Embedded Files
Step Ahead Accounting
An Online Boutique Accounting Firm Based in Dunedin
Serving New Zealand Business Owners and Investors.
Our Difference
Best Results
Over 10 years of delivering technical expertise and optimised tax planning
Service Focused
Big firm capability with small firm personality, always aiming to exceed expectations
Nationwide
Based in Dunedin, our modern process allows us to serve clients across New Zealand
Value Based
A cost-effective firm that saves time and eliminates stress
Director Stephen Ryan being interviewed by Xero for "The Tune-Up" - November 2021.
About Us
Step Ahead Accounting is an industry leader and one of New Zealand’s most respected accounting firms.
The firm's founder, Stephen Ryan, left a senior leadership role at one of the largest accounting firms in the world when he could not reconcile the profit-driven decisions of the company with his own sense of fairness.
As a family man with a wife pursuing a medical career and two school-aged daughters, Step Ahead Accounting was born out of a vision of an accounting firm grounded in the real life necessities, like the daily school run, while still having the integrity to deliver high quality accounting services without the bloated corporate price tag.
We have delivered seminars at national accounting conferences, been featured at international conventions, hosted high-impact webinars, and lectured at Universities. We are trusted not just by clients, but by peers, academics, and regulators.
One Recent Example: Step Ahead Accounting represented the taxpayer in the landmark case behind Inland Revenue Technical Decision Summary 24/24 (published in the Tax Information Bulletin, February 2025). This ruling reshaped the technical interpretation of the taxation date of Employee Share Schemes - a complex area of tax law.
When businesses and investors need clarity on complex tax matters - they come to us.
Who We Work With
Business Owners
Whether you are launching your first venture or scaling an established enterprise, we provide the strategic financial support you need to stay a Step Ahead at every stage of your journey.
We partner with New Zealand business owners across three stages of the business lifecycle:
Stage One: New Businesses
Stage one is about getting the fundamentals put in place right the first time. Whether it's talking structuring, setting up Xero, or filing your first GST return, we're here to help see you through the make or break years by advising the best way forward that will set you up for long term success.
Stage Two: Small Businesses
Stage two is about the transition from surviving to thriving. You know your business can support you financially, so this stage is all about defining what success looks like for you and working towards that. Whether you're looking to scale up your operation, free up time to spend with family, or wind-down to prepare for retirement, having the right support around you can be the difference you need to reach your goals.
Stage Three: Medium Businesses
Stage three is about managing an operation at scale. You've got customers, suppliers, staff, banks, business partners, kids, and your spouse all wanting a piece of you - but there's only so much time in the day. The stress and pressure of juggling all the different balls in the air is a heavy weight to carry alone. We ensure that your accounting is a tool for freedom and not another source of stress, giving you back the mental space to be present for your business and your family.
Investors
Residential Property Investors
Navigating the residential property market in New Zealand has become a complex game of shifting goalposts. With the full restoration of interest deductibility and the shortened two-year bright-line test, the focus has shifted back to long-term tax optimisation and cash flow efficiency. We handle the technical details and provide the strategic oversight needed to ensure your portfolio is structured in a tax efficient manner, so you can focus on building your equity without the "big-firm" price tag.
Commercial Property Investors
The higher yields of commercial property come with a higher level of technical complexity, and greater reporting demands from your bank. Whether you're dealing with intricate GST considerations, complex lease inducements, or the nuances of commercial building depreciation, you want advice that you can depend on. We ensure your investment is tax-efficient and compliant while bank reports are produced in a timely fashion.
Foreign Investment Fund (FIF) Investors
If you hold international shares or offshore interests, you know that the FIF regime is one of the most technical and "unfriendly" areas of New Zealand tax law. Calculating the best outcome between the Fair Dividend Rate (FDR) and Comparative Value (CV) methods, while managing the $50,000 de minimis threshold is a headache most people avoid. Let our FIF experts do the hard work so you can rest easy, safe in the knowledge that your investment is in safe hands.
Public Benefit Entities
Managing a non-profit or community organisation comes with "tiered" reporting obligations that can feel like a moving target. If you are a Tier 3 or 4 entity navigating the recent NFP standard updates we provide the technical rigor your board demands. We specialise in PBEs with expenses between $50k and $5m, ensuring your Performance Report tells your story accurately while meeting every XRB requirement. By providing audit-ready annual reports at a community-conscious price point, we ensure more of your funding stays where it belongs: making an impact in the community.
Law Firms
We partner with Law Firms to provide seamless, high-precision accounting for deceased estates.
Beneficiaries are often navigating difficult life transitions and want the administration handled swiftly so they can move forward.
From an accounting perspective, most estates are straightforward, yet they are often burdened by "big-firm" costs and slow turnaround times.
