draft is not yet the client’s to-do list.

Complete each request type, not just the chat

A file posted in task chat is useful conversation context, but does not by itself prove that an Upload documents action was completed. Complete the actual action and the overall submission controls shown on the task.

Help a new client accept the invitation correctly

1. Open the original task invitation.
2. If a new account is needed, select Create an account to accept on that invitation page. Do not start registration from a different page: the account must be connected to the invitation.
3. Enter the name, email and secure password, verify the email, and sign in.
4. Return to the invitation and choose Accept invitation, then open the task. Use the invited account, not another household or colleague’s login.

Read the same status from both sides

The team’s Waiting on client appears as To do to the client. Submitted appears as In review; Completed stays Completed; Cancelled appears as Closed. Submission hands the work back for review. The team completes the workflow after checking the responses; neither a viewed invitation nor a chat reply equals a completed package.

Reminder frequency versus recurring requests

A reminder nudges an outstanding request: No reminder, Every 3 days or Every 7 days. Recurrence schedules future client-task occurrences. These are different settings; enabling a reminder does not create next month’s request.

For recurrence, select the frequency, an integer interval from 1 through 100, and next send date. Frequencies include daily, weekly, every two weeks, twice monthly, monthly, quarterly, twice yearly and annually. Monthly-family schedules offer the selected day, first day, middle or last day of the month. A selected day beyond a shorter month’s end is capped to that month’s last day. Twice-monthly dates use the 15th and last day.

Review the upcoming-date preview before saving. New recurring setup starts with a future send date; scheduling uses the Toronto calendar, not an assumption based only on your device’s date. Review or pause the series when the engagement ends instead of merely completing one occurrence.

Worked example: request missing statements and a separate approval

Create a Client Task for Sarah with a clear title such as “October close — statements and review.” Add an Upload documents action that names the missing bank accounts and month. If you also need written answers, add an Answer questions action with specific questions rather than hoping Sarah will infer them from a document upload. Add Review and approve only for material that is actually ready for that decision.

Sarah should upload the statements on the upload action, answer the questions and submit through the task’s controls. Sending the same file in chat can explain something, but it does not prove the upload action was completed. If she requests changes on the review action, read that decision and its context instead of treating “a response arrived” as approval.

The team then reviews files, answers and the overall submission. The client’s In review state corresponds to the team’s Submitted stage, not final completion. Only complete the package after your review. For monthly reuse, inspect recurrence and next send date separately from reminders: a seven-day nudge follows up an outstanding task, while recurrence creates future work. Check the selected client and period on future occurrences rather than sending October’s instructions indefinitely.

Distinguish a draft, a sent request and a recurring series

A draft is work still being prepared; it is not evidence that the client received an invitation. Check the client/contact, related company or personal tax year, due date, instructions and requested material before sending. The selected client and the related entity must describe the same intended engagement.

Example: “Upload the March bank statements for Blue Horizon Partners by April 8” is a specific client action. “Prepare the March close” is internal staff work and belongs in the internal Tasks workflow. Keep these linked operationally without telling the client to complete a staff-only task.

When editing recurring work, use the operation for the particular task or the series deliberately. A one-off corrected due date should not unintentionally alter future periods. Review the resulting occurrence dates after editing. If a requested view is unavailable, return to All and inspect the visible due dates/statuses; an unavailable or failed view is not proof that there are no outstanding requests.

Current application screen examples

Find the creation shortcuts and understand the firm contact

1. Choose Clients in the left navigation, then Client tasks in its submenu or the page’s top tabs. This is the client-request workspace, not the separate internal Tasks module.
2. On the right, find Quick actions. Choose Create client task for a fresh request or Create from template to start with an existing structure. A template still needs the correct client, dates and message.
3. In Task details, write an actionable Task name, such as “Upload September bank statements,” then select the actual Client. Use Related to for the appropriate company or personal tax year when relevant. Select the client before choosing its related record.
4. Review Primary contact. This is a member of your firm’s team: the client sees that person as the main point of contact, receives updates from them and can communicate with them. It is not the field for choosing the client who receives the task.
5. Continue down the form to set the Due date, description and tag as needed. Explain the period, documents and expected result rather than relying on a short title alone.

Example: ask Sarah Williams for the September statements for the correct business, name the firm colleague who will answer questions, and specify all pages and the statement period in the instructions. The screenshot is an unfinished draft: its client still needs selecting. Do not send it merely because its title and firm contact are filled.

