Engagement letters and e-signing

Generate engagement letters, send them for e-signing via Annature or DocuSign and trigger post-sign automation, all from inside Finye.

A signed engagement letter is the foundation of every client relationship in an Australian practice. It sets the scope of services, clarifies fees and responsibilities, and keeps you aligned with TPB obligations. Finye lets you generate engagement letters from your client records, send them for electronic signing through Annature or DocuSign, and automatically progress the client once they sign. This guide walks you through the full cycle, from drafting to countersigning to the work that flows on afterwards.

Before you begin

You will need a client record already set up in Finye, with at least one contact who has a valid email address. If you have not added the client yet, work through the getting started guide first. To send for signature you also need an Annature or DocuSign account connected to your workspace. An administrator connects this once under Settings, and from then on every staff member can send letters without configuring anything further.

Step 1: Connect your e-signing provider

This is a one-off task for an administrator.

Open Settings and find the Engagements or e-signing integration section.
Choose your provider, either Annature or DocuSign, and enter the API key or credentials supplied by that provider.
Save the connection. Finye confirms the link, and signature requests will now route through your chosen provider.

If your practice has not chosen a provider yet, Annature is built for the Australian market and is a common choice for local firms. You can change providers later without losing past engagements.

Step 2: Generate an engagement letter

Engagement letters are created from the client you are engaging, so the client's details populate automatically.

Open the client record and go to the Engagements tab.
Select New engagement letter.
Pick a template, or start from a blank letter. Templates save time when you issue the same scope repeatedly, such as a standard compliance engagement.
Confirm the merged details, including the client name, entity type and the contact who will sign.

Setting the scope and fees

Be specific about what the engagement covers. Spell out the services in scope, for example the preparation and lodgment of the company income tax return and quarterly BAS, and note anything excluded so expectations are clear. Where fees are fixed or estimated, state them plainly. A precise scope protects both the practice and the client if questions arise later.

Step 3: Review and send for signing

Once the letter reads correctly, send it to the client.

Preview the full letter to check the wording, scope and fee figures.
Confirm the signing contact and their email address.
Select Send for signature. Finye passes the document to Annature or DocuSign, which emails the client a secure link to review and sign electronically.

You can track the status from the client's Engagements tab. The engagement moves through clear states, typically sent, then viewed, then signed, so you always know whether the client has opened the letter or still needs a nudge.

Step 4: Countersign and complete

Most engagements require the practice to countersign after the client. When the client has signed, Finye notifies you and prompts the responsible principal to add the firm's signature through the same provider. Once both parties have signed, the provider returns the completed, legally executed document and Finye stores it against the client record. The fully signed copy is available to download whenever you need it for your files or an audit.

Step 5: Let post-sign automation do the rest

The value of running engagements inside Finye is what happens automatically once a letter is signed. Rather than manually kicking off the onboarding tasks, Finye can progress the client for you. Depending on how your workspace is configured, signing an engagement can:

Update the client's status so your team knows they are engaged and ready for work.
Generate the work items needed to begin the engagement, so nothing is missed at handover.
Record the signed letter as the reference document for the agreed scope.

This removes the gap between a client agreeing to proceed and your team actually starting, which is where engagements often stall.

Tips for a smooth process

Build a small set of templates. One per common service line keeps your letters consistent and fast to issue.
Re-engage each financial year. Refreshing engagement letters annually keeps scope and fees current and supports your TPB compliance.
Check the signing contact. For a company or trust, make sure the person signing has the authority to bind the entity.

With your provider connected and a few templates in place, issuing a properly scoped, signed engagement becomes a few minutes of work. From there, your client records, compliance tracking and invoicing all build on the same foundation. To see how the signed engagement feeds into the rest of your workflow, continue with the other articles in the complete guide to Finye.