We’ve built a lean, systemised process that allows us to deliver Estate accounts with unbeatable efficiency.
By outsourcing the financial heavy lifting to us, you can provide your clients with a faster, more cost-effective process while maintaining the highest professional standards.
Director Stephen Ryan presenting the Accountant's Report at the AGM of Te Rangitāne o Wairau - January 2023
How it works
I am with an accountant but looking to switch
"Getting to know you" Phase
The first step is to understand you and what your accounting needs are.
We start off with your choice of an email exchange, phone call, video call, or face-to-face meeting if you are in Dunedin. All options are complimentary, and a call or meeting will typically last between 15 minutes to an hour depending on how complex your affairs are.
If you are happy with us and want to switch over, then we move into the onboarding phase.
"Onboarding" Phase
After discovering what your accounting needs are, we will send out an Engagement Letter which states the scope of the work we will do for you, as well as setting out our terms of service and authority to act as your agent for Inland Revenue and ACC. We will complete AML compliance requirements at this stage (if applicable).
Next, we get in touch with your old accountant and they send us through the information they have on file about you. If they hold your accounting software subscription, e.g. Xero, they pass that on to us to manage for you. If you pay for your software subscription, we'll ask you for access.
You do not need to contact your old accountant at all (unless you want to).
Once your old accountant has passed everything onto us, we will notify Inland Revenue and ACC that we are now your tax agent, and you will officially be a client!
"Review" Phase
We will review the information from your previous accountant and filings with Inland Revenue to make sure our understanding aligns with the scope from the Engagement Letter. If there is something missing from, or additional to, the scope, we will discuss it with you now to make sure you have got everything in place to stay a Step Ahead.
"Preparation & Bring-in" Phase (Annual Financial Statements, Resolutions, and Tax Returns)
One month before your balance date, we will send you an email reminder that the Financial Year is drawing to a close and to start gathering your relevant information.
Once your balance date ticks over, we will send you an email letting you know that you can start sending your information in to us. Most clients simply email their point of contact with their relevant documents attached.
Don't stress if you are not sure what to send, if there is something we need that is missing, we will ask for it. Hot tip: If you want to save money on fees it is actually cheaper to send us less rather than more. If you send us too much extra information, then it slows us down as we have to sift through more information to find the specific things we are looking for.
You will not be billed for anything in the Getting to know you, Onboarding, Review, nor Preparation & Bring-in phases, other than disbursements (e.g. Xero subscription fees).
"Work" Phase
We will start compiling your Annual Financial Statements, Resolutions, and/or Tax Returns and complete as much as we can with the information you have sent us. It is very common for us to have queries, request additional documents, or seek clarification about specific transactions at this stage.
We will typically email you a list of what we need to continue the job and send a progress invoice for the work done to date.
Once you have sent us back the rest of the information required, we will finish everything off and email you a draft copy of the work so far.
Here you have the opportunity to review the documents, highlight anything that doesn't make sense to you and collate any questions you might have.
"Approval, Signing, and Filing" Phase
We will have your choice of an email exchange, phone call, video call, or face-to-face meeting if you are in Dunedin to discuss the documents.
Once you have approved the documents, we will send them out for electronic signing, send out our final invoice and file the tax returns.
Ad-hoc General Advice and Out-of-Scope Work
Clients often have accounting and tax questions throughout the year. While we reserve the right to bill this work, in practicality, we only bill this work on a case-by-case basis when the amount of time spent becomes substantial, at our discretion. If we do decide to charge, we bill this work at hourly rates depending on the complexity of the question. Please ask for a quote or estimate along with your question if you want certainty.
If it is an obviously complex question or out-of-scope piece of work, then we will let you know that we will bill you for this time before undertaking the work.
I do not have an accountant yet
"Getting to know you" Phase
The first step is to understand you and what your accounting needs are.
We start off with your choice of an email exchange, phone call, video call, or face-to-face meeting if you are in Dunedin. All options are complimentary, and a call or meeting will typically last between 15 minutes to an hour depending on how complex your affairs are.
If you are happy with us and want to join up, then we move into the onboarding phase.
"Onboarding" Phase
After discovering what your accounting needs are, we will send out an Engagement Letter which states the scope of the work we will do for you, as well as setting out our terms of service and authority to act as your agent for Inland Revenue and ACC. We will complete AML compliance requirements at this stage (if applicable).
If you have agreed to go with a software recommendation (e.g. Xero) we will set-up this subscription and invite you in. If you already have a software subscription that you pay for, we'll ask you for access.
We will notify Inland Revenue and ACC that we are now your tax agent, and you will officially be a client!
"Review" Phase
We will review your filings with Inland Revenue to make sure our understanding aligns with the scope from the Engagement Letter. If there is something missing from, or additional to, the scope, we will discuss it with you now to make sure you have got everything in place to stay a Step Ahead.