Add the request actions the client actually needs

The Requests area is optional. Use Add another request to display the four choices below. Choose the action that matches the evidence you need; a descriptive task does not automatically require every request type.

• Confirm completion: ask the client to confirm a specific action, such as checking that a mailing address is current. It is not a substitute for uploading a document you need to review.
• Upload documents: name the required files and period. For example, request all pages of the September bank statement rather than “send documents.”
• Answer questions: ask clearly separated questions so the client can provide answers and relevant optional attachments.
• Review and approve: provide the information the client must review and explain what approval means. A request for changes is not approval and a chat reply is not necessarily the action’s recorded decision.

Review each added card and remove or correct irrelevant requests before sending. When reviewing a submitted task, open the actual response/file for each card, then use the task’s review/completion controls. A progress indicator alone cannot tell you whether the right document or a useful answer was supplied.

Separate a draft, a template, an email and a recurring series

Farther down the creation page, review reminders, recurrence and the email subject/message. Save draft keeps work for later; Save current as template preserves a reusable structure; Send client task is the real recipient-facing action. Read the selected client and actual message again before sending. Smart fields and a signature help compose the email but do not select the right recipient for you.

Automatic reminder emails apply after the task is sent; the 3-day/7-day choices are follow-ups to that task. Recurring client tasks schedule new tasks and sends, even if earlier occurrences are unfinished. For a monthly collection, check the next send date, recurrence preview and recipient before activating the series. This is different from resetting an internal task when it is completed.

In the Client tasks list, only active recurring tasks show a recurring chip with the series’ next send date, not the date of the current task. Paused setups do not show a chip. Open Filters and select Active recurring only to show tasks with an active recurring setup across all pages; combine it with search and other filters, or use Clear all to remove filters. A paused setup remains available in Task details and will not send new tasks until repeating is started. On an existing recurring task, open Task details. Below Reminder frequency, review the recurring status, frequency and next send date. Use Start repeating or Stop repeating to manage future sends, or Edit setup to change the series. The information icon explains which tasks are affected.

Use Back to client tasks at the top to leave. If an unsaved-changes confirmation appears, stay on the page to preserve the draft or confirm leaving to discard it. Back is not Save draft. In the list, use Search client tasks, Filters and the All/Draft/Waiting on client/Overdue/Completed views to find the saved item in the appropriate state; an unfinished page is not proof that a draft was saved.

Owner, Admin and Member: permissions for this workflow

A Member needs two things to see a Client Task: access to its client and their own name as Primary contact. This applies to the list, detail, returned documents and task-linked conversation; simply creating it is not enough. Owner/Admin can review the team’s Client Tasks. Primary contact means the firm’s team member, not the client recipient.

Example: Morgan is a Member with Sarah’s client shared. If Alex is Primary contact on Sarah’s document request, Morgan does not get that Client Task merely because Sarah appears in Clients. For Morgan to follow the request, arrange the appropriate contact/client access with the firm. For recurring Client Tasks, a Member must use an accessible shared client and themselves as requester/contact; Owner/Admin can review team series and delegate to an eligible colleague. Can view all tasks applies to internal Tasks, not this Client Task rule.

Compare all staff roles, feature restrictions and exceptions

Where to find this workflow and its controls

Start with the invitation sent by your firm. For a full portal connection, the invitation page offers Create account to accept or Log in to accept. After client sign-in, review the sender and choose Accept invitation. Open workspace takes you into your client work.

Inside the client workspace, Tasks opens requests assigned to you. Use Documents and Chat when available to your account and the firm's sharing arrangements. Your name/avatar at the top right opens your own Settings.

A checklist, folder-share invitation, upload-only file request or signing email may open a specific recipient workflow instead of the whole workspace. Follow the action described in that email. Do not create a professional firm account simply to answer a client request.

Owner, Admin and Member: access, restrictions and exceptions for this chapter

You may use Bookwits only to give your bookkeeper information, upload files, complete a request or sign a document. You do not need to learn the firm’s administration tools. Start from the message the firm sent and identify the type of request.

Upload useful files, especially from a phone

1. Check the person, business and year requested before selecting files.
2. Choose the document, not only a screenshot of its filename. For photos, check that every page is readable, upright and uncropped.
3. Wait for each upload’s visible result and resolve an error before moving on.
4. Review the uploaded list and use the final submit/complete control where the request provides one. Selecting a file is not always the last step.
5. Keep your original until the firm confirms the document is usable.

