Payroll & Year-End File
Payroll, T-slips, and a year-end file your accountant will thank you for
Payroll, producer T4/T4A slips, GST/HST filing, and a working-paper-ready year-end file — handed cleanly to your external accountant.
What you get
- Payroll processing and remittances
- T4 and T4A preparation and filing
- GST/HST preparation and filing
- Year-end working-paper file
- Clean handoff to your external accountant
What changes for your brokerage
- Payroll run on time, every period
- Producer and staff T4/T4A slips filed correctly
- GST/HST handled on the taxable portion of your revenue
- A clean working-paper file at year-end
- An external accountant who isn't chasing you for schedules
How payroll and the year-end handoff work
Payroll stays connected to the books
Each payroll cycle is posted and reconciled to the payroll-provider records so monthly financial statements reflect staff and producer compensation rather than a year-end catch-up entry.
Treatment is confirmed before filing work
Employee-versus-contractor and GST/HST treatment affects the work, so we apply the position your external accountant has confirmed where judgment is required. We do not provide corporate tax advice or prepare the corporate tax return.
Year-end is an organized handoff
The year-end file brings together reconciled accounts, schedules and documents behind material balances so your external accountant can complete the year-end work without rebuilding the monthly books.
Who does what
BrokerLedger does
- Process the agreed payroll cycle and post the related entries
- Prepare payroll remittances and annual T4 or T4A work within the agreed scope
- Prepare GST/HST working papers and returns using the treatment your external accountant has set
- Maintain supporting schedules for the year-end file
Your brokerage does
- Approve payroll changes, compensation and payment releases
- Provide current employee, producer and contractor details
- Confirm payroll-provider, CRA and banking access needed for the agreed work
- Keep your external accountant responsible for corporate tax, tax advice and assurance
- Review and authorize any filing or remittance where your authorization is required
The payroll and year-end calendar
Dates follow your payroll frequency, CRA deadlines and fiscal year end, then are confirmed in the engagement scope.
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Each payroll cycle | Approved inputs are processed, with payroll expense and liabilities posted to the books. |
| Each month | Payroll records and remittances are reconciled to the ledger as part of the close. |
| Before annual slips and GST/HST deadlines | Working papers are reviewed against the treatment and classifications agreed with the external accountant. |
| At fiscal year end | Reconciled accounts and requested schedules are organized into the year-end working-paper file. |
How we get started
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Scope and calendar agreed
We confirm payroll frequency, producer arrangements, GST/HST filing frequency, fiscal year end and approvals.
-
Access and records reviewed
We review payroll-provider access, payroll reports, remittance history, prior slips, GST/HST filings and the existing year-end file.
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Classifications confirmed
Where treatment depends on employment, contractor or GST/HST classification, we document the position your external accountant has provided.
What we need from you to start
- Payroll-provider access or recent payroll registers and remittance confirmations
- Current employee, producer and contractor details
- Prior-year T4 and T4A records
- GST/HST registration and the most recent return
- The treatment and classifications confirmed by your external accountant
- A recent trial balance, last year-end statements and adjusting entries
- Your fiscal year end and external accountant's requested schedule
Is this the right fit?
A good fit
- Brokerages wanting payroll postings and remittances tied to monthly books
- Owners needing T4 or T4A work and year-end schedules organized before deadlines
- Brokerages whose external accountant spends too much time chasing payroll schedules
- Teams with an external accountant setting tax positions
Not what we do
- Corporate income tax returns or tax planning
- Tax advice on employee, contractor or GST/HST treatment
- Audits, reviews and assurance engagements
- Payroll or filing work the brokerage cannot authorize
Related reading
- Monthly brokerage bookkeeping The recurring close that keeps payroll and year-end schedules current.
- Month-end close for brokerages How payroll balances and supporting schedules are reviewed in the close.
- GST/HST on brokerage commission Why commission and separately charged fees need distinct treatment.
The CPA who builds your file knows brokerage accounting
BrokerLedger is CPA-led and works inside Applied Epic. Our services are shaped by how a brokerage's books actually move — agency bill versus direct bill, commission income, producer compensation — not what a generic small-business bookkeeper assumes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Book a discovery call
Tell us about your brokerage and we'll walk you through exactly how we can help. No pressure, no obligation — just a straightforward conversation.
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