"Preparation & Bring-in" Phase (Annual Financial Statements, Resolutions and Tax Returns)
One month before your balance date, we will send you an email reminder that the Financial Year is drawing to a close and to start gathering your relevant information.
Once your balance date ticks over, we will send you an email letting you know that you can start sending your information in to us. Most clients simply email their point of contact with their relevant documents attached.
Don't stress if you are not sure what to send, if there is something we need that is missing, we will ask for it. Hot tip: If you want to save money on fees it is actually cheaper to send us less rather than more. If you send us too much extra information, then it slows us down as we have to sift through more information to find the specific things we are looking for.
You will not be billed for anything in the Getting to know you, Onboarding, Review, nor Preparation & Bring-in phases, other than disbursements (e.g. Xero subscription fees).
"Work" Phase
We will start compiling your Annual Financial Statements, Resolutions and/or Tax Returns and complete as much as we can with the information you have sent us. It is very common for us to have queries, request additional documents, or seek clarification about specific transactions at this stage.
We will typically email you a list of what we need to continue the job and send a progress invoice for the work done to date.
Once you have sent us back the rest of the information required, we will finish everything off and email you a draft copy of the work so far.
Here you have the opportunity to review the documents, highlight anything that doesn't make sense to you and collate any questions you might have.
"Approval, Signing, and Filing" Phase
We will have your choice of an email exchange, phone call, video call, or face-to-face meeting if you are in Dunedin to discuss the documents.
Once you have approved the documents, we will send them out for electronic signing, send out our final invoice and file the tax returns.
Ad-hoc General Advice and Out-of-Scope Work
Clients often have accounting and tax questions throughout the year. While we reserve the right to bill this work, in practicality, we only bill this work on a case-by-case basis when the amount of time spent becomes substantial, at our discretion. If we do decide to charge, we bill this work at hourly rates depending on the complexity of the question. Please ask for a quote or estimate along with your question if you want certainty.
If it is an obviously complex question or out-of-scope piece of work, then we will let you know that we will bill you for this time before undertaking the work.
Pricing
What does a typical annual job cost?
Clients typically pay between $500 & $3,500 + GST, but everybody's situation is different so your pricing will depend on the complexity of your accounting needs.
The factors that determine price include things like:
If you use accounting software, if all transactions are captured in the software, and how accurately those transactions are recorded
Complexity of the Structure and Shareholding
If you're registered for other tax types, e.g. GST, FBT, Payroll
What's on your balance sheet, e.g. inventory, work-in-progress, loans, retentions
A $500 + GST job might look like a sole-trader who uses Xero perfectly, is not registered for GST, FBT, or Payroll, and does not have any complexity on the balance sheet.
While a $3,500 + GST job might look like a company with 5 different shareholders, one of which sold their shareholding during the year. They are using Xero, but some of the transactions have been incorrectly coded, which means their GST returns are not correct, and their payroll filings with IRD do not match the figures in Xero. They have purchased plant & equipment using loans during the year.
In the "Get to know you phase" we get an understanding of what your accounting needs are so that we can provide a free estimate that's tailored to your accounting needs.
What does a typical GST return cost?
For GST returns, we typically estimate $150 + GST every two month period.
Included in the GST service is regular ledger maintenance throughout the year which streamlines the compiling of the annual financial statements, resolutions, and tax returns - saving clients money in the long run.
What does a typical rental property cost?
Most residential rental properties fall within the $300 - $500 + GST range, but there are a few factors that determine the final price.
In the "Get to know you phase" we get an understanding of what your accounting needs are so that we can provide a free estimate that's tailored to your accounting needs.
How are ad-hoc questions billed?
Clients often have accounting and tax questions throughout the year.
While we reserve the right to bill this work, in practicality, we only bill this work on a case-by-case basis when the amount of time spent becomes substantial, at our discretion. If we do bill this work, it's at hourly rates depending on the complexity of the question.
If you want certainty, please ask for a quote or estimate along with your question.
If it is a complex question or out of scope piece of work, then we will let you know that we will bill you for this time before undertaking the work.
Do you do fixed-fee monthly packages?
While bespoke monthly fixed-fee packages are available on request, please be aware that the extra risk of these typically result in a higher overall fee when compared with charging hourly rates.
Businesses are so different from one another that it is impossible to be able to provide a one-size fits all price on a website without either sacrificing quality, or charging bloated rates.
How are Accounting Software Subscriptions (Xero/MYOB) billed?
Software subscriptions are billed separately each month.
What Our Clients Say
Recent Insights
Get In Touch
We're here to help you succeed, so reach out today!
info@stepaheadaccounting.co.nz
027 759 8076
Report abuse