If you cannot open something

Confirm you used the latest message and the invited email. If another account is already signed in, sign out and use the correct account rather than sharing passwords. An expired, revoked or cancelled link needs the sender’s help; creating unrelated accounts does not restore it. Ask the firm which request you should use if it sent several similar links.

If the information is wrong or the request is unclear

Do not approve incorrect information merely to remove an outstanding request. Use Request changes on a review action, the request’s chat, or contact the sender. Explain which item or page needs attention. Never forward someone else’s signing or private checklist link, and do not post access-bearing links publicly.

What you may not see

Clients do not inherit the firm owner’s client directory, budgets or internal tools simply by creating an account. A missing menu can be intentional. Ask the firm to share the specific folder or request instead of asking for a staff password.

Example: choose the correct link when the firm sends several requests

Sarah receives a tax checklist, an upload-only file request and a signing request. She should not use whichever link she finds first for every action. The checklist gathers answers; the file request collects files at its intended destination; the signing request presents documents and fields assigned to Sarah. Completing one does not silently complete the others.

On a phone, open the request, check the firm, person, company or year shown, and read the instructions before choosing files. After selecting a photo or PDF, wait for its upload result and inspect the list. Use a final Submit or Complete action when the request provides one. A photo selected in the device’s picker but not successfully uploaded has not reached the firm.

If a portal invitation requires an account, use the invited identity. If a checklist does not require registration, creating a new account elsewhere does not repair an expired checklist link. Ask the sender to identify the correct current request when messages conflict. Do not forward a personal signing or checklist link to a spouse as if it were a general family login.

Accept a platform invitation from start to finish

Your bookkeeper may have entered your contact details before you ever used Bookwits. That directory record is not your login. The platform invitation connects your own verified client account to the firm's client relationship.

1. Open the invitation email's button and review the sender and client identity. If the invitation was unexpected, contact the firm through a known channel before proceeding.
2. If you are new, choose Create account to accept on that invitation page. This keeps the invitation connected to your registration journey. Do not leave it to register as an unrelated professional.
3. Enter your own first name, last name, the same email that was invited and a secure password. Never ask a colleague to create the account with their own email just to get past this step.
4. Open the Bookwits verification email and confirm your email address. Registration and verification are separate steps; finishing the form alone does not accept the firm's invitation.
5. Sign in as a client. If you already had a client account, use Log in to accept instead of creating another one.
6. Return to the invitation page when prompted and choose Accept invitation. If you return to a general page instead, reopen the original valid invitation email.
7. After the acceptance confirmation, choose Open workspace. Inspect the tasks and shared areas available to your account. Your firm's private internal work is not automatically exposed.

Example: Sarah receives an invitation at her personal email but is currently signed in to a different account used by another family member. She should not accept as that person. She signs in with her own verified client account at the invited email. Linking Sarah and Michael as partners in the firm's records does not let either accept the other's invitation.

If you cannot accept

• Wrong account/email: use the intended client account. A professional account is not the same role as a client account for this process. If the firm invited the wrong address, ask it to correct the profile and send a fresh invitation.
• Unverified email: finish email verification before trying acceptance again. Do not give your email password or verification link to the firm.
• Expired, cancelled or replaced link: ask the sender for a current invitation. Platform invitations expire after 30 days, and an older pending link is not valid after a fresh one replaces it.
• Decline: if the invitation is not appropriate, use Decline when offered and review the confirmation. Declining does not connect you to the firm.
• Leaving the page: the warning explains that the connection is not finished. Closing the page is not acceptance. Return through the valid invitation when ready.
• Temporary failure: use Try again when offered. Do not assume that a failed acceptance granted access or that repeatedly registering new accounts will repair it.

Recognize which kind of invitation you received

Keep all recipient links private. If you cannot find the right email, ask the sender which type of request was sent rather than forwarding an old family member's link.

Owner, Admin and Member: permissions for this workflow

The client portal is not a fourth staff role. Clients see linked/shared client-facing content, their assigned requests/conversations and the document permissions actually granted. They do not become staff Members or gain Team, Budgets, colleague timesheets, firm billing or the internal client directory merely by accepting an invitation. Staff Owner/Admin rights do not make every file automatically visible to the client.

Compare all staff roles, feature restrictions and exceptions