The verdict in three sentences
In an accounting practice the bottleneck is not data entry, it is document collection: purchase invoices, bank statements and expense receipts arriving late by email, WhatsApp or in a shoebox. A client portal with mobile upload, OCR and a deadline dashboard gives the firm back several production days a month and shows exactly what is missing. Choosing between an off-the-shelf licence and a custom application depends on client volume, integration with your practice software and the need for your own brand.
The hidden cost of chasing clients
A partner in a 35-person London practice manages 420 clients: limited companies, sole traders, landlords. Every month the team spends around 6 person-days chasing, sorting and renaming documents. Making Tax Digital for VAT already requires digital records, and MTD for Income Tax, phased in from April 2026 for sole traders and landlords above 50,000 GBP of income, adds quarterly updates. Every client delay becomes a firm emergency.
| Item | Today | With client portal | Estimated gain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chasing by phone and email | 6 days per month | 1.5 days (automated reminders) | 4.5 days |
| Sorting and renaming documents | 40 hours per month | 10 hours (OCR and filing) | 30 hours |
| Lost or duplicate documents | 3 to 5 % of files | under 1 % | quality |
| Monthly close | day 20 on average | day 12 | 8 days |
| Signing accounts and returns | in-person or email back-and-forth | e-signature | faster sign-off |
| Client view of deadlines | none | dashboard | fewer inbound calls |
These are 2026 estimates from comparable practices. They show the topic is economic before it is technical.
The features that really matter
Mobile upload with OCR. The client photographs a receipt; OCR extracts supplier, date, net amount, VAT and VAT number, and files it in the right client and period.
Outstanding documents list. For each client the portal shows what is missing: March bank statement, sales invoices, payroll report. Reminders go out automatically by email and SMS at day 5 and day 10.
Deadline dashboard. VAT returns, MTD quarterly updates, payments on account, Self Assessment, Companies House confirmation statements: the client sees dates and filing status.
E-signature. Engagement letters, accounts and returns are signed online with a timestamp and audit trail.
Messaging per client. Conversations stay with the client file instead of individual inboxes.
Off-the-shelf licence or custom build
| Criterion | Licensed portal (market) | Kolonell custom application |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | 3 to 6 GBP per client per month, about 15,000 to 30,000 GBP a year for 420 clients (order of magnitude 2026) | simple 2,500,000 to 4,000,000 FCFA (3,810 to 6,100 EUR), medium 4,000,000 to 7,000,000 FCFA (6,100 to 10,670 EUR), complex 7,000,000 to 15,000,000+ FCFA (10,670 to 22,870+ EUR) |
| Ownership | subscription, data with the vendor | firm owns code and data |
| Practice software integration | standard connectors | connector built for your stack |
| MTD workflows | depends on vendor | built around your process |
| Branding | vendor logo visible | fully branded portal |
| Roadmap | vendor's | yours |
| Lead time | 2 to 4 weeks of setup | 10 to 14 weeks |
A portal with OCR, deadlines, e-signature and a practice software connector usually falls in the medium band. Hosting, maintenance (35,000, 75,000 or 120,000 FCFA per month depending on level, that is 53, 114 or 183 EUR) and options are detailed in the quote.
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Mini case study
Emma, a partner in a 35-person London practice, values staff time at about 60 GBP per billable hour. The 4.5 days of chasing saved plus 30 hours of sorting add up to 66 hours a month, about 3,960 GBP a month and 47,520 GBP a year of recovered capacity.
A licence at 4.50 GBP per client per month costs 22,680 GBP a year for 420 clients, every year. The custom route is a one-off build in the medium band, then monthly maintenance. Over three years the licence totals more than 68,000 GBP, while a firm owning its portal pays only maintenance after year one. The answer depends on horizon: under 150 clients a licence is often rational; above 300 clients with a specific practice stack, custom makes sense.
FAQ
How accurate is OCR on UK receipts?
Modern OCR reaches 90 to 95 % field accuracy on clear photos. Staff confirm uncertain fields in one click before posting.
How long to roll the portal out to 420 clients?
The build takes 10 to 14 weeks. Rollout then runs in waves of 50 to 100 clients over 4 to 6 weeks, with a short help video.
Is client data protected under UK GDPR?
The portal encrypts traffic and storage, logs every access and supports UK GDPR obligations, including retention rules. Hosting location is agreed with the firm.
Can it connect to our practice and bookkeeping software?
Yes, that is often the reason for going custom. A structured export or API link removes re-keying for 100 % of purchase entries.
What if a client refuses to use the portal?
Staff can upload documents received by other channels. In practice 70 to 80 % of clients adopt mobile upload within 3 months once automated reminders are live.
Let's scope your project. We map your document flows, deadlines and integrations, then fix a scope deliverable in 10 to 14